21 September 2020

Watch: UFC star Colby Covington receives phone call from Donald Trump after win over Tyron Woodley

UFC welterweight star Colby Covington received a phone call from Donald Trump live on air after his win over Tyron Woodley on Saturday night.

The 32 year-old, who met Trump in the week leading up to his fight and frequently wears the ‘Keep America Great’ hat, stopped Woodley in the fifth round after a dominant display in Las Vegas.

Trump has attended UFC events while holding office as president (SIPA USA/PA Images)

And while conducting his post-fight interview on ESPN, Covington was interrupted as he was passed a phone with Trump on the other end of the line.

Trump told the UFC fighter: "I’m proud of you man, I’m a big fan and I’m proud of you.

"You’re tough, you have the right spirits. So now go win the next one, and just keep it for a long time, right?

"Just keep that championship for a long time. But you are something. I appreciated the shout-out tonight, too. I’m your fan, you’re my fan. Two of a kind, two of a kind."

Covington landed himself in hot water for his comments after the fight about the Black Lives Matter movement, an issue Woodley had strongly supported in the lead up to their clash.

The Trump-supporting MMA fighter said: "You know the Black Lives Matter is a complete sham. It is a joke. They are taking these people. They are complete terrorists.

"They are taking these people that are criminals. You know, these aren’t people that are hard working Americans. Blue collar Americans. These are bad people. They are criminals, you know, and they shouldn’t be attacking police. You know if you are breaking the law and you are threatening the cops with weapons. You know, you deserve to get what you get. 

"Law enforcement protects us all. If you don’t have law enforcement it would be the wild wild west. So you know, people need to go and give a pat on the back to law enforcement every single day and thank them for keeping us all safe. 

"Otherwise you know all these criminals would be running the streets wild and none of us would be safe."

Covington is now hoping he can secure another shot at the UFC Welterweight Title, a belt he failed to win when he lost to Kamaru Usman in December of last year.

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