Covington Shuts Out Belal at RAF 13 as Khamzat Calls His Shot
Colby Covington ran through Belal Muhammad 10-0 to defend his RAF title, then Khamzat Chimaev destroyed Gilbert Burns and called for the next shot.
Colby Covington made his first defense of the RAF Cruiserweight Crossover championship look effortless on Friday night, steamrolling Belal Muhammad with a 10-0 tech fall midway through the second round at RAF 13 in Miami.
The bout was supposed to settle a long-simmering grudge between two former UFC welterweight title contenders, but Covington never let it get competitive. He controlled the action from the opening whistle, racking up points at will against a Muhammad who had no answer for the pace or positioning. By the time the referee waved it off in the second round, the scoreboard was a shutout.
Despite months of heated press conference exchanges, the two were cordial after the final horn. Sportsmanship, apparently, still exists somewhere in combat sports.
In the co-main event, Khamzat Chimaev did what Khamzat Chimaev does. He ragdolled Gilbert Burns to a tech fall victory, continuing the dominance he showed at RAF Moscow when he pinned former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley in 94 seconds. The Burns matchup was a rematch of their UFC 273 fight, but the wrestling-only format only amplified the gap between the two.
Chimaev wasted no time after his win, calling out Covington for a future clash. Given how both men looked on Friday, that matchup would be the biggest RAF has ever booked.
The event streamed live on Fox Nation from the Watsco Center in Miami, per MMA Mania.
A 10-0 tech fall in a grudge match is about as one-sided as it gets, and Colby made a former UFC title contender look like a guy who wandered into the wrong sport. Belal had no answer for the pace or the positioning, and it was over midway through the second period. Then they were cordial afterward, which is the biggest upset of the night.
Chimaev doing Chimaev things to Gilbert Burns was expected. That UFC 273 fight was a war on the feet. Take the striking away and the wrestling gap is a canyon. After pinning Woodley in 94 seconds in Moscow, Khamzat is running through retired UFC names like a highlight reel.
Which is why Chimaev calling out Covington is the fight RAF has to make. Two guys who both believe they are the best wrestler in MMA, both undefeated in this format, both with a crowd behind them. That is the biggest match the promotion could book and both men just made the case for it on the same night.
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