It wasn’t just Colby Covington who faced disappointment with the way his fight went down against Joaquin Buckley. Even Dana White‘s angry about it, especially with the way the main event of UFC Tampa ended. As ‘New Mansa’ dominated ‘Chaos’ and left him bloodied, the doctor had to step in and stop the fight, which wasn’t something that the UFC CEO expected.

Dana White appeared very surprised by the doctor’s decision to end the main event in the third round. For context, Joaquin Buckley was at his best at UFC Tampa as he busted up Colby Covington in the very first five minutes of their encounter. As ‘New Mansa’ continued to land strike after strike on the former interim champion, doctors believed ending the fight was the right call, with blood gushing all over Colby’s face. However, the 55-year-old promoter didn’t feel like there was a need to stop the fight, claiming that if the Fight Night event had taken place in Nevada, things would have been much different.

“I was curious to see how it would go if it went five rounds,” said Dana White during the post-fight presser. “No doubt that was a bad cut, but the fight doesn’t get stopped in Vegas. That fight keeps going in Vegas.”

This isn’t the first time Dana White has disagreed with a doctor’s stoppage. Back in UFC 294, the CEO lashed out at the ringside doctor, who called for the Johnny Walker vs Magomed Ankalaev fight to stop after the Russian star hit the Brazilian star with an illegal knee. Meanwhile, Colby Covington might have the support of Dana White regarding the outcome of his fight, but his lackluster performance did him no good among the UFC pros. Even former champions reacted to his showing at Tampa.

UFC pros’ reactions to Colby Covington’s TKO loss

One of the quickest reactions to Colby Covington’s performance was shared by the champion, Belal Muhammad. Having seen how ‘Chaos’ reacts to his losses, ‘Remember the Name’ claimed that Covington could be ready with some excuses after his defeat to Joaquin Buckley. “Man I knows he’s gonna have a bunch of excuses but he just sucks,” Muhammad stated.

On the other hand, Henry Cejudo, like many others, claimed that Joaquin Buckley “rawdogged” Covington in Tampa, a city in the state that he calls home, while giving the Louisville native his flowers and touting him for a potential title shot in the future. Former light heavyweight champion, Jamahal Hill, also hopped on the Buckley bandwagon, with a “Yes sir” to his potential title shot claim.

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While it remains to be seen how Colby Covington reacts to the finish to his fight, Joaquin Buckley’s eying former champion Kamaru Usman next, as he extended his winning streak to 6 fights. Unlike that one callout to Conor McGregor, which people didn’t seem impressed with, Buckley made sure to ask the people who he needed to fight and they made ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ their pick.

Coming back to the doctor’s stoppage, even if Dana White doesn’t agree with that decision, he could consider how bad the cut on Colby Covington’s right eyelid really is. According to MMA reporter Aaron Bronsteter, such cuts near the eye have long-term implications for a fighter’s well-being. It could prove detrimental and affect Covington’s eyes and his vision. Let us know your thoughts regarding the finish of UFC Tampa’s main event in the comments down below.