Covington calls Chimaev a 'quitter' after Strickland stripped him of UFC middleweight title

Colby Covington has labelled Khamzat Chimaev mentally weak and a ‘quitter’ in the wake of Chimaev’s split-decision loss to Sean Strickland at UFC 328 in May, a defeat that cost Chimaev both his middleweight championship and his unbeaten record.

Strickland entered the fight as a considerable underdog but outlasted Chimaev in a largely striking-based contest to become a two-time UFC middleweight champion. Much of the post-fight discussion centred on Chimaev’s difficult weight cut and whether it compromised his performance, but Covington — speaking to Submission Radio — rejected that framing entirely.

“It was a weird fight,” Covington said. “He started making all those excuses for the weight cut. It’s like, bro, you already went up a weight class. It’s not the weight cut, it’s a discipline cut. It’s a mental type of cut. You’re cut from a different cloth. You could see he kind of has that quitter in him.”

Covington pointed specifically to a moment in the second round when Chimaev pulled guard — a defensive wrestling position — as evidence of a deeper character flaw. “What was he doing, pulling guard in the second round? I could never imagine just accepting guard and pulling guard,” he said. “I think he’s mentally weak and that’s why I’ve always been excited to compete against him because people that I compete against that aren’t mentally strong, I’m going to expose them every time.”

The comments carry added edge given that Covington and Chimaev are both currently competing under the RAF banner. Chimaev is headlining RAF 10 this Saturday in St. Louis against Dillon Danis, with Covington scheduled to be in attendance. A future wrestling match between the two under the RAF format is a possibility, and one Covington is openly pursuing.

“I see a lot of weaknesses,” Covington said. “I see a clear path to victory and a game plan and strategy that can be implemented. Three two-minute rounds in a wrestling match, I’m coming out and giving you the kitchen sink and some. He might make it through around two minutes of Round 1, but Round 2 and 3 is when I come on strongest.”

Covington himself is set to face Arman Tsarukyan at RAF 11 on July 18. Tsarukyan, who also competes at RAF 10 this weekend, is a training partner of Chimaev’s, raising the prospect of a tense encounter between the two camps in St. Louis. Covington said he welcomes the confrontation.