'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wCEAAMDAwMDAwQEBAQFBQUFBQcHBgYHBwsICQgJCAsRCwwLCwwLEQ8SDw4PEg8bFRMTFRsfGhkaHyYiIiYwLTA+PlQBAwMDAwMDBAQEBAUFBQUFBwcGBgcHCwgJCAkICxELDAsLDAsRDxIPDg8SDxsVExMVGx8aGRofJiIiJjAtMD4+VP/AABEIAAYACgMBIgACEQEDEQH/xABgAAEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABxAAAgIDAAEFAAAAAAAAAAAAAQIDBAAFEhEGBxQhQQEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABREAAgICAwEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAQIDERIxAEFxUf/aAAwDAQACEQMRAD8AvPqi/sE2FKN7ssTGRbkb1wFNf4j9AJ110zK3jy30D+ZOZfcrb7GV7kUs8cdljKiEQkqJD0ATxjGATu6nFXYDI6YjofPeIPBFMHZ1srhRsjd3rzn/2Q=='%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Paulo Costa seems adamant about not fighting Robert Whittaker until he gets a concrete offer from the UFC.
Costa and Whittaker are scheduled to fight at UFC 284 on February 12, as per the official website of UFC. However, the Brazilian asserted that the fight is not yet official and claimed that he wouldn't compete until the promotion offered him a new contract that increased his compensation.
Costa stated that his pay structure has been the same since 2017 and demanded a new contract prior to his fight against 'The Reaper'.
Speaking in an interview with Submission Radio, 'Borrachinha' said:
"I want to do this fight, but I don’t have a deal. UFC didn’t send me nothing. No contract, no offer yet. It’s a weird situation. I don’t know what’s going on with the UFC. Because you guys know, the UFC used to publish some fights when the fight is close, when the deal is on. But it’s not in this case. They asked me about Robert, if I should fight him. I said, ‘Yes, of course, it’ll be a pleasure to fight him'. But they didn’t send any offer to fight him yet.”
Taking to his official Twitter handle, Paulo Costa claimed that his fight against Robert Whittaker is "pure fake news," perhaps indicating the lack of a new contract on his end.
The former middleweight title challenger wrote:
"I’m Asking UFC to show my signs in this non-existent contract lol. That’s pure fakenews."
You can check out Costa's tweet below:
Jan Blachowicz gives his prediction for Paulo Costa vs Robert Whittaker fight
In an episode of MMA Pros Pick, Jan Blachowicz picked Whittaker as the winner of the rumored matchup. According to 'John', 'The Reaper' is a more well-rounded fighter compared to his Brazilian opponent.
The light-heavyweight claimed that Whittaker's toughness and strength would prove to be a winning factor against Costa.
"Rob Whittaker, you know, yeah... He's got more tools inside the octagon than Paulo Costa. Paulo Costa is tough, he's very strong, but Robert Whittaker, he's got just more tools to beat him."
You can check out Jan Blachowicz giving his take on the Costa vs Whittaker fight below:
