In the co-main event of UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Brunson in Brazil, welterweight contender Colby Covington notched the biggest win of his career, as he defeated Sao Paulo’s own Demian Maia by unanimous decision. On a night in which the Brazilians had largely dominated their opponents, Covington became just the second foreign fighter to defeat a Brazilian on the entire card.
Maia began the fight with a couple of nice left hands from his southpaw stance, and Covington just smiled even as he was getting tagged repeatedly. Demian stopped for a single-leg but Covington posted his hand up and stopped himself from being put on his back. Covington threw several hard leg kicks in response to the early and surprising attacks from Maia. The right side of Covington’s face was bleeding as a result of those left hands, but Covington was continuing to find success with the kicks to the lead leg, and that opened up opportunities to land punches to the head.. A late shot by Maia was stuffed, as Covington sprawled excellently. This was a fast-paced kickboxing match throughout round 1, certainly an outcome no one could’ve seen coming.
Maia failed to get the fight to the ground to start round 2, as Covington’s outstanding wrestling skills were on display. Covington spammed overhand lefts and then connected on an uppercut to back Maia up. Another labored single-leg was denied by Covington. It was evident that Maia had faded, and Covington was not interested in going into Demian’s guard. The effects of round 1 meant that the kickboxing battle became increasingly sloppier as the fight progressed.
Covington started round 3 with uppercuts and shovel hooks, as he pressured Maia and continued to stay in his face. They traded shots in close, but Covington was the fresher fighter. The entries were slow and predictable and Covington had an answer every time. Maia tagged Covington with a knee but was losing the output battle. Covington wasn’t amazingly accurate with his boxing, but it was effective enough to win him exchanges. It looked as if a three-punch combo hurt Maia, and his shots were increasingly desperate. Maia was bleeding badly and Covington ended the fight with punches from the front headlock position.
Official result: Colby Covington def. Demian Maia by unanimous decision (29-27, 30-27, 30-26)
Covington said that Brazil was “a dump” and called the people filthy animals. They responded by throwing bottles at him on the way out. He also called for a title shot against current UFC welterweight champ Tyron Woodley. It’s five wins in a row for Covington and a second straight loss for two-time title challenger Maia.