While speaking at the Chapter Leaders Summit hosted by Turning Point USA, a conservative organization for young people and students, UFC star Colby Covington took a moment during the Q&A portion to speak out and issue a call to action to the young activists in the audience to defend American ideals.
Colby Covington via UFC- Ultimate Fighting Championship YouTube
Covington was asked about his feelings towards the controversial social media brothers and former kickboxers Andrew and Tristan Tate. The Tates have friends in the UFC such as bantamweight fighter “Sugar” Sean O’Malley, but also a handful of folks who aren’t fans of them.
One such person is retired fighter and UFC Hall of Famer Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone, who recently challenged Andrew Tate, who is under house arrest for human trafficking charges in Romania, to fight him in the United States as part of a potential undercard fight for the eventual-potential Mark Zuckerberg vs Elon Musk MMA match.
“I have no issues with the Tates, I think they’re both very intelligent guys, they come across very well spoken, I have no issues with them,” replied Covington. “I think he did a great interview the other day with Tucker Carlson. I think there’s a lot of truth to what he’s saying.”
@ColbyCovMMA on @Cobratate and @TateTheTalisman pic.twitter.com/qtVpB465Wf
— Paul Vattes (@Vattespaul19) July 27, 2023
Covington then switched gears to point out the coordinated effort to silence Tate in the media and online in 2022 when he reached the peak of his fame, and how it is similar to what many high profile public figures face when they don’t toe progressive and establishment narratives.
“You know, I think people are now experiencing that now in America. I’ve seen it first hand on social media man, they took me out of the algorithm on Instagram the second that I put up a picture of Republican and conservative beliefs, like they just took me out,” said Covington.
Covington further described friends reaching out to him alerting him that it was difficult to see his profile pop up to the top of search results on Instagram, indicating he had been shadow banned.
“It’s not about followers, it’s not about that,” he continued. “It’s about standing up for what you believe in in life, standing up for the conservative movement. Don’t be afraid and don’t be shy of your beliefs in God and country, and first responders and the heart of America. [Because] if you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.”
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