Colby Covington reacts after weighing-in as the backup fighter at UFC 286

Colby Covington surprised many when he weighed in as the backup fighter for UFC 286.

At the UFC 286 press conference, Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman were both asked about the rumor that Covington was spotted in London and whether or not he was the backup fighter. Both said this was the first they heard of it, so many put it to rest.

Yet, on Friday morning, Covington took to the scale and weighed in at 170lbs to be the official backup fighter. After he weighed in, he took to social media to react to it and called himself the real main event.

Colby with a message after a surprise weigh-in this morning in London for #UFC286 pic.twitter.com/BBuuzzZ1WF

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) March 17, 2023

“The real Main Event,” Covington wrote on Instagram.

With Covington being the official backup fighter for Edwards-Usman 3, it’s uncertain if that means he will face the winner for the belt. ‘Chaos’ hasn’t fought since last March when he beat Jorge Masvidal by decision and since then, he has gone radio silent due to the investigation after Masvidal allegedly assaulted him.

Covington certainly is a big-name fight for Edwards to fight should the Brit defend his belt on Saturday, so that does make some sense. However, ‘Chaos’ is 0-2 against Usman so whether or not he gets a third crack is uncertain, even though both fights were competitive. But, there’s no question that Covington will be vocal after Saturday night at whoever wins to try and get the next title shot at welterweight.

Colby Covington (17-3) is just 2-2 in his last four as he beat Masvidal last time out and before that, suffered a decision loss to Usman for the title. Prior to that, he submitted Tyron Woodley to get back into the win column after losing by fifth-round TKO to Usman for the belt. In his UFC tenure, he holds notable wins over Rafael dos Anjos for the winter title, Demian Maia, and Robbie Lawler.

Do you think Colby Covington should face the winner of Edwards-Usman 3 next?