"They put me on oxygen tanks" - Colby Covington blames serious altitude sickness for poor performance against Leon Edwards at UFC 296 

Colby Covington's third bid to become an undisputed UFC champion was shattered as he succumbed to a unanimous decision loss to Leon Edwards at UFC 296 last year. 'Chaos' has now claimed that he was at a serious disadvantage on fight night.

Covington is renowned for his endless gas tank and relentless pressure. However, during his fight against 'Rocky', the former interim champion seemed a bit gun-shy and showcased an uncharacteristically low work rate.

It seems this could have been a direct result of his cardio being compromised in the lead-up to the fight. Covington wanted to boost his already impressive cardio for the title fight and had his last week of training at Breckenridge, Colorado, which sits at an elevation of over 9000 ft.

During a recent interview with Sportsnet, Covington stated that he suffered from severe altitude sickness because of the switch-up, the effects of which carried over into fight night:

"I went there [Breckenridge] originally with the idea that all boxers are doing it, everybody talks about it just changing their cardio game. Go from sea level, where I live in Miami to 9000 ft above sea level in Breckenridge, Colorado, and train there for a week and it's going to take your lungs to a new level... It shocked my body and my lungs so much because I'd never been used to that. I've never trained in altitude or tried that before."

Covington added:

"When it was the Sunday before the fight I went to the ER and I got diagnosed with HAPE [High Altitude Pulmonary Edema] and it's altitude sickness. I couldn't breathe... They put me on oxygen tanks... I just never fully recovered by Saturday for that title fight."

Check out Colby Covington's comments below:

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Colby Covington gives his prediction for UFC Tampa headliner against Joaquin Buckley

This weekend's UFC fight card will be headlined by a welterweight clash between the No.3-ranked Colby Covington and surging contender Joaquin Buckley.

Buckley has been on a tear since moving down to 170 pounds, most recently clinching a KO win over Stephen Thompson, extending his UFC record at welterweight to 5-0. However, Covington believes his opponent's streak will come to an end.

Previewing the bout in an interview with Chael Sonnen, 'Chaos' said:

"As the fight progresses into the later rounds he's going to break. I think I'm going to break his will. You know, he is an explosive fighter and he has big muscles, but those muscles are going to fill up with lactic acid and a lot of burn and I don't think he going to be able to keep that sustainability the whole fight."

Check out Colby Covington's comments below (4:00):