Midnight Roundup! UFC welterweight Ian Garry promises to beat Colby Covington, Eddie Hearn slams Francis Ngannou for cheating allegations, and more

UFC welterweight contender Ian Garry recently vowed to beat Colby Covington in front of former POTUS Donald Trump. Elsewhere, boxing promoter Eddie Hearn slammed Francis Nganou for accusing Anthony Joshua's team of using foul tactics during their fight.

Catch up on all the latest developments in mixed martial arts with Sportskeeda's Midnight Roundup.

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Ian Garry vows to make Colby Covington quit in front of Donald Trump

It's no secret that Ian Garry and Colby Covington have no love for each other. The two UFC welterweights have fired shots at each other on social media over the past few days and have expressed an interest in settling their beef in the cage.

Covington recently took his feud with Garry to another level by disparaging the Irishman's wife online. 'The Future' then responded by issuing an 'I Quit' fight challenge and stipulating that the loser would have to exit the UFC for good.

Garry recently doubled down on his statements during an interview with Sky Sports and said:

"I'm going to make Colby say that, that's what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna [be] pounding his face on the canvas, I'm going to point his face to Donald Trump and I'm going to be like, 'Say it, say it to your President. Don't say it to me. Say it to him. I want him to look in your eyes when you say that."

Catch Ian Garry's comments below (0:31):

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Eddie Hearn slams Francis Ngannou for accusing team Anthony Joshua of foul play

Eddie Hearn recently sounded off on Francis Ngannou for accusing Anthony Joshua and his team of playing foul tricks. Ngannou recently stated that he was called to the arena well before Joshua, which wore him out before the opening bell. He later stated that it negatively affected his performance.

Hearn wasn't pleased to hear Ngannou seemingly discrediting Joshua's performance and recently responded to the Cameroonian's allegations. During an interview with iFL TV, the Matchroom Boxing frontman said:

"I thought it was really disappointing, to be honest with you. I really like Francis Ngannou, and I thought in the build-up [he was] very respectful. Even in defeat, very respectful. But what he basically said was, he was told to come to the venue an hour before Joshua and these are the games that people play. Well, who's playing the games? We certainly didn't tell him what time to go to the venue... To point the finger that people are playing games, and he said it got him tired?! Well, what was he doing?"

He added:

"I've got the official announcement, it's happening this summer. I can't tell you the actual date, but it's happening. The official status is that we have an agreement, we are fighting this summer. We'll let the court of public opinion speculate on what the date is, but it's definitely this summer."

Catch Eddie Hearn's comments below (6:50):

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Dustin Poirier reacts to UFC lightweight king Islam Makhachev's dismissive comments on a potential title shot

Dustin Poirier isn't fazed by Islam Makhachev's recent comments about the Louisiana native calling for a title shot.

Poirier is coming off an impressive second-round knockout victory over Benoit Saint Denis at UFC 299. In the aftermath, 'The Diamond' called for a 155-pound title shot. While many believed Poirier's resume was impressive enough for him to challenge for UFC gold again, Makhachev didn't think so.

The Dagestani grappling phenom recently accepted Poirier's callout. However, he clarified that he didn't think Poirier deserved a title shot and was ready to fight the American due to a lack of viable alternative opponents.

Poirier recently responded to Makhachev's comments. During an interview with USA Today, he said:

"I've done more in the sport of mixed martial arts than [Islam Makhachev] has. I've been around a long time. I was doing this before it was cool and I'm still here. I'm still here doing it at the highest level. I can beat anybody in the world and I hope he's next."

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Michael Chandler affirms Conor McGregor's summer UFC return plans

Michael Chandler recently confirmed that he will welcome Conor McGregor back to the octagon this summer. After months of speculation, the Irishman announced that he had a timeline for his return and named 'Iron' as his first opponent back.

During an interview with TMZ Sports, as reported by MMA journalist Shakiel Mahjouri, the former Bellator lightweight champion said:

"I've got the official announcement, it's happening this summer. I can't tell you the actual date, but it's happening. The official status is that we have an agreement, we are fighting this summer. We'll let the court of public opinion speculate on what the date is, but it's definitely this summer."

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Max Holloway explains decision to accept Justin Gaethje fight at UFC 300

Former UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway recently explained why he took up the Justin Gaethje fight at UFC 300 instead of waiting for the winner of the Ilia Topuria vs. Alexander Volkanovski title bout at UFC 298.

Holloway stated that he expected Volkanovski to get an immediate rematch against Topuria if he lost. Incidentally, the Georgian-Spanish fighter secured a statement knockout victory over the Australian to become the new 145-pound king.

In a video uploaded to his YouTube channel, Holloway further explained that MMA wasn't a sport to display patience and said:

"I thought that if Topuria was to beat Volk in any way, Volk would get a direct rematch. Volk did enough work to earn himself a direct rematch... He has a bunch of title defences... And then with the Gaethje situation, who knew that Charles [Oliveira] was gonna get a bad cut, and Islam [Makhachev] couldn’t turn around and fight... You wait in this sport, the sport goes by you, and it goes by you quick.”