‘I’ll knock you out’… Colby Covington was warned by UFC legend ahead of heated sparring session

An MMA icon once threatened to knock out Colby Covington before their sparring session had even taken place.

The former UFC champion was certainly not in the mood for the trash-talker's antics.

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

Tyron Woodley threatened Colby Covington during their last sparring session together

Before they ever met in the octagon, Tyron Woodley and Colby Covington shared the mats and trained alongside each other to hone their craft.

Ultimately, the pair would become embroiled in a heated rivalry, with 'Chaos' gaining the upper hand after his best 'The Chosen One' as they finally fought for real.

Before their clash, however, Woodley was a respected operator, conquering the welterweight division and commanding a tremendous amount of respect in the gym.

With that in mind, he had no problem threatening Covington in the moments before the last sparring they ever shared.

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During an episode of The Ariel Helwani Show, the 42-year-old said: “I told Colby on the last day he trained with me, I said, 'Colby, you ad**k'. And I said, 'Today if you act like you're coming out of an arm bar, or if you don't submit to a choke hold, or if you get mad because I knocked you down, and have an attitude, and I'm a two- Time All- American Hall of Fame wrestler, like I'm not supposed to take you down, if you run from me I'm gonna break your damn arm, today I'm gonna strangle you, I'm gonna knock you out, if you run from me and… If you runs off the mat, like you've done the whole camp, I'm going to follow you, and I'm going to beat you. Do we have that clear? He said, 'Yes'. Then he left the next day.”

Exactly what Chael Sonnen said to Colby Covington to comfort him after a devastating loss to Joaquin Buckley

In the years since their fight, the pair have gone in different directions, with Woodley going the boxing route while Covington did everything he could to claim the 170-pound title for himself.

Despite three attempts, the polarizing fighter has yet to achieve his goal, with his ambitions suffering another blow on Saturday night in the form of a defeat to Joaquin Buckley at UFC Tampa.

In the aftermath of the loss, Chael Sonnen proved his class by giving his friend some incredibly comforting words.

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