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UFC Fight Night: Paulo Costa vs. Marvin Vettori was a hotly anticipated event. Both fighters were No.1 contenders at one point but were bested by champion Israel Adesanya.
Paulo Costa was set to fight for the first time in over a year. However, things started to unravel as fight week came around. The Brazilian announced that he wouldn't be able to make the 185-lbs limit. Negotiations began, and the UFC announced that the fight would happen at a catchweight of 195 pounds.
Marvin Vettori agreed and 'The Eraser' was fined. He would have to forfeit 20% of his earnings. Soon after the announcement, things changed again.
Executive Vice President of the UFC, Hunter Campbell, later announced that Costa could not make the 195-lbs limit either. The fight would now be at 205 lbs. 'The Italian Dream' berated Costa for being unprofessional but accepted the changes nonetheless.
On October 23, 2021, the two men fought in a spectacular five-round brawl. Vettori beat Costa and earned a $50,000 'Performance of the Night' bonus.
Dana White praised Vettori during the post-fight press conference. He also said 'Borrachinha' must fight at light heavyweight from now on. While the Brazilian has caused inconveniences before, such as refusing to fight Jared Cannonier over compensation, this is the first time he has missed weight.
White's decision may have been too harsh, considering that Costa was already fined. Forcing him to fight at light heavyweight may also hinder his performance. So here are five reasons why Paulo Costa deserves to remain at middleweight.
#5. Paulo Costa may not be able to carry over his knockout power
Since turning pro, the Brazilian has won 13 of his 15 fights. A look at those victories makes it clear that he is a knockout artist. 11 of his 13 wins are by KO or TKO. He finished his first nine opponents in the first round.
Paulo Costa has scary power. He went toe-to-toe with Yoel Romero and even knocked him down, a feat few have been able to achieve. Even middleweight champion Israel Adesanya did not blindly go into a striking contest with the Cuban.
However, at 205 lbs, the Brazilian will face bigger opponents who are accustomed to such power. Being able to land knockout punches also depends on how well a fighter can position himself. That's when reach comes into play and Costa has a short reach of 72''. Jan Blachowicz, Aleksandar Rakic, Jiri Prochazka and others have a significant reach advantage over the Brazilian.
Conor McGregor is a good example. While he easily TKO'd Poirier at 145lbs, Poirier walked through some of his best strikes in their second and third fights at 155lbs. Forcing Paulo Costa to fight in a heavier weight class may also rob him of his formidable power.
#4. Paulo Costa will lose his size advantage and even his speed
Standing just over 6 feet tall, Paulo Costa isn't the tallest middleweight. At light heavyweight, that may be a bigger problem. From No.7-ranked Magomed Ankalaev to the champ Jan Blachowicz, the top 205-pounders are all taller than Costa.
The Brazilian can impose his size on his 185lb opponents, but that will be significantly harder to do against bigger, 205lb fighters.
Even the smaller Marvin Vettori was able to land a takedown against 'Borrachinha'. It wouldn't be crazy to assume that Costa's takedown defense will be worse against experienced light heavyweights.
Another aspect that may also suffer is Paulo Costa's speed. The 30-year-old is a high-volume puncher with lots of power. If he feels he can get the finish, he dials up the pace. This, however, was not the case during his light heavyweight bout with 'The Italian Dream'. While he did land some big shots, 'The Eraser' was unable to match Vettori's volume.
Along with being the shorter fighter, Paulo Costa may also lose his explosiveness at 205lbs.
#3. Paulo Costa has always fought at middleweight
Paulo Costa made his pro-MMA debut in 2012. His first fight was with a promotion named MMA Total Combat, and he debuted at 185lbs. 'Borrachinha' knocked out his opponent Teo Esteves in round one.
He continued his dominant run, winning all his fights in the first round. In 2015, he won the vacant Face to Face middleweight championship. The next year, he became the Jungle Fight middleweight champion. It was his second title as a middleweight, and the Brazilian defended it once.
After signing with the UFC in 2017, Costa continued to dominate opponents at 185lbs.
Costa revealed why he couldn't make the 185lbs limit in the post-fight press conference at UFC Vegas 41. During fight camp, he injured his bicep and couldn't train for a few weeks. According to him, it would've looked like an excuse if he had revealed it earlier.
The Brazilian has always been a middleweight. He has won multiple titles in his chosen weight class. Instead of being forced to fight at 205lbs from now on, Costa deserves the benefit of the doubt, especially now that he has revealed he was injured.
#2. Another shot at the UFC middleweight title
Paulo Costa is a very talented middleweight. He has exceptional power and can absorb a lot of damage. Vettori tested his cardio, but Costa managed to match the pace for five rounds.
One look at Costa's body of work also proves that he is a knockout artist. He has five wins in the UFC and only one went to the judges' scorecards. It was the fight against Yoel Romero. After a slugfest, he defeated 'The Soldier of God' via unanimous decision.
Paulo Costa also knocked out former welterweight champion Johny Hendricks.
His rise through the middleweight division earned him a title shot after just five fights. He was uncharacteristically gun shy against Adesanya but survived some of Izzy's best strikes. While he did lose the fight in round two, he certainly has the skill to fight his way into title contention again.
Robert Whittaker has done it and will soon get his second shot at beating Adesanya, having slowly built his way up through the middleweight division post-injury. Costa can take a leaf out of Whittaker's book to build up to a title fight.
#1. Paulo Costa has never missed weight before
Paulo Costa fought nine times as a pro before signing with the UFC. Before his fight with Marvin Vettori, Costa had never missed weight in his previous seven UFC fights.
However, the 30-year-old has always been considered a massive middleweight. Paulo Costa also has a much higher walk-around weight and cuts a lot of bulk before every fight.
During their light heavyweight bout, the Brazilian looked considerably larger than Vettori. The Italian even said:
“If he wasn’t as big I could have finished him.”
While training for his title shot against Israel Adesanya, he weighed around 220lbs. He was still able to shed 35lbs before the fight. The California State Athletic Commission recommended he move up a division in 2019. He soon fought and beat Yoel Romero at middleweight.
Anthony Johnson missed weight multiple times at welterweight and even at middleweight. However, after missing weight for the third time, Johnson was released by the UFC. Costa has slipped up once and deserves another chance.
