What started as pre-fight trash talk at Real American Freestyle 5 has quickly turned into a personal feud between Colby Covington and Bo Nickal. Now, Nickal says he is ready to settle things the old-fashioned way.
Both men were slated to compete at RAF 5 last Saturday. Covington wrestled Luke Rockhold in the main event, while Nickal was booked to face Yoel Romero. However, Nickal withdrew after Romero missed weight, and the situation only fueled tensions between Covington and Nickal.
The two exchanged heated words during the pre-match press conference, but Covington continued taking shots after Nickal pulled out of the event. Speaking with Ariel Helwani on Monday, Nickal said he expected a more professional response.
“Honestly, after that, I thought there was a chance for Colby to come in, keep it classy, keep it professional, and every wrestler would have respected him,” Nickal said. “He didn’t have to play those games, but obviously he did.”
Nickal took particular issue with comments Covington made referencing Penn State and the Jerry Sandusky scandal.
“He brought up the Penn State, Sandusky stuff, which I wasn’t even there for,” Nickal said. “I came five years after that. He was just trying to troll.”
From there, Nickal made it clear that his feelings toward Covington go beyond competition.
“At the end of the day, I think that guy’s a bum. He’s an idiot,” Nickal said. “I would love to get in the cage with him. For me, that fight would be personal. Every fight up to this point has been for sport. This one would be different.”
Covington has spent nearly a decade as one of MMA’s biggest lightning rods, drawing attention through personal attacks and polarizing rhetoric. Given that reputation, Nickal believes a showdown at the rumoured UFC White House event in June would make sense.
“When everything happened with Yoel not making weight, I said I’d wrestle Colby,” Nickal said. “I told him I’d give him my entire purse. I’d do it for free. He knows how bad I’d embarrass him, and that’s why he won’t do it.”
“I think we do it in the UFC in June at the White House,” he said. “I can absolutely rip that guy apart, send him packing and end his career. I don’t think he’d ever wrestle me, but as far as fighting goes, there’s a chance the UFC makes him.”
Nickal also pointed to Covington’s recent comments about moving up to middleweight as further motivation.
“After the event, he said he was coming up to middleweight,” Nickal said. “People asked him, ‘Why don’t you fight Bo?’ He said, ‘He’s not on my level.’ That’s fine. If I’m such an easy check, let’s get in there and I’ll embarrass you in front of the entire world.”
A career welterweight, Covington has flirted with bouts at 185 pounds in the past. Now 38 years old, he has not recorded a win since 2022 outside of his recent wrestling match and has spent more than a year away from MMA competition.
“I think that guy’s a fake. He’s a phony,” Nickal said. “He’s a fraud. He couldn’t hack it in wrestling and got lucky in MMA at a time when people didn’t have the skills to deal with him.”
“He hasn’t won anything in seven years,” Nickal said. “I don’t think he gets out of the first round with me. I would love to end his career.”
For now, the feud between Covington and Nickal remains unresolved, but with both men circling the UFC White House event, the tension may not stay theoretical for long.
