Report: Covington, Woodley verbally agree to September bout

The long-awaited Tyron Woodley and Colby Covington bout is almost official, as the two sides have verbally agreed to fight in September, ESPN's Ariel Helwani reports.

The specific date remains unknown, as UFC 253 is currently scheduled for Sept. 19, Helwani adds. The event could be moved to Sept. 26 in Abu Dhabi, potentially leaving Woodley (19-5-1) and Covington (15-2) to headline their own card the week prior.

UFC 253 features a middleweight championship battle between Israel Adesanya and Paulo Costa.

Covington previously said he was in talks to face "The Chosen One" on Aug. 22 but that the former champion refused to sign a contract. Woodley said he's willing to fight "Chaos," but not until September or October.

The bad blood dates back years. They've been in talks to fight several times, including in 2018 when Woodley held the welterweight belt.

Woodley is coming off two straight defeats. He lost the welterweight crown to Kamaru Usman in March 2019 and was on the wrong end of a unanimous decision to Gilbert Burns in May.

Meanwhile, Covington had his seven-fight winning streak - which lasted over three years and included an interim title victory - snapped by Usman in December in a championship bout.