5 reasons why Colby Covington should drop his 'heel' persona

#2. Fans would get behind Colby Covington if he dropped his persona

Colby Covington has benefitted from being the 'heel' and utilizing entertainment as a means to drive fighter branding. However, with how polarizing Covington has become among his peers, it has arguably become a detriment to his burgeoning MMA career.

The persona has resulted in the loss of at least two training partners, the aforementioned Dustin Poirier and Jorge Masvidal. Since some of his tiffs have been with high-profile fighters, fans have begun to pick sides. With that in mind, the welterweight would likely have more fans if he dropped his persona.

At times, fans of the sport can be the driving force when fights are being determined and negotiated. Ahead of the showdown in November, Covington has complained that Usman had stalled in negotiations and was unwilling to take the fight initially.

In their first encounter, the two fought a painful fight which saw dramatic shifts in momentum. The fight went all five rounds, and the two were awarded fight of the night honors. Usman secured the victory via TKO.

However, Colby Covington would have likely had far less trouble acquiring the rematch if it garnered demand like the second time Masvidal fought Usman. Masvidal lost against Usman but still received a second shot at gold before Covington. On a merit basis, Covington deserved the title shot more because he had earned a finish win against Tyron Woodley.

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#1. The persona of Colby Covington is tiring

Maintaining the No. 1-ranking in the UFC welterweight division is hard enough. Still, doing all of that while keeping up a persona is downright exhausting. Of course, the persona was started by Covington himself, with the intention of getting fans more invested in his MMA career.

Colby Covington attracts large audiences now, but that wasn't always the case. It is an uphill battle attempting to argue that his persona hasn't helped his career trajectory. Face it, many were unsure of who Covington was before he made his dramatic and outspoken re-entrance into the sport.

While his persona has gotten him to the dance thrice now, perhaps it's time to drop it. Colby Covington has established himself as one of the fiercest competitors on the roster. With his insane pace and work ratio, there are few, if any, fighters outside of the champion that can equal his stamina.

With one of the most important fights of his life less than a month away, perhaps ditching the abrasive persona would result in a huge windfall of fans. In addition, the facade could get tiring after a while. Either way, on Nov. 6 at UFC 268, personas will be put aside, and Colby Covington will have to account for every word spoken in the lead-up to one of the biggest pay-per-views of the year.