Jorge Masvidal on 'crazy' Colby Covington's antics: 'He's going to do whatever he wants'

SYDNEY – It’s been an eventful past few weeks for UFC welterweight Colby Covington – and that might be putting it mildly.

The whirlwind started last month immediately after Covington’s unanimous-decision win over Demian Maia in Sao Paulo, where Covington used his octagon interview to spew disdain for Brazil, calling the people there “filthy animals.”

It continued with a fake apology, followed by callout after callout of UFC champion Tyron Woodley.

That brings us to this week, with Covington getting into a heated altercation with heavyweight Fabricio Werdum in Sydney, which resulted in Werdum allegedly hitting Covington with a boomerang and now facing a common assault charge for his actions.

It’s unknown who instigated the encounter, but parts of it – including the alleged assault – were caught on video. One thing made clear from Covington’s live-stream was his continued anti-Brazil sentiment.

“F*ck Brazil. F*ck Fabricio Werdum. Little b*tch ass,” Covington told his followers. “F*ck Brazil. A bunch of filthy animals. And they wonder why they get talked to like that. Because they’re a bunch of animals.”

If you’re a friend or teammate of Covington’s, you might think it’d be hard to defend his antics of late, which have called into question Covington’s perceived racism. But fellow American Top Team competitor Jorge Masvidal chalks it up, basically, to Colby being Colby.

“Colby’s Colby. That’s my partner,” said Masvidal, a guest this week for UFC Fight Night 121, which takes place Saturday at Qudos Bank Arena. “He’s going to do whatever he wants. He’s not going to definitely listen to me. He’s crazy.”

Masvidal, at least in some way, can relate to what Covington went through with Werdum. During UFC 217 fight week in New York, Masvidal got into a heated exchange with middleweight Michael Bisping – not once, but twice.

Without knowing for sure how things escalated between Werdum and Covington, all Masvidal could speak to is that sometimes, even when you don’t look for trouble, trouble finds you.

“It’s crazy, because I don’t want to be starting more bad press for my sport and getting fines,” Masvidal said. “So, in a way, I’m glad that (I wasn’t there). I don’t want to be part of the chaos. I’m not going to run from it. If there’s a fight, and somebody’s picking it with me, well, that’s what I love to do. So, f*ck it. Might have to do a free one here and there.

“But I don’t want to, though. I don’t want to get in trouble. I don’t want no extra negative media on me.”

Is that a message Masvidal could impart on his friend?

“He’s on a different vibe. He’s got different plans,” Masvidal said of Covington. “I don’t tell him what to do when it comes to that type of stuff. He’ll listen to me, but at the end of the day that dude’s crazy. He’s going to do whatever he wants to do.”

For more on UFC Fight Night 121, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.