Interim UFC welterweight champion Colby Covington is no stranger to controversy. In fact, he’s built his career upon it. His latest bit of vitriol? He harshly criticized Nike for inking a deal with unsigned former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick.
Kaepernick played in the NFL for several seasons before himself becoming a lightning rod for controversy after he took a knee during the national anthem at football games in 2016 in order to protest social injustice.
Though he is just 30 years of age and played several years for the San Francisco 49ers, Kaepernick has gone unsigned and hasn’t played in the NFL since. Nike decided to take advantage of the situation and inked a sponsorship deal with Kaepernick, putting out a campaign that quickly went viral.
Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything. #JustDoIt pic.twitter.com/SRWkMIDdaO
— Colin Kaepernick (@Kaepernick7) September 3, 2018
Covington, who grew up in Oregon where the Nike headquarters is located, isn’t a fan of Kaepernick’s and quickly put him and Nike on blast after the campaign went live.
I grew up in Oregon and was around @Nike my whole life. It's funny watching a company that uses child slave labor overseas to make their products all of a sudden become humanitarians. #PatTillman is an NFL/American Hero. @Kaepernick7 is just a spineless sack of shit. #NikeBoycott
— Colby Covington (@ColbyCovMMA) September 4, 2018