Colby Covington speaks to ESPN’s Brett Okamoto ahead of his upcoming matchup against Leon Edwards at UFC 296. Stream …
[Music] you guys have been top welterweights now for years you know how much time have you really given to thinking about Leon Edward you know I’ve been thinking about this guy for a long time I’m excited to get out there and fight him I eat sleep and breathe fighting you know I’m married to the game I don’t have a wife I don’t have kids my full focus and dedication Brett is getting better every day and studying my future opponents I always say I want to fight the biggest and best fights so this is the biggest and best fight the UFC can put together and this is Undisputed world fight did you think that he was going to be here at some point like did you think that he was of that caliber that like this is a guy I’m going to run into I just I don’t want to fight down right now to be honest no I didn’t I I’ve seen the quitter in him I I know he’s taken the easy way out in past fights and if you push him to that Brink I I just think that he has that that mentality to quit and so how do you think he’s gotten to where he is a lot of luck and timing his first win it was a fluke he was getting dominated the whole fight and he just got a lucky kick so he wasn’t the same movement that I fought you know a guy that was in his prime and his his early 30s it was hungry to actually want to fight someone and hurt someone you hear that saying sometimes that when you win a championship you become like 30% better just because like the mindset like you feel at home like you’re like okay I’m a man now yeah do you think that that’s happened with Leon at all like when you saw the rematch with kamaru or did you think just think that kamaru had dropped off you know I I definitely seen both sides to that I seen a guy that that dropped off in Camaro who’s just looking to fight for paychecks now he doesn’t look like he has that same hunger anymore maybe his body’s catching up to him but on the other side I’ve seen a guy and and Leon who you know is you know he’s just coasting you know he doesn’t want to come out and defend the belt why don’t you want to defend you know why aren’t you clamoring to start selling your next fight why are you like trying to downplay every fight and act like you’re the man and you’re invincible so that shows me a lot about him that you know he doesn’t have that hunger he doesn’t have that drive to get up in the morning to defend that bill against someone who’s going to come at him relentlessly for 25 minutes so I’m going to put him in in an uncomfortable spot and I don’t think he likes uncomfortable places I’ve seen you say in other other interviews that uh you want this to just be dominant you want this to you want to end his career you you want to make him so uh upset with how it goes that he really doesn’t want to go back in there that can be fight talk or is there there’s something to that like is there a reason why you’re saying it that way no I really mean it I I don’t I want to change this guy for the rest of his life if I want him to think about kobby Covington and I want to haunt him in his dreams you know they delayed me for a long time but now I cannot be denied what was the biggest difference between the first championship fight and the second championship fight and I don’t mean like what happened in there I just mean kind of like your mindset or something whatever was important to you how you felt going in and then what’s going to be the biggest difference going into this third one you know what I’ve learned from that is I need to separate myself and I don’t need to leave it in the hands of the judges so this fight I plan on taking this into my own will and have you visualized what’s it’s going to feel like what’s going to look like getting that belt like do do you have an good idea of what that’s going to feel like in in in your in your head and in your heart I do you know I’m a big believer in visualization so every day when I’m in the gym I just see myself inside that octagon I see you know Donald Trump and Dana White putting that belt around my waist I just see these things happening like I feel them like I really truly believe this is Destiny and there’s nothing anybody can do to stop it they can say all these things oh he’s not deserving oh he’s sat out this and that you cannot deny Destiny when this fight is over is it going to be one of those fights where it’s like man it doesn’t even look like K was in a fight are you you you picturing like like I’m going to make this easy or you expecting to walk through a little fire in this fight you know I love the fire you know if it happens you know I’m I’m ready for and I embrace it but honestly I just see this being a Flawless Victory and I think you can tell by Leon’s reaction he hasn’t said one thing about it he was afraid to for this fight he didn’t want this fight he was refusing this fight when he knows this is the top contender in the division that he needs to come out here and prove his Title reign against so you know I think his silence is deafening and and I think he knows what’s coming and I think it’s going to be a Flawless Victory come December 16th what kind of champion are you going to be like what do you want your Title reign to look like I want to be an active Champion I want to turn around and fight in March I’m in my Prime right now bro so I’m ready to fight all the best comers bring them all I want the biggest and best fights UFC has to offer and I’m going to make welterweight division great again