5 biggest winners from UFC 272: Colby Covington vs. Jorge Masvidal

#2. Bryce Mitchell – defeated Edson Barboza in a UFC featherweight bout

Bryce Mitchell dominated Edson Barboza in a star-making performance

Given the nature of his fight last night, it’s safe to say that no fighter climbed the ladder in their division at UFC 272 quite so much as Bryce Mitchell did.

‘Thug Nasty’ impressed hugely in his unanimous decision over Edson Barboza. Given that the Brazilian was ranked No.10 in the featherweight division prior to the fight, it’s likely that Mitchell will find himself entrenched in the top ten next week.

Many fans expected Mitchell to grind a win out here, but few expected him to do so without really suffering along the way. However, the native of Arkansas took very little damage from Barboza. After hurting Barboza standing in the first round, Mitchell was able to take him down consistently and beat him up on the ground.

Before this fight, the only men to dominate Barboza in this way had been Khabib Nurmagomedov and Kevin Lee – so to see ‘Thug Nasty’ do it and make it look so easy was hugely impressive, to say the least.

Arguably even more impressive was Mitchell’s post-fight promise to donate half of his fight purse to children of Arkansas suffering from medical issues – something that reportedly, he won’t need to do now as Dana White has decided to cover the donation instead.

Essentially, given the spotlight that last night’s event offered, this performance may well have turned Mitchell into a semi-star – meaning his future looks brighter than ever.

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#1. Colby Covington – defeated Jorge Masvidal in a UFC welterweight bout

Colby Covington firmly outpointed Jorge Masvidal in their clash last night

Given the sheer amount of trash talk and personal insults that came prior to UFC 272’s headline bout between welterweight stars Colby Covington and Jorge Masvidal, neither man could afford to lose.

In the end, though, someone had to come out on top – and that someone was Covington. Sure, it wasn’t as explosive a performance as he’d promised going in, but for the most part, he completely outfought ‘Gamebred’ from start to finish across five rounds.

Essentially, Covington’s performance was all about pressure. He never let up from the start of the fight, forcing Masvidal onto his back foot with both flurries of strikes and consistent clinches and takedowns.

‘Gamebred’ did land a couple of hard shots – most notably in the fourth round – but once again, Covington’s durability shone through. When the fight went the distance, it was clear that there was only one winner.

Did Covington do enough to warrant a third shot at UFC welterweight champ Kamaru Usman? Most certainly not, and his post-fight call out of Dustin Poirier seemed to confirm that idea.

However, a bout with Poirier would probably draw just as many fans as a third title shot would. Given Poirier doesn’t have a clear-cut opponent lined up next, the promotion should go for it.

Either way, while he didn’t finish Masvidal, Covington clearly proved that at this time, he’s the better fighter. That alone should be enough to end the bitter rivalry with his former friend and teammate – making him last night’s biggest winner.