Trouble looms over Colby Covington’s chances against Khamzat Chimaev. In just 11 days, ‘Chaos’ will defend his crossover title against ‘Borz’ at the Real American Freestyle (RAF) event in Abu Dhabi on November 14. However, just before stepping into the grudge match with ‘Borz’, Covington has faced perhaps the most surprising loss of his career after being submitted by the youngest UFC fighter, Raul Rosas Jr.

Colby Covington faced Raul Rosas Jr. in the main event of Hype FC’s submission-only event in Rome, Italy, on November 3rd, 2026. The UFC bantamweight accepted the fight on short notice after Covington’s original opponent, Dillon Danis, pulled out. Despite that, Rosas Jr.’s outing against Covington turned out to be remarkable. 

As soon as the match started, the New Mexico native wasted no time taking Covington down with a solid takedown. Rosas Jr. then swiftly transitioned to his opponent’s back and locked in a rear-naked choke. Covington, who is considered one of the UFC’s finest grapplers, had no answer to the submission and tapped out in 40 seconds, giving Rosas Jr. an astounding victory. 

The finish by ‘El Nino Problema’ even left Conor McGregor laughing hysterically as he watched from the ringside.

Raul Rosas Jr. is undoubtedly one of the standout grapplers to emerge from the UFC. However, few expected him to submit Colby Covington so effortlessly, particularly given their significant weight difference.

Covington previously competed in the UFC’s welterweight division, weighing in at 170 pounds. On the other hand, Rosas Jr. competes at bantamweight, where the limit is 135 pounds. Even if we consider Covington at his former UFC welterweight limit, the difference between the two fighters would be 35 pounds.  

‘Chaos’ is now RAF’s cruiserweight champion, a division with a 190-pound limit. So, if we go by his RAF cruiserweight limit, that gap increases to 40-50 pounds, making Rosas Jr.’s victory even more impressive. 

To make his victory even more special, Raul Rosas Jr. became only the second fighter in history to submit Colby Covington.

In 2015, Warlley Alves became the first to make Covington tap out at UFC 194. However, considering Rosas Jr.’s age, submitting a former UFC title challenger like ‘Chaos’ speaks volumes about his grappling ability.

Raul Rosas Jr. made history as the youngest fighter to debut in the UFC. He was just 18 years old when he stepped into the Octagon against Jay Perrin at UFC 282 in December 2022, and secured a first-round submission victory.

Currently, Rosas Jr. is 22-years-old and actively competing in the UFC and has amassed an impressive 7-1 record so far.

Most recently, Rosas Jr. faced Raoni Barcelos in the main event of UFC Fight Night on September 26, 2026. He won the contest in the fifth round after the Brazilian lost consciousness during a slam. Rosas Jr. is also scheduled to make his RAF debut against Clay Guida on November 28.  

For Colby Covington, however, the outing against Khamzat Chimaev looks increasingly concerning after his submission loss to Raul Rosas Jr.

Colby Covington is set to defend the RAF title against Khamzat Chimaev  

Following the match against Rosas Jr., Covington would travel to Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi to face Khamzat Chimaev in a freestyle wrestling clash under the RAF banner. And after suffering a submission loss to a bantamweight, questions have emerged over his chances against ‘Borz’.

Covington is currently on a tear in Real American Freestyle. He has amassed an undefeated 5-0 record in the promotion and defeated Arman Tsarukyan to capture the RAF cruiserweight title.

Eventually, his path led to a grudge match against Chimaev, who has also gone 4-0 since joining the promotion.

The two have been embroiled in a heated rivalry for years, dating back to their UFC days. Their animosity naturally spilled over into their freestyle wrestling matchup. Following Chimaev’s latest victory over Robbie Lawler at RAF 14, he called out Covington with a threatening message.

“Happy to finally get his guy and break his neck,” Chimaev said.

Soon after, Covington responded to his adversary in an interview with Arab News, vowing to make ‘Borz’ quit.

“He’s a tall guy. He’s 6’2, 6’3, but it’s going to be easier to get to those legs because he’s so tall,” Covington said. “I’m gonna get to his legs. I’m gonna take him down. I’m gonna slam him. I’m gonna make him quit.”

For Covington, his matchup against Chimaev won’t involve any submission attempts, as it is a freestyle wrestling contest. However, the ease with which Rosas Jr. took him down, which is allowed in a freestyle match, raises questions about whether he can withstand Chimaev’s takedown attempts, especially considering that ‘Borz’ is considerably bigger than ‘Chaos’.

Perhaps the loss to Raul Rosas Jr. will have shaken up Covington and forced him to come better prepared for his showdown against Khamzat Chimaev.