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Colby Covington has reignited his one-sided feud with NBA star LeBron James. Covington first called out James back in September, after he beat Tyron Woodley via TKO in a UFC welterweight bout.
Covington took advantage of the recent success of non-professional fighters venturing into the fighting world, with YouTuber Jake Paul as the exponent. Paul defeated former NBA player Nate Robinson in the preliminary card of the event that saw Mike Tyson's return to the ring.
"Heard they finally scraped Nate Robinson's carcass off the Staple Center floor. I'd make LeBron James eat the canvas in half the amount of time. Everyone knows current NBA players are the softest and most privileged athletes on the planet."
Although the former UFC interim welterweight champion has never got an official reply from James, other NBA players like Kevin Durant and Austin Rivers came forward publicly against Covington. James has given a dubious answer that many have interpreted as a message to the UFC welterweight.
"Lakers' LeBron James on critics: 'Anybody can talk from outside but if they got into the ring or got into the arena, probably 10 times out of 10, they'd s—- their pants.'"
Covington's beef with James has political roots. As a Donald Trump supporter, Covington disapproves of the position of NBA players, 80 percent of whom are black, bringing Black Lives Matter protests inside the basketball court following George Floyd's murder by the Minnesota police back in May.
"Congratulations are in order for my good buddy, LeBron James," Covington said. "Congrats, LeBron. Congrats on setting the record for the least-watched NBA Finals in history. You wish you could blame it on the pandemic, but everybody's just sick of your woke b*llsh*t. And while the NBA ratings are down, UFC is up, just like our bank account."
The players of NBA franchise Milwaukee Bucks decided to hit the playoffs with a wildcat strike. President Trump criticized the NBA many times on his Twitter account. Because LeBron James is one of the NBA's most active and relevant voices, Covington saw an opportunity to reproduce Trump's words and target them towards James.
"People are tired of watching the highly political NBA. Basketball ratings are WAY down, and they won't be coming back. I hope football and baseball are watching and learning because the same thing will be happening to them. Stand tall for our Country and our Flag!!!"
Who else did Colby Covington call out after his win over Tyron Woodley?
NBA's LeBron James wasn't the only one Colby Covington threatened following his TKO win over Tyron Woodley. The UFC welterweight believes he deserves another title shot against the division's current titleholder, Kamaru Usman.
Covington has also brought his debates with Usman outside of the octagon to the political field, alleging the 'Nigerian Dream' is lying about his origins and is, in fact, American. Usman's family migrated to the US when he was eight years old.
In their only bout until the moment, Covington, who refers to Usman as 'Marty Fake Newsman,' lost via TKO in the fifth round. The other name Covington cites in the video is his former friend, UFC welterweight Jorge Masvidal, who he refers to as 'Street Judas' and is also demanding a fight.
The former interim champion has a record of 16 wins and only two losses. Unless James decides to take some drastic action, the UFC will likely link him to another top welterweight contender for his next bout.
"LOL at the snowflakes that believe LeBron James could even last 10 seconds with me! If that coward had the balls or the ability to kick anyone's ass, Delonte West would've lost his teeth long before his meth habit!"
