Colby Covington shares his initial reaction to Kamaru Usman's "Hail Mary" fate against Leon Edwards; takes credit for the iconic head kick

Colby Covington has opened up about his initial reaction to Kamaru Usman's "Hail Mary" fate against Leon Edwards in their first encounter.

Kamaru Usman successfully defended the UFC welterweight title against Colby Covington in a couple of closely-contested matchups. He beat Covington via fifth-round TKO in December 2019 and then via unanimous decision in November 2021.

In August 2022, Kamaru Usman put the UFC welterweight title on the line against then-challenger Leon Edwards. After a good first round for 'Rocky,' Usman outworked him in the ensuing rounds. Usman appeared to be winning round five too, until a thunderous Edwards head kick KO'd him in the fight's final minute.

'Rocky' was thereby crowned the new UFC welterweight champion. The Leon Edwards vs. Kamaru Usman rematch transpired in March 2023 and witnessed Edwards beat him again, this time via majority decision.

As reported by UFC.com, former interim UFC welterweight champion Colby Covington has now indicated that at first, he was taken aback by Leon Edwards' head kick KO win over Kamaru Usman. Regardless, Covington implied that he'd paved the way for 'Rocky' to beat Usman.

'Chaos' believes his fights against Usman in 2019 and 2021 caused significant damage to 'The Nigerian Nightmare,' which made it easier for Edwards to beat him. Covington stated:

"My initial reaction was shock. I didn’t expect it to go like that, but I also realize that this is a sport like football, where you can land a Hail Mary, and that’s what happened... He was losing the whole fight and in the last minute he landed his Hail Mary kick and it landed in the right spot. Usman made the wrong read and took his foot off the gas, and he paid the price."

"No doubt about it, I took the fight out of Usman... His chin was never the same and I’m the one that loosened up that chin. I head kicked him and had him on wobbly legs, then he calls timeout. It’s not like Leon did something that I hadn’t already done."

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Leon Edwards head kick KO: Colby Covington addresses the defeat's effect on Kamaru Usman, talks UFC 296 fight

The highly-anticipated Leon Edwards vs. Colby Covington UFC welterweight title matchup is scheduled to headline UFC 296 on December 16, 2023. Speaking to the UFC, Covington vowed to display his famed cardio and pressure fighting style at UFC 296.

Besides, harking back to the Leon Edwards head kick KO of Kamaru Usman, 'Chaos' opined that the knockout defeat turned Usman into a gun-shy fighter. Jibing at 'The Nigerian Nightmare,' Colby Covington insinuated that he (Covington) would pose a different challenge for Edwards. Covington said:

"You can tell [Usman] was just hesitant, and that knockout really affected him... I don’t know, I’ve never been knocked unconscious like that, laying in that octagon. I don’t know what that feels like and being trigger shy. All I know is one pace and that’s go forward and show the world who the cardio king is."