Paulo Costa News

Fernando Quiles Jr. - July 15, 2025

One well-known fighter scheduled for the UFC 318 card still has beef with Khamzat Chimaev. Chimaev has secured a UFC Middleweight Championship opportunity. He will challenge Dricus du Plessis for the 185-pound gold at UFC 319 on Aug. 16. It’ll be Chimaev’s first crack at UFC gold.

BJ Penn Staff - June 18, 2025

UFC 317 took a major blow this week, as main card matchup involving Paulo Costa was rescheduled for a later date. Brazil’s Costa, a former UFC middleweight title challenger, was set to meet Russia’s Roman Kopylov on the June 28 event’s main card. According to a report from Laerta Viana, however, the Brazilian has come down with an illness. That has forced the UFC to move his fight with Kopylov to UFC 318, which is slated for July 19.

Cole Shelton - June 18, 2024

Paulo Costa is hoping to fight Khamzat Chimaev next as he says he’s the perfect opponent for him. Costa is coming off a decision loss to Sean Strickland back at UFC 302 after losing to Robert Whittaker by decision earlier this year. In his last fight against Strickland, Costa didn’t throw too much volume or many power punches, at least when compared to his earlier UFC fights.

Josh Evanoff - June 13, 2024

UFC middleweight contender Paulo Costa is ready for a short-notice rematch with Robert Whittaker. Earlier today, news broke about the main event of UFC Saudi Arabia. That card is set for next Saturday night and is an absolutely stacked event. Set for the headliner is a middleweight tilt between former champion Robert Whittaker, and Khamzat Chimaev. With a win, ‘Borz’ could’ve earned a potential title shot.

Harry Kettle - June 4, 2024

UFC star Israel Adesanya gave his thoughts on Sean Strickland vs Paulo Costa in a reaction video on his YouTube channel. Last weekend at UFC 302, Sean Strickland and Paulo Costa faced off in the co-main event of the evening. After a tight affair, Strickland was the one who had his hand raised via split decision.

Cole Shelton - June 3, 2024

The UFC was in Newark, New Jersey for UFC 302 with the lightweight title on the line. In the main event, Islam Makhachev was looking to defend his lightweight title against Dustin Poirier who had said this was his final shot at winning the belt. The co-main event was a pivotal five-round middleweight scrap between Sean Strickland and Paulo Costa.

Josh Evanoff - June 3, 2024

Chris Curtis wants to fight Paulo Costa after the Brazilian’s return at UFC 302 on Saturday. ‘The Eraser’ returned to the octagon in the co-main event of the pay-per-view over the weekend. There, Paulo Costa met former middleweight champion Sean Strickland. While the Brazilian was confident heading into fight night, he was largely outstruck en route to a split-decision defeat. Following the loss, Costa vowed to be more active in his next octagon appearance.

Chris Taylor - June 1, 2024

Tonight’s UFC 302 event was co-headlined by a key middleweight bout between Sean Strickland and Paulo Costa. Strickland (29-6 MMA) entered the contest looking to rebound, this after suffering a split decision loss to Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 297 to surrender the promotion‘s middleweight title in his previous effort. Prior to that setback, ‘Tarzan’ was on a three-fight winning streak which included a lopsided decision win over Israel Adesanya.

Harry Kettle - May 31, 2024

Fight fans have reacted to a photo that suggests Paulo Costa may be suffering with a staph infection heading into UFC 302. On Saturday night, Paulo Costa will make his return to the Octagon. We all know that Paulo is a pretty divisive figure, and while he may not be the most consistent fighter in the cage, he knows how to make noise outside of it.

Cole Shelton - May 30, 2024

Israel Adesanya has shared his prediction for the UFC 302 co-main event between Sean Strickland and Paulo Costa. Adesanya has fought both Strickland and Costa so he is very familiar with both men. Izzy’s last fight was a loss to Strickland where he surrendered the middleweight title with the setback. Given that he is familiar with both of them, Adesanya has a good idea of how the fight will play out and the best path to victory for both men.

Cole Shelton - May 30, 2024

In the co-main event of UFC 302, a middleweight bout goes down as Sean Strickland takes on Paulo Costa. Heading into the fight, Strickland is a -250 favorite while the Brazilian is a +190 underdog on FanDuel. Ahead of the scrap, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to make their picks for the middleweight fight. The pros believe the five rounds will favor Strickland as they expect the American to beat Costa by decision.

Cole Shelton - May 29, 2024

UFC middleweight contender Paulo Costa had a historically bad first pitch at the New York Mets game before UFC 302. Costa is set to face Sean Strickland in a five-round co-main event fight in Newark, New Jersey on Saturday night. In the lead up to the fight, the Brazilian spent the day at the New York Mets game as he threw out the first pitch and it did not go well.

Curtis Calhoun - May 24, 2024

Former UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland’s head coach thinks Paulo Costa presents one unique problem for them to consider at UFC 302. Strickland and Costa will square off in a five-round middleweight co-headliner at UFC 302 on June 1. The winner could potentially earn themselves a middleweight title shot, or at worst, a No. 1 contender fight.

Curtis Calhoun - May 15, 2024

Former UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland is furious amidst Paulo Costa’s alleged refusal to sign his contract for their UFC 302 co-main event bout. Strickland and Costa are scheduled for a five-round co-main event on June 1st in Newark, New Jersey. The winner of the UFC 302 co-headliner could potentially be next in line for a title shot.

Cole Shelton - May 9, 2024

Jared Cannonier revealed he was offered a fight against Paulo Costa at UFC 301, but he had to turn the bout down. Cannonier had been rehabbing an injury when he got the call to go down to Brazil and fight with Costa. Although that is a fight that does interest Cannonier, as it gets him closer to a title shot, he had to turn it down.

Cole Shelton - May 7, 2024

Eric Nicksick, the head coach of Sean Strickland, expects his fighter to finish Paulo Costa at UFC 302. Strickland is set to fight Costa in the co-main event of the pay-per-view card on June 1 in Newark, New Jersey. It’s a highly-anticipated bout, and heading into the fight, Strickland is a sizeable -200 favorite and Nicksick agrees as he expects his fighter to return to the win column with a stoppage win.

Harry Kettle - April 19, 2024

Michael Bisping has explained why he believes Sean Strickland will have a big advantage over Paulo Costa at UFC 302. Following UFC 300, Dana White announced that Sean Strickland and Paulo Costa will collide in the co-main event of UFC 302. As you can imagine, fight fans are pretty excited to see what the two can produce on the big stage.

Josh Evanoff - April 18, 2024

Former UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland wants to make Paulo Costa bleed in June. ‘Tarzan’ has been out of the octagon since a split-decision loss to Dricus du Plessis in January. That defeat at UFC 297 ended Sean Strickland’s title reign, after just one defense. Following the bout, he called for a rematch against ‘Stillknocks’ but the company wants to take the South African in a different direction.