Khamzat Chimaev almost entirely to be blamed for delaying Colby Covington's UFC return, claims the latter 

Colby Covington is set to return to the octagon at UFC 296 after 18 months. He will be challenging reigning welterweight champion Leon Edwards for the undisputed 170 lbs. gold - a title that he has already fought for twice before and lost.

Ahead of his UFC return, 'Chaos' spoke to ESPN's Brett Okamoto about his long hiatus and what exactly was responsible for the delay.

Colby Covington claimed he is not to be blamed for his extended absence from the octagon. It is the fault of other fighters, especially Khamzat Chimaev, he claimed.

According to Covington, the UFC wanted to set up a fight between him and Chimaev after allowing 'Borz' an easy win against Nate Diaz. It was the Stockton native's last fight in the promotion.

However, Chimaev missed weight by a significant margin, which forced Dana White and the matchmakers to shuffle up the UFC 279 card.

"[UFC] were looking at setting up that fight with that mother****er, Khamzat Chimaev but he's unprofessional. He's a clown. He's out there laughing when he's missing weight by 10 pounds... They gave him the easiest fight to set up to get this big money fight in Colby 'Chaos' Covington. He couldn't pass the test."

Colby Covington said he was also offered other fights, including Dustin Poirier, all of which he accepted, but others didn't.

"That's what's been the delay - other fighters not agreeing to the fight and not doing business for the UFC... I accepted every single fight they offered - Khamzat Chimaev, Dustin Poirier..."

Take a look at the segment below:

The American last fought in March 2022, leaving it all inside the cage against his friend-turned-foe, Jorge Masvidal. The decision victory he picked up in the fight was followed by an unexpected street assault by 'Gamebred', which led to a prolonged court case.

During this time, Colby Covington was spotted at a UFC event only once - when he weighed in as a surprise backup for the Leon Edwards vs. Kamaru Usman main event at UFC 286.

Watch the full interview below:

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The UFC can't trust Khamzat Chimaev, says Colby Covington

Khamzat Chimaev came in 7.5 lbs over the non-title welterweight limit at UFC 279.

Hours of confusion and a bit of a backstage brawl later, 'Borz' was booked against Kevin Holland, who was supposed to fight Daniel Rodiguez. Nate Diaz fought Tony Ferguson instead, whose opponent originally was Li Jingliang.

Jinglian and Rodriguez were booked against each other in a catchweight fight. UFC fighters and fans alike were disappointed with Chimaev's weight miss, even more so with his nonchalance.

On multiple occasions since the event, Chimaev has made underhanded comments regarding the incident. After winning against Holland, he told Megan Olivi that Diaz was offered nearly $2 million to accept a catchweight fight against Chimaev, but he refused.

In a more recent interview ahead of UFC 294, he insinuated that it was an orchestrated effort to shake up the card - "There were some plans to do that that way."

However, Colby Covington believes it is completely Chimaev's fault, and because he failed to show up at weight, the UFC does not trust him to be in the spotlight.

"Laughing while you're ruining their main event pay-per-view. So he's not accountable. He's not someone they can trust in that spotlight. They gave him the easiest fight in the division. The soy boy, the washed-up Nate Diaz that shouldn't even be fighting anymore."

Colby Covington fights Leon Edwards at UFC 296 on Saturday, December 16, 2023, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.