McGregor denies laughing at Covington's 40-second submission loss in Rome

Conor McGregor took to X on November 4 to deny that he was mocking Colby Covington after footage circulated appearing to show him laughing in the moments following Covington’s submission loss to Raul Rosas Jr. at Hype FC in Rome.

Covington faced Rosas Jr. in a submission-grappling match at the Rome event on November 3, and the contest lasted just 40 seconds before Rosas Jr. secured a rear-naked choke to force the tap. A broadcast camera cut to McGregor as “El Nino Problema” celebrated his short-notice victory, capturing the former two-division UFC champion visibly laughing — footage that quickly spread across social media with the implication he was revelling in Covington’s defeat.

McGregor rejected that reading entirely, arguing the clip had been deliberately timed to make it appear as though his laughter coincided with Covington’s loss.

“This is false and fully edited,” McGregor wrote on X. “I had an amazing and fun time at the show in Rome tonight, as is evident in the clip of myself laughing, however it’s placement as if it was at this moment of the show is FALSE. I do not laugh at competing men and women. I respect them! Win lose draw! Bravo to all the combatants and thank you!”

What McGregor was actually laughing at remains unclear from the available footage. The clip does show him laughing while Rosas Jr. was embracing his team, though the precise sequence of events on the broadcast has not been independently verified.

The incident adds another footnote to the long-running animosity between McGregor and Covington, two figures who have traded barbs publicly over the years. Covington’s loss to the 21-year-old Rosas Jr. — a fighter who stepped in on short notice — drew significant attention in MMA circles, and McGregor’s apparent reaction only amplified the story.