Colby Covington has come under a lot of fire fđor his comments after defeating Demian Maia in the co-main event of UFC Fight Night Sao Paulo.
Walt Harris is a part of American Top team with Covington and he feels that the welterweight fighter is alienating himself from a larđŠge percentage ofđ§ the team.
âHonestly, man, Colby is my boy, but I feel like he alienated a large percentage of the gym, a large percentage of the coaches,â Harris told . âItâs something I wouldnât have done. You knew going into Brazil what it was gonna be like. I feel like as a fighter, as a professional athlete, you have a standard you have to set. You have to hold yourself to a higher standard. Donât stoop to the level of some people who are obviously trying to get in your head to help their country.â
Covington recently stated in an interview after his comments that he doesnât care much for his Brazilian teammates ađŒt ATT.
Harris isnât much of a trash talker himself because he says that it is an aspect of the MMA game thatàŽ isnât a part of his characteêŠr.
âIâve been told, you should do this and do that, but thatâs not my character,â Harris said. âIâm not gonna compromise who I am on a day-to-day basis to appease a group of people who only see me at a certain point in time. I feel like my character and my morals mean more. I get the whole âbe the heelâ if thatâs who you are, thatâs who you are. I feel like Conor [McGregor], thatâs naturally his thing. You canât mimic Conor. Iâve seen guys try to do it and doesnât go over well. Michael Bisping, you canât mimic Bisping. Thatâs why the fans grab it. When itâs authentic, thatâs when they grab it. And if you try to force it on them, they know. They know whoâs doing a little too much.â
UFC 217 takes place on Saturday, November 4 from Madison Square êŠŹGarden in New York, New York with Michael Bisping and Georges St. Pierre headlining. Fightful is providing live coverage of àŽthe event, with a post-show podcast to follow.
