Covington’s defensive wrestling metrics have held up against world-class opposition for over a decade. Throughout his mixed martial arts run, he maintained a takedown defense rate hovering above 72%, denying shots from decorated wrestlers such as Kamaru Usman, Tyron Woodley, and Demian Maia. That defensive awareness translated directly to the RAF rule set.
At RAF 11, Tsarukyan officially went 0-for-5 on takedown attempts across the five-round match. Covington, by contrast, completed 4 of his 7 shot sequences, scoring points on dynamic counter-snaps and single-leg lift finishes along the edge of the mat. His control time exceeded eleven minutes, completely neutralizing Tsarukyan’s signature offense.
The statistical dominance illustrates an uncomfortable reality for Tsarukyan: despite his elite combat sambo and freestyle skills, pure top control against a decorated Division I wrestler requires years of foundational unlearning. Covington showed that even outside the octagon, disciplined folkstyle mechanics will dismantle raw explosiveness over a long duration.
