Colby Covington reflected on the start of his feud with Dustin Poirier as causing him “pain and suffering.”
Covington (17-4) and Poirier (30-9) were former teammates at American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Fla., where “The Diamond” still trains, but Covington, who has been with ATT since 2011, left the gym after feuds with Poirier, Jorge Masvidal and Joanna Jedrzejczyk.
Covington claims that Poirier initially used him as a wrestling partner and toyed with the Louisiana native. He claims Poirier began to become egotistical once he rose to stardom in the UFC. Covington claims he wasn’t at that point yet, but he stood his ground against Poirier.
“When we trained together, he used me every day just to wrestle. He didn’t want to do anything else but wrestle with me. I gave him knowledge, I gave him information and I obviously toyed with him like an amateur,” Covington told Submission Radio. “Eventually his ego got the better of him. He started winning some fights in the UFC but I was still growing. I didn’t have the fame that he had yet so his ego got the better of him. And then he started treating people like shit. I wasn’t going to put up with that because I knew I was a better fighter than him. So I wasn’t going to let him trample on me and treat me like shit.”
As Covington began to gain fame, Poirier allegedly began to “smack” his character. Covington accused Poirier of “mean” words that got him kicked out of ATT, but that doesn’t make sense to “Chaos” the cage fighter. Covington claims the feud was depressing because of all he’s done for Poirier.
“Once I started moving up and I was at the top of the company, he got jealous and envious. He started talking bad about me, like, ‘Oh I don’t like the way Colby does things. He’s a jerk and he said mean things.’ We’re in our underwear locked in a cage and we’re trying to kill each other in front of the whole world and he’s like, ‘He can’t say mean things.’ I told the owner of my old gym, ‘Get Colby out. He’s a jerk and he said mean things. Get him out.’ And that’s when the feud started. It sucks, because I did so much for him. I helped him so much with negotiations… It felt like a snake bite. I felt betrayed. It sucks because I did so much for him. It almost broke my heart that he turned his back on me like that. That’s why I wanted to fight that guy, because that guy caused me so much pain and suffering.”
Covington challenged Poirier to a welterweight bout after his unanimous decision win over Masvidal at UFC 272 in 2022. Poirier said he’s “still meeting” with Covington, but “The Diamond” denied the request, saying he doesn’t want to be ripped off by “Chaos” and would rather fight on the street. However, Covington has accused Poirier of running away from a recent altercation at a steakhouse in Miami. Poirier allegedly walked out of the restaurant after Covington approached him and challenged him to do something.
“I met him three months ago at NYY Steakhouse at Coconut Creek Casino, which is in the same city where he works out at his gym. When he came into the steakhouse, I looked him in the eye and I was like, ‘What’s wrong, bitch? Say something, do something,’ and he walked out of the restaurant because you know you can make big claims in front of the camera, but when you actually see someone’s face, feel their energy, know what they’re capable of, it’s a different story. You can’t let your mouth slip…I stood up, looked him right in the eye, and he walked out of the restaurant like a good little bitch.”
Poirier is fresh off a lightweight title loss to Islam Makhachev, which proved to be the champion’s toughest test in recent years before losing by submission in the final round, while Covington is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Leon Edwards at UFC 296 in December 2023 in his third attempt at the title.