Three days to prepare. Forty-three seconds to finish.
Surging Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) star Raul Rosas Jr. made the most of an unexpected opportunity earlier today (Tues., Nov. 3, 2026), submitting former interim UFC Welterweight champion Colby Covington in the main event of Hype Fighting Italy from PalaPellicone in Rome, Italy.
Rosas was giving up considerable size and experience against Covington, a former NCAA Division I All-American wrestler. None of that mattered once the action started.
“Chiwiwis” immediately pressured Covington, secured an early takedown and quickly worked his way onto the notorious trash-talker’s back. Covington was unable to clear Rosas’ choking arm before the UFC bantamweight locked up a rear-naked choke and forced the tap just 43 seconds into their 10-minute, submission-only match.
Check out the lightning-fast finish below:
The result becomes even more impressive when considering Rosas was not originally supposed to compete at Hype Italy.
Covington was booked to face longtime troublemaker Dillon Danis, but Danis withdrew from the event because of an injury. During Sunday’s press conference, the promoter asked whether anyone in attendance was willing to replace Danis. Rosas, who was sitting in the audience, raised his hand and accepted the challenge.
“I’ll do it, f—k it,” Rosas said. “Chiwiwis!”
That gave the 22-year-old UFC prospect roughly three days to prepare for a much larger opponent with elite wrestling credentials. Rosas not only rescued the main event, he needed less than one minute to get the job done.
Afterward, Rosas thanked Covington for accepting the last-minute matchup and reiterated that his primary goal remains becoming the youngest champion in UFC history. Covington acknowledged his slow start and said he had not trained Brazilian jiu-jitsu in years, but offered no excuses for the loss.
Rosas remains on a six-fight MMA winning streak following his recent victory over Raoni Barcelos. He is also expected to meet UFC legend Clay Guida in another grappling match at RAF 15 later this month.
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