Daniel Cormier reveals what worries him about Colby Covington’s UFC future following TKO loss to Joaquin Buckley

Daniel Cormier believes he knows the deciding factor in how Colby Covington recovers from suffering back-to-back losses.

Covington stepped inside the Octagon for the final UFC event and fight of 2024. He went one-on-one with surging welterweight contender Joaquin Buckley. Covington’s chin was certainly on display and he ate some hard shots from Buckley, who was as crisp as ever in the standup. While “Chaos” found a little bit of success with his grappling in round two, the damage from “New Mansa” was evident.

In the third round, Covington once again struggled with his opponent’s striking before the Octagon-side doctor stopped the fight due to a cut on the eyelid.

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Daniel Cormier Explains How Colby Covington’s Gimmick Plays Into His Future

It’s no secret that Colby Covington’s personality has gotten him attention throughout his pro MMA career. Some believe he has gone too far with his antics, but “Chaos” has never been afraid to double down. During an interview with MMAJunkie.com, Daniel Cormier explained how Covington’s handling of his shtick will impact his ability to bounce back inside the Octagon.

“I think he’ll win another UFC fight at some point. I just worry or wonder how he’s going to handle the kickback now from his gimmick,” Cormier told MMA Junkie. “The gimmick is all good whenever you’re winning, but then you’ve got to deal with a lot of enemies whenever things go sideways. I think that’s ultimately going to determine how Colby bounces back when he steps back in the octagon.”

Following the TKO loss to Joaquin Buckley, Covington took to his YouTube channel to make it clear that he plans on returning to the Octagon.

“We’re going to be back stronger than ever,” Covington said on his YouTube channel. “This is just the beginning for me. I wasn’t at my best tonight. I came off the couch. But, it was for the company. I did this for the company that I love so much that changed my life, I know that there’s still a lot of fight in me and the best is yet to come.

“I was just getting warmed up in that fight, I think it was tied up 1-1,” Covington continued. “And, I was starting to wear on him, I could see him breathing out of his mouth, I was starting to catch him with more shots. So, it’s unfortunate that they stopped it. Even Dana came out and said if that was in Vegas, that would have never been stopped, so I took his hardest shots and they weren’t nothing. They didn’t faze me at all. I was walking right down. So we’ll come back stronger.”

It’ll be interesting to see what’s in store for Covington in 2025 and beyond. For now, he’ll want to heal up after taking some punishment at the hands of Buckley to close out 2024.