Kamaru Usman Rated Top Favourite In UFC Rematch With Covington

Nigeria’s Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman has been rated ‘top favourite’ for victory in his rematch Saturday night against Colby Covington, BSNSports.com.ng reports.

With memories still agog of how ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ dumped his foe in the fifth round of their fist fight two years ago, all odds are supporting him to repeat the feat heading into the early hours of Sunday.

A preview of the fight by Jack Hemming noted in part: “Back in December 2019 UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman beat controversial loudmouth Colby Covington at UFC 245, and now there are plans for the two to meet in the octagon once again.

“In one of the most gripping and exciting title fights of all time, Usman retained the welterweight belt via a fifth-round knockout, having already broken the All-American Covington’s jaw earlier in the third.

“Two years on and the pair have been commissioned to fight the rematch, with the date targeted for UFC 268 on November 6 at Madison Square Garden.

“Having fought twice already this year, Kamaru Usman (19-1) has looked as dangerous as ever in 2021 after his emphatic second-round knockout of Jorge Masvidal in April.

“Extending his win streak in the UFC to 14, beaten in that statistic only by Hall-of-Famer Anderson Silva’s 16, Usman looks to be one of the scariest challenges the division has ever seen.

“Covington (16-2), on the other hand, hasn’t appeared inside the octagon since September 2020, following his TKO victory over former champion Tyron Woodley. His ability is not to be underestimated.

“While their first encounter at UFC 245 left Covington looking as though he’d fought blindfolded, the fight was very close at times and the American contender certainly has the ability to hurt the UFC’s first-ever African champion.”

Sports Zion writer, Nafiz Tahmid added in his own preview: “Kamaru Usman will meet Colby Covington once again at UFC 268 to defend the title.

“However, the duo met previously at UFC 245 in December 2019. So, this will be a rematch and Covington will certainly be looking for revenge as he lost the first matchup.

“Usman earned the Welterweight title at UFC 235 by defeating Tyron Woodley. Since then, Usman has defended the title four times and will square off at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

“As of September 27, 2021, Usman ranked #1 in the UFC men’s pound-for-pound rankings. Hence, he will have extra confidence in the upcoming title defense.

“On the other hand, Covington appeared in one fight against Tyron Woodley since his defeat to Usman, which was a win for him. Although Covington will be entering the ring after one year, he appeared to have full confidence.

“While both fighters have impressive jiu-jitsu or wrestling skills which may lead to a kickboxing battle, who do you think will rule the 25 minutes show?

“Well, this might be difficult to predict accurately, but we can predict the purse and payout before the fight ends.

“According to, Nevada State Athletic Commission, both Usman and Covington earned $500K in the UFC 245. However, this amount doesn’t include the sponsorship payment and fight night bonuses.

“Considering the facts and sources Usman is expected to earn at least a $500,000 guaranteed purse while Covington is also expected to earn $500,000 at UFC 268.

“If we consider the PPV shares, Kamaru Usman might get a $1-$1.5 million payout.”

Another important part of the countdown came when Usman got another verbal broadside from Covington, who stated in a recent interview with MMA Fighting that ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ was avoiding their rematch.

Covington said: “As soon as his balls stop shrinking and he comes back to earth, he can fight me again. But the thing is, he’s off the grid.

“He’s probably got his phone on airplane mode; he’s denying all the UFC’s calls.  He doesn’t want to sign the contract.

“He’s just hoping some alien invasion happens where he can pick some other lightweight washout to fight.”