Leon Edwards throws bottle at Colby Covington after sickening insult from UFC rival

Colby Covington has been heavily criticized after mocking Leon Edwards' late father in a press conference promoting their upcoming UFC welterweight title fight this Saturday. Edwards, the current UFC 170lbs champion, lost his father when he was just 13 after a homicide incident outside a nightclub.

Both fighters will step into The Octagon on Saturday (Dec. 16) to compete for the prestigious welterweight title at UFC 296. The belt is currently held by Edwards, who won the honor from Kamaru Usman back in Aug. 2022.

The press conference then erupted after Covington, wearing a George Washington outfit to reference the 1776 American Revolution to overthrow British rule, made a comment about Edwards' father who was murdered in London back in 2004.

"I'm bringing you to the seventh layer of hell," Covington said. "We'll say 'what's up' to your dad while we're there."

The comment saw Edwards throw a water bottle which hit Covington as security quickly intervened. "1776 baby, this is the American Revolution. General Washington started it, general Covington ends it," said Covington in retaliation.

Edwards was then asked if his opponent's comments had made the fight become personal, to which he warned Covington to "keep the same energy when they get backstage". The pair squared off in an intense stand-off which was heavily monitored by security.

The two have been involved in a bitter back-and-forth all week, but never has the bad blood stooped to the levels it did on Thursday night. Speaking earlier in the week, Edwards poked fun at Covington for ducking younger prospects.

Edwards' last fight saw him defend his title against Usman back in March, winning via decision having gone the full five rounds. The two wins added to the 32-year-old's impressive record that has seen him go on a 12-fight unbeaten run.

Covington, on the other hand, hasn't stepped foot into The Octagon since March 2022 when he defeated Jorge Masvidal at UFC 272. The significant gap between his last fight and his title challenge has been a cause of concern among both fans and pundits alike.

The almost two-year gap has also been questioned by Edwards who claimed that his opponent has been offered several chances to fight, but has opted against competing against the sport's up-and-coming fighters.

“I believe so,” Edwards said when asked whether Covington's gap between fights says something about his future in the sport. “I can’t see him... he’s already turned down all the younger guys coming up.

"He’s turned down everyone the UFC offered him and sat out for two years, so now I can’t see him winning the belt and then fighting all the young up-and-comers. I just can’t see it happening. I think when someone like that gets stuff handed to them so easily all the time that it he feels like he can do that.

“After I beat him, I truly believe he’s either going to retire or move down, probably. He keeps calling out Islam [Makhachev], so let him go fight Islam at lightweight.”

The pair will fight on Saturday (Dec. 16) at the T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas.