Paulo Costa News
Team Paulo Costa "terrorizing" Dana White for Robert Whittaker matchup
Adam Martin - January 13, 2021
UFC president Dana White said that Team Paulo Costa has been “terrorizing” him to book a matchup against Robert Whittaker. Whittaker and Costa are the No. 1 and No. 2 contenders, respectively, in the UFC middleweight division, behind only champion Israel Adesanya. With the champ moving up to 205lbs for his next fight, it’s put the 185lbs division in a bit of a tricky situation moving forward. There’s no guarantee Adesanya will even return to the weight class should he defeat Jan Blachowicz for the light heavyweight belt at UFC 259, so the rest of the top contenders are essentially stuck in limbo at the moment.
Report | Paulo Costa vs. Robert Whittaker targeted for March, interim title possible says Wallid Ismail
Adam Martin - December 10, 2020
MMA manager Wallid Ismail says the UFC is targeting an important middleweight matchup between Paulo Costa and Robert Whittaker for March. Ismail told Portal Do Vale Tudo that the UFC has already offered the fight to Costa and Whittaker for March. The manager said that Costa has agreed to the fight and now they are just waiting on Whittaker to sign off on his end of the deal. Ismail also said there is the possibility that the fight could be for the interim middleweight belt.
Dana White on potential Marvin Vettori vs. Paulo Costa matchup: "Love it"
Adam Martin - December 6, 2020
UFC president Dana White said that he would “love” to watch a potential middleweight bout between Marvin Vettori and Paulo Costa. Vettori picked up the biggest win of his UFC career to date on Saturday night when he won a unanimous decision over Jack Hermansson in a “Fight of the Night” war between two of the best middleweights in the world. With the win, Vettori figures to take Hermansson’s spot at No. 4 in the UFC rankings. As for Costa, despite a TKO loss to Israel Adesanya in their title fight at UFC 254, he is ranked No. 2 right now.
Marvin Vettori backtracks on callout of Paulo Costa, makes case for title shot instead
Adam D Martin - December 6, 2020
UFC middleweight Marvin Vettori backtracked on his callout of Paulo Costa, shifting his target to UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya. Vettori picked up a unanimous decision win over Jack Hermansson in the main event of Saturday’s UFC Vegas 16 event. It was the biggest win of Vettori’s UFC career over the No. 4 ranked fighter in the promotion in Hermansson. It’s the kind of win that will land Vettori a big fish in the pond his next time out, and the Italian wasted no time calling out two of the top fighters in the division: top contender Costa and UFC champion Adesanya.
Paulo Costa reveals he fought Israel Adesanya with a "totally impaired" leg and should've postponed the fight
Cole Shelton - November 4, 2020
Paulo Costa has finally revealed what happened before his UFC 253 fight against Israel Adesanya. Leading into the event, it was a highly-anticipated bout and one many were torn on who would win. Yet, Adesanya made it look easy as he TKO’d Costa in the second round and immediately the Brazilian called for a rematch as he claimed something happened before the fight.
Paulo Costa confirms fight with Robert Whittaker "very close" to being booked
Adam Martin - November 4, 2020
UFC middleweight contender Paulo Costa confirmed that a fight against former champion Robert Whittaker is “very close” to being booked. Costa recently called out Whittaker for what he said would be an “amazing fight” for the fans. Whittaker in turn said that he wasn’t interested in Costa at the moment, but it looks like the UFC has different plans. Speaking on his YouTube channel in a recent live chat with his fans, Costa confirmed that he’s deep into discussions with the UFC about the Whittaker fight, adding that a few details need to still be ironed out.
Robert Whittaker reacts to callout from Paulo Costa: “He just lost his contention to the title”
Harry Kettle - November 4, 2020
UFC middleweight Robert Whittaker has issued his response after a recent callout by divisional rival Paulo Costa. Whittaker seems to be the next man in line for a shot at Israel Adesanya’s Middleweight Championship after his two decision wins over fellow contenders Darren Till and Jared Cannonier. Costa, on the other hand, was decisively beaten by Adesanya in a one-sided title fight back at UFC 253.
Paulo Costa calls out Robert Whittaker: "We can do amazing fight"
Adam Martin - October 25, 2020
UFC middleweight contender Paulo Costa called out Robert Whittaker following his unanimous decision win over Jared Cannonier at UFC 254. Costa is coming off of a TKO loss to UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya in a failed bid to capture the belt at UFC 253. With Whittaker coming off the win over Cannonier, who was arguably next in line to fight Adesanya next, UFC president Dana White said that Whittaker vs. Adesanya is interesting. But Costa is now throwing a wrench in those potential plans by calling out for the Whittaker fight himself.
Israel Adesanya continues to torment Paulo Costa following win at UFC 253
Christopher Taylor - October 14, 2020
Undefeated UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya (20-0 MMA) continues to torment Paulo Costa following their clash at UFC 253. ‘Stylebender’ and ‘The Eraser’ collided in the headliner of last month’s UFC 253 pay-per-view event on Fight Island. While many were expecting the contest to result in a “fight of the year” performance, that did not prove to be the case.
Anthony Johnson slams Paulo Costa over recent comments regarding his return to UFC
Christopher Taylor - October 14, 2020
Former UFC light heavyweight title challenger Anthony Johnson has issued a scathing response to recent middleweight title challenger Paulo Costa. Costa (13-1 MMA) put his undefeated mixed martial arts record on the line while hoping to dethrone middleweight champion Israel Adesanya (20-0 MMA) at last months UFC 253 pay-per-view event on Fight Island.
Darren Till dubs Israel Adesanya’s UFC 253 performance an “utter masterclass” but vows he can defeat "Stylebender"
Harry Kettle - October 5, 2020
Darren Till praised Israel Adesanya’s showing against Paulo Costa while simultaneously declaring that he will beat the champion one day. Adesanya was able to completely dominate Costa at UFC 253, retaining the UFC Middleweight Championship in the process. Till, on the other hand, will attempt to bounce back from his defeat to Robert Whittaker when he locks horns with divisional rival Jack Hermansson on December 5.
Video | Paulo Costa returns to training, drops timeframe in next fight
Tom Taylor - October 1, 2020
Paulo Costa is already back in the gym following his loss to Israel Adesanya, and he’s hoping to get back in the Octagon in December. Costa challenged Adesanya for the UFC middleweight title in the main event of UFC 253 last Saturday night in Abu Dhabi. Despite being hailed as the champion’s toughest foe to date, he was beaten fairly decisively, succumbing to a check-hook and volley of followup ground strikes in the second round.
Paulo Costa made "tactical error," didn't follow gameplan, says manager
Adam Martin - September 29, 2020
MMA manager Wallid Ismail says that UFC middleweight Paulo Costa made a “tactical error” in his fight against Israel Adesanya at UFC 253. Adesanya spent the majority of the first round working from the outside and landing hard low kicks that compromised Costa’s ability to move. Most figured that Costa would make the adjustments in the second round and try to move inside, but he continued to stay on the outside and get his leg chewed up. All the low kicks left Costa open to Adesanya’s strikes, and the champ was able to get the TKO finish with punches in the second round.
Paulo Costa says "something happened" before Adesanya fight, performance was impacted
Tom Taylor - September 29, 2020
Paulo Costa claims “something happened” before his UFC 253 fight with Israel Adesanya that affected his performance in the cage. Costa challenged Adesanya for the UFC middleweight title in the main of UFC 253 last Saturday un Abu Dhabi. Despite being hailed as the champion’s toughest foe to date, he was soundly beaten, and ultimately stopped in the second round.
Israel Adesanya offers advice to Paulo Costa after UFC 253
Tom Taylor - September 29, 2020
Undefeated UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has some advice for his latest opponent, Paulo Costa. Adesanya took on Costa in the main event of UFC 253 last Saturday, on Fight Island in Abu Dhabi. Ahead of the fight, Costa was widely heralded as the champion’s toughest foe to date. In the end, however, those perceptions didn’t prove accurate.
What's next for the stars of UFC 253?
Cole Shelton - September 28, 2020
The UFC was back on Fight Island last weekend for a very solid UFC 253 card that saw two titles on the line. In the main event of UFC 253, Israel Adesanya remained undefeated as he scored a second-round TKO win over Paulo Costa. The co-main event saw Jan Blachowicz become the promotions new light heavyweight champion with a TKO win over Dominick Reyes.
Paulo Costa breaks silence on UFC 253 loss, promises rematch "will be different"
Tom Taylor - September 28, 2020
Paulo Costa has broken his silence on his Saturday night loss to UFC middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya. Costa challenged Adesanya for the middleweight strap in the main event of the headline-dominating UFC 253 card on Fight Island in Abu Dhabi. Despite being hailed as Adesanya’s toughest foe to date, he was soundly beaten by the champion, wilting under a volley of punches in the second round.
Dana White weighs in on Paulo Costa's "very weird" performance against Israel Adesanya at UFC 253
Christopher Taylor - September 27, 2020
UFC President Dana White has shared his thoughts on Paulo Costa’s performance against Israel Adesanya at last night’s UFC 253 event. Costa and Adesanya put their undefeated records on the line while squaring off for Israel’s middleweight word title in the headliner of yesterday’s pay-per-view event.