Covington Says Muhammad RAF 12 Match Is Off

Colby Covington says the proposed RAF 12 title match with Belal Muhammad will not take place after the pair clashed at the RAF 11 post-fight press conference. Covington made the claim during an appearance on Submission Radio, saying he had made an “executive decision” to move away from the Muhammad matchup. The comments followed a volatile exchange after both men competed at RAF 11, where Muhammad threw a kick in Covington’s direction before officials and members of both camps separated them.

The reported RAF 12 meeting had been set to extend a rivalry that had already produced repeated verbal exchanges. BJPenn reported that Covington and Muhammad were scheduled to meet on Aug. 22 in Cleveland, but RAF officials had not confirmed Covington’s assertion that the match was off. That distinction remains important: Covington publicly described the plan as canceled, while no official confirmation of the change was included in the available reporting. Muhammad, meanwhile, disputed Covington’s willingness to face him and said he had been pursuing the matchup for years.

Covington cites press conference incident

Covington tied his decision directly to what happened onstage after RAF 11. He criticized Muhammad for speaking about being a positive example before getting physical during the press conference, describing the kick and ensuing attempt to reach him as behavior he considered unprofessional. Covington said RAF would “move away from the Belal matchup,” adding that he had spoken with the promotion’s leadership. He also said he is a shareholder in RAF and framed himself as having influence over such decisions. Those were Covington’s own claims, and they did not amount to an announced decision from RAF officials.

The confrontation came after both fighters had completed their matches. Covington defeated Arman Tsarukyan by a 5-3 score in the RAF 11 main event, while Muhammad earned a 6-3 decision over Ben Askren in the co-main event. At the press conference, the continued trash talk escalated after Covington told Muhammad to “shut the f— up.” Reporting on the incident said Muhammad moved across the stage and threw a kick over RAF official Chad Bronstein, who had attempted to position himself between the fighters. Officials then pulled the two apart before the press conference continued without them.

Muhammad explains his reaction

Muhammad offered his own account of why the situation boiled over, saying he had grown tired of Covington’s remarks and that comments about his family would provoke a response. He said he was prepared to “see red” if Covington said something reckless. Muhammad also called Covington a “coward” and accused him of avoiding a wrestling match with him. While Covington said he wanted the proposed RAF 12 contest removed, Muhammad argued that Covington was trying to keep the belt and had been running from the matchup. The available reports did not establish whether Covington’s position would become RAF’s final decision, leaving the status of the Muhammad match unconfirmed by the promotion.

• Covington said RAF would move away from the proposed Belal Muhammad matchup after the press conference scuffle.
• RAF officials had not confirmed Covington’s claim that the RAF 12 match was canceled.

For now, the central development is Covington’s public claim rather than an official RAF announcement. The RAF 11 results and the press conference confrontation gave the proposed Muhammad match added attention, but the promotion had not confirmed that it was off. Covington named several possible opponents for his next RAF appearance, including a Tsarukyan rematch, Michael Chandler, Tyron Woodley, Khamzat Chimaev and Kamaru Usman. None of those possibilities was presented as a confirmed booking.