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UFC middleweight kingpin Israel Adesanya replied to Paulo Costa's meme tweet portraying him as Adolf Hitler. The Brazilian had posted a picture of the dictator with Adesanya's face superimposed on it. The caption read:
"Where is the fun here?"
Adesanya replied with:
"I j***approve 100%!!"
Costa and Adesanya are infamous for their rivalry in and out of the octagon, and have consistently engaged in Twitter spats. The current exchange is the latest in a long line of insults the duo have thrown at each other.
When 'The Last Stylebender' and 'Borrachinha' squared off in the octagon at UFC 253 in September 2020, it was Adesanya who came out victorious via second-round TKO.
Since his loss to the champion, Paulo Costa is yet to get back in the win column. 'The Eraser' needs a few dominant outings if he is to get another crack at UFC gold. Meanwhile, the No.3 UFC pound-for-pound fighter Israel Adesanya is already eyeing his next title defense.
Israel Adesanya and Paulo Costa's upcoming bouts
Middleweight champion Israel Adesanya is scheduled to fight Jared Cannonier at UFC 276 on July 2 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Meanwhile, Paulo Costa is set to clash with former middleweight champion Luke Rockhold at UFC 278 on August 20.
Adesanya will be eyeing a fifth straight title defense against 'The Killa Gorilla' next month. 'The Last Stylebender' is undefeated in the middleweight division. His sole loss in MMA came in the 205lbs division in March 2021 to the then-champion Jan Blachowicz.
Adesanya's opponent, Cannonier, is coming to UFC 276 on a two-fight win streak, having taken out Derek Brunson in his last outing. The pay-per-view on July 2 will mark the Texan's first title shot with the organization.
As for Paulo Costa, he is currently on a two-fight skid. The Brazilian will be looking to keep his title dreams alive by securing a dominant win against Luke Rockhold.
Meanwhile, Luke Rockhold will be entering the octagon for the first time since his knockout loss to Jan Blachowicz in 2019. Rockhold is also on a two-fight skid and has not won in the octagon for almost four years. He will no doubt be keen to set the record straight in August.
