Anthony Smith says Colby Covington is ‘scared cat’ off camera

Anthony Smith is not a fan of Colby Covington

“Lionheart”, who is set to face Jon Jones for the light heavyweight title at UFC 235 on Mar. 2, didn’t hold back on the controversial welterweight After a Twitter exchange with Covington a few weeks back, Smith decided to address the issue on The MMA Hour on Monday.

 “The only reason I said anything in that situation to Colby is because, a month ago when Colby was going off about losing his own title shot, he threw me under the bus almost to defend himself for needing one,” Smith explained (transcript via MMA Fighting). “Like, ‘Well, Anthony Smith got one and he’s a piece of shit, so why can’t I get one?’ And I just, it’s the same with the Luke Rockhold thing. Like, I just hate people that are just assholes for no reason.”

Anthony Smith went on to explain that he had a run in with Covington last June during UFC 225 fight week. From that interaction, Smith believes the Covington persona we all see online and in interviews is not the same off camera.  

 “My manager owns a gym in Chicago, so when we were both there fighting on that card (at UFC 225), I just trained at my manager’s gym because it’s more comfortable there. So I’m there working out and Colby comes in, because he has to find somewhere as far away from UFC fighters as he can get to train, not knowing that it’s owned by one of the managers of some of the guys in the UFC. And then he gets there and he’s the most skittish person I’ve ever seen. He looks like a scared cat when he’s not around all the cameras — and I understand what he’s doing, I get it, but he’s put himself in a position where he can’t just be a normal person in normal places anymore because he’s pissed everybody off.

“So, he has to hide off in the corner of the gym the whole time and keep looking over his shoulder because he doesn’t know who wants to come in and slap him in the back of the head, and that’s how he is away from the cameras and everyone else. And that’s my only issue, is that he’s just attacking people who are not in his way. It’d be like me attacking ‘55ers. Like, what’s the point of that? I don’t understand how that puts you forward in your career anymore.”

UFC 235 takes place Mar. 2 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Anthony Smith challenges Jon Jones for the light heavyweight championship.

This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 2/19/2019.