Colby Covington has been a force to be reckoned with in the UFC welterweight division. Except for his loss to Kamaru Usman, who is arguably the best fighter in UFC at the moment, Colby Covington has overcome every single opponent in his UFC journey so far.
He became the UFC interim welterweight champion by beating Rafael Dos Anjos, which is a prestige only very handful of fighters in the world can achieve. And he will have another opportunity to win the undisputed UFC welterweight title when he takes on Usman at UFC 268.
For Colby Covington winning the welterweight title might be the biggest goal of his career at the moment. But, he did not have the same goal growing up as a wrestling savage. Covington was a decorated wrestler and had a promising career had he continued his journey in wrestling.
Also Read: Colby Covington on the Kamaru Usman rematch: I am ready to smash him and cement my legacy
Colby Covington on why he started his journey in MMA
Had Colby Covington continued wrestling he might have even gone to the Olympics to represent the USA at the most prestigious stage. However, Covington focused on his MMA journey instead.
In a recent appearance on Candace’s show, Colby Covington opened up on his decision to start MMA and stated:
“My whole life. Since I was 5 years old, I got into wrestling and karate. I decided to follow this MMA dream when I was in high school because it was the best way to create a better life for me and my family. There was not a lot of money in wrestling or going to Olympics. It was trying to get to UFC and make a better life for yourself.”
Colby Covington is not the only wrestler who has transitioned into MMA. There are MMA legends such as Daniel Cormier, Henry Cejudo, Yoel Romero, Chris Weidman who have huge accomplishments in the sports of wrestling as well. Henry Cejudo even wold a Gold medal for the country before transitioning into MMA.
Now, Covington might have done the same had he continued his career in wrestling. But, we have to agree that Covington’s decision to focus on his MMA career has paid off really well as he is main eventing in UFC right now. And he is one of the biggest stars in the company right now.