Paulo Costa will finally get his shot at the UFC Middleweight title.
Costa and the reigning 185-pound champion have agreed to a championship match at UFC 253, according to Combate and MMA Junkie. Originally, the pay-per-view was set to be headlined with a bout between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Justin Gaethje for the UFC Lightweight title; however, Nurmagomedov is not expected to compete at the event.
Ali Abdelaziz, Nurmagomedov’s manager, has stated that the lightweight champ will indeed defend his belt against Gaethje in 2020; however, Abdelaziz never confirms when fans could see the Russian native back inside the octagon.
Adesanya is coming off a unanimous decision victory over Yoel Romero at UFC 248. Thus far, the 30-year-old remains undefeated within the promotion, with his wins coming over top names such as Robert Whittaker (via KO at UFC 243), Anderson Silva (via unanimous decision at UFC 234), and Kelvin Gastelum (via unanimous decision at UFC 236). Adesanya’s professional record currently stands at 19 wins and 0 losses.
Costa is also entering into the bout undefeated, with the Brazilian coming off a win over Yoel Romero at UFC 241. Since his UFC debut in 2017, the middleweight has managed to get impressive wins over Johny Hendricks (via TKO at UFC 217) and Uriah Hall (via TKO at UFC 226). Overall, Costa’s professional record currently stands at 13 wins and 0 losses.
The latest UFC 253 card now includes:
Israel Adesanya vs. Paulo Costa – for UFC Middleweight Title
Mackenzie Dern vs. Randa Markos
Hakeem Dawodu vs. Zubaira Tukhugov