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What's the story?
During last night's post-fight press conference, the victorious Colby Covington revealed that he has had recent dialogue with President Donald Trump and expects to be invited back to the White House in the near future.
“Donald Trump, Mr. President, he tweeted out support for me before the fight, and then after the fight, he gave me a call.
"He just said he appreciates everything I’ve done. He wants me to come back to the White House and shake his hand again and hang out with him in the Oval Office.”
In case you didn't know...
Covington became the first UFC fighter to ever be invited to the White House last year when he and UFC President Dana White visited President Trump in Washington. Since then there has been a mutual - and fairly public - admiration between Covington and the Trump family. Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump even attended last night's event in support of Covington.
The heart of the matter
Trump has always had a fairly strong relationship with the UFC. The promotion have hosted events in his casinos in the past and Dana White is a vocal supporter of Trump's Presidency.
Covington, meanwhile, is now in line for a shot at the welterweight title later this year. One would expect that any public meeting between Trump and Covington may hinge on the outcome of that fight.
What's next?
Having been sidelined for such a long time with injury, we suspect that Covington will be itching to get his fight with Kamaru Usman finalised as soon as possible.
While he seems intent on being involved with the Trump family as they head into their 2020 election campaign - it is vital that Covington doesn't become distracted by his extra-curricular pursuits as Usman promises to be his biggest challenge yet.
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