UFC star Jorge Masvidal has been charged with felony battery after an alleged assault of his rival Colby Covington.
The incident is alleged to have taken place in Miami Beach, Florida on Monday, three weeks after Covington defeated his former friend at UFC 272 in a welterweight main event.
A Miami Beach Police Department report says Covington, 34, claims he was leaving a steak restaurant when Masvidal, 37, “ran up from his left side and struck him without notice or warning.”
The report adds that “the defendant struck [Covington] with a closed fist to his mouth and eye. [The] victim suffered a fractured tooth due to these actions.”
Damage was also done to Covington’s $90,000 dollar Rolex watch during the incident.
Masvidal appeared to reference this week’s altercation in the aftermath, when he posted a video on Twitter in which he said: “Call this the show-your-face challenge… What’s up, I’m from Dade county. You talk that s***, you’ve got to back it up. That’s how my city rolls.”
The police report says that Masvidal had taken offence to Covington mentioning his children.
On Wednesday, before being charged, Masvidal discussed the incident while applying for a fight promoter’s license in the state of Nevada. “I had a mutual combatant with another athlete, and you know, I can’t say too much on this, but if we could table [the application] for later, that would be amazing,” he said.
Masvidal has been released from custody on a bond.
