Jorge Masvidal defends Colby Covington after recent backlash

Last weekend, in the co-main event of the UFC’s action-packed return to Sao Paulo, Brazil, surging UFC welterweight Colby Covington picked up the biggest win of his career thus far, defeating Demian Maia with a dominant unanimous decision. As impressive as Covington’s win was, however, it has been somewhat overshadowed by his headline-dominating his post-fight speech. In this speech, Covington referred to Brazil as “a dump,” and its residents as “filthy animals.” What followed was a wave of controversy.

On Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour, Covington’s friend and training partner Jorge Masvidal jumped to his defense, assuring that there’s no reason to be upset about this post-fight speech.

“I think he’s all in the right man,” Masvidal said. “Especially if he meant that. If that came from his heart, man, you can’t get mad at him, that’s how he feels.”

Masvidal also commented on the backlash Covington has received from his teammates at American Top Team, including heavyweight Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva and UFC women’s bantamweight champ Amanda Nunes.

“Who gives a fuck what happens man,” Masvidal said. “That’s my partner, I got his back, he’s got mine. Don’t nobody want problems either, I’ll tell you that right now.”

Finally, Masvidal assured that Covington’s bout with Maia went exactly has he expected.

“Just like I told everybody who has interviewed me, unless Colby trips and falls and Maia takes his back, it’s gonna be a bad night for Maia, cause Colby’s a better wrestler, more athletic, and [he has] way more gas,” he said. “I’ve rolled with Colby for five, six years. I only spent 15 minutes with Maia, but I knew there was a huge vast difference in the wrestling, you know?”

Do you agree with Jorge Masvidal’s take on the recent Colby Covington controversy? Join the conversation in the comments section!

This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 10/30/2017.