Colby Covington’s Octagon Run Comes to an End After UFC Removes His ‘Active’ Status

Earlier this year, Colby Covington asked to be put on the White House card in June. Things didn’t go Covington’s way when the card was finalized. Now, the UFC has shockingly changed the welterweight’s status on its website from “active” to “retired”. It appears that after a 12-year tenure with the company, Covington is no longer a UFC fighter.

The Florida resident has not fought in the octagon since his TKO loss in the 3rd round to Joaquin Buckley at UFC Tampa in December 2024. He was very inactive in the UFC of late, with only three fights since the start of 2022. His last win came in March of that year against Jorge Masvidal.

On Monday. UFC Roster Tracker, an algorithm-based X account, broke the news before several news outlets also reported that Covington had also informed the UFC of his retirement. MMA Insider Brett Okamoto later confirmed with UFC officials that ‘Chaos’ had indeed informed them of his retirement.

Have confirmed with UFC officials that Colby Covington has informed them of his decision to retire.

Brett Okamoto via X

Have confirmed with UFC officials that Colby Covington has informed them of his decision to retire.

— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) May 19, 2026

Colby Covington was not the only fighter to be removed from the active roster. He was joined by Brad Riddell and former UFC women’s bantamweight title challenger Mayra Bueno Silva. A few weeks ago, Covington had admitted to not feeling valued by the company of late, revealing that he knew his run was nearing its end.

However, ‘Chaos’ still hoped to fight in the UFC one last time. To that end, he had even called out Bo Nickal to a fight at the White House. But the former interim champion was passed over for that opportunity, with Kyle Daukas now fighting the three-time NCAA champion.

Before this recent development, the former interim champion had attempted to expose his former employers. The welterweight had been very critical of the UFC’s current direction and policies in interviews.

Colby Covington reveals how UFC freezes out fighters

Several ex-UFC fighters like Ronda Rousey and Francis Ngannou have recently spoken out against the UFC’s practices, specifically how the company treats its fighters. Ronda Rousey has blamed Hunter Campbell for the way things are, and once even alleged that Campbell became the UFC’s CBO through nepotism.

Rousey claimed that things were better when UFC CEO Dana White was running things, suggesting that his influence within the company had waned. Earlier, Colby Covington had also alluded to Hunter Campbell calling the shots and freezing out fighters who didn’t comply with the company’s demands during a livestream with N3on.

You have no say [on what happens]. Hunter Campbell, who is like the UFC lawyer, he kind of just tells you what direction they’re gonna go, and it’s either you take it or leave it, so you don’t really get a choice what you want to do. They just leave you and ice you. They won’t give you fights, they’ll let you just sit out.

Colby Covington via live stream with N3on

The 38-year-old revealed that things were bound to stay this way unless fighters begin opposing the system. However, he also admitted that this was unlikely given how well the UFC pays its elite fighters, alleging that champions like Islam Makhachev earn up to $10 million per fight.

Nonetheless, it seems that the American’s time with the UFC is over. After the news broke, veteran journalist Ariel Helwani suggested that the welterweight could compete under Jake Paul’s MVP MMA.

With Ronda Rousey’s ambitions to shepherd the promotion into becoming a legitimate rival for the UFC, a slick talker like Colby Covington could be a huge acquisition. But first, he will need to get out of his UFC contract.

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