Love him or hate him, Colby Covington is back in the welterweight title contention mix.
The much-touted grudge match between Tyron Woodley and Colby Covington went down over the weekend.
Covington, who suffered a punishing defeat at the hands of Kamaru Usman in his last outing, was returning after ten months out of the Octagon.
Woodley was on a two-fight skid and hoping to get himself back in the mix.
The fight panned out as many predicted. Covington was the busier fighter. Woodley, cautious, looking to set traps however not quite getting his punches off.
In truth, the fight was not competitive. Covington set the pattern of the contest by taking Woodley down in the first round. Colby was backing Woodley up and dictating the pace of the battle.
Covington was more patient than usual, choosing to grind down Woodley slowly. It looked like Covington was cruising to a unanimous decision; however Colby managed to secure the finish after Woodley sustained a rib injury in the fifth round.
Once the fight ended, Covington, who was unusually quiet ahead of the bout, returned to his gregarious self. Covington knew what was at stake for him in this match. With a win, he was back in the title mix.
As for Woodley, it is hard to see where he goes from here. As a fighter, he is an enigma.
You can't question his achievements, capturing the welterweight title at 34 with great wins over Robbie Lawler and Darren Till. However, Woodley was seen as cautious and passive in his defences against Thompson and Maia.
That passivity continued in his defeats to Kamaru Usman, Gilbert Burns, and now Colby Covington.
Don't get me wrong, Woodley is fighting the best of the best. The question now is whether he can be competitive with the elite again.