"Did the drug test come back as pregnant?" - Fans suspect Paulo Costa of "pulling out" after one-word tweet, 'Borrachinha' retorts hilariously

The MMA community has weighed in on Paulo Costa's recent social media post and suggested that the UFC star might be contemplating withdrawal from his upcoming fight. As for Costa, he addressed the speculation with a hilarious response.

The highly-anticipated Robert Whittaker vs. Paulo Costa middleweight bout is expected to take place at UFC 298 on Feb. 17, 2024. They were previously set to clash at UFC 284 on Feb. 12, 2023. However, Costa asserted that he hadn't signed the bout contract and that his matchup against 'The Reaper' won't go down at UFC 284.

Following that, Costa was roped in to fight Ikram Aliskerov at UFC 291 on July 29, 2023. That booking, too, fell apart, and the UFC later announced that 'Borrachinha' would face Khamzat Chimaev instead at UFC 294 on Oct. 21, 2023.

Costa withdrew from the Chimaev fight as well, owing to medical issues. That said, he's now expected to make his long-awaited comeback against Whittaker at UFC 298.

Taking to his official X account, Costa posted a tweet comprising nothing but the following expletive:

"F**k."

Several MMA fans chimed in by expressing their concern that the Brazilian MMA stalwart's aforementioned tweet could be an indication that he's pulling out of his UFC 298 matchup against Whittaker.

One X user opined that given Costa's multiple withdrawals from booked UFC fights, he'd likely be cut from the organization and have to face ex-UFC star Darren Till at an Eagle FC event. Another X user joked that Costa perhaps ran out of his 'Secret Juice.'

One fan appeared to suggest that former UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland could replace Costa and face Whittaker. Others hoped that 'Borrachinha' wouldn't withdraw from the Whittaker showdown. Meanwhile, one netizen jested that Costa was probably pregnant, which might explain the possible withdrawal:

"did the drug test come back as pregnant?"

Paulo Costa has seemingly hit back at his detractors, who've been accusing him of withdrawing from the UFC 298 showdown. Costa tweeted a GIF that featured the phrase "I'm not pulling out!" outlined on a bed, thereby shutting down the rumors of his pulling out.

Check out the screenshots of a few fan reactions below:

Screenshots of fan reactions

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Robert Whittaker vs. Paulo Costa: A closer look at the UFC 298 stars' recent runs

Presently, Robert Whittaker holds the No.3 position in the official UFC middleweight rankings. The New Zealand-born Australian athlete is 1-2 in his past three MMA bouts, losing to Israel Adesanya and Dricus du Plessis and beating Marvin Vettori. Whittaker's coming off a second-round TKO defeat against du Plessis in July 2023.

On the other hand, Paulo Costa stands at the No.6 spot in the UFC middleweight food chain. 'Borrachinha' is 1-2 in his last three octagon appearances, losing to Adesanya and Vettori and beating Luke Rockhold. Costa's most recent MMA bout witnessed him defeat Rockhold by unanimous decision in August 2022.