"Here's the secret" - Ariel Helwani details what made Paulo Costa's massive Twitter turnaround possible
Ariel Helwani shed light on Paulo Costa's writ-large career resurgence when a fan questioned it on the latest episode of On The Nose.
Brazilian middleweight Paulo Costa was on a downward spiral in his career after losing two consecutive fights in the UFC. Before his shot at the middleweight championship, Costa was an undefeated prospect, coming off an impressive victory against Yoel Romero.
Costa lost to champion Israel Adesanya in a lopsided contest at UFC 253 and blamed the loss on drinking wine the night before. 'The Eraser' returned after a year to face Marvin Vettori. Costa struggled to make weight for the middleweight fight and weighed in at 204.5 pounds, forfeiting 20 percent of his fight purse as a penalty. He also received a lot of flak from fans for his unprofessional behavior.
Watch Adesanya's shutout of Costa below:
However, since then, 'Borrachinha' has invested heavily in his persona, which is satirical and imprudent. From advertising the occult powers of his secret juice to his sneaky humorous content, fight fans have shown a keen interest in Costa's rejuvenation.
Ariel Helwani detailed what has made Costa amass this massive following on Twitter while shedding light on his career trajectory:
"Here's the secret - self-deprecation. People accused him of being on the juice [steroids], he's now making fun of himself in a way with the secret juice. Now he takes it seriously, but you know there's a wink-wink, nudge-nudge."
The questioning fan drew parallels between Paulo Costa and WWE superstar Cody Rhodes' career graph while talking about the upturn. Rhodes famously returned to WWE at WrestleMania 38 after he left the organization in 2016 and played a significant role in the formation of rival company AEW. Helwani continued:
"It's [Twitter content] fun, it's unexpected. He was despised after the Izzy fight. He was a joke when people came out and talked about the wine and all that stuff. And he had some re-building to do, and he has done that."
Watch the video from the 4:15 mark below:
Paulo Costa discusses the importance of engaging with fans
'Borrachinha' returned to winning ways with a unanimous decision victory over Luke Rockhold at UFC 278. While MMA fans are thoroughly enjoying the impish side of Paulo Costa, several fighters, including the likes of former light heavyweight champion Glover Teixeira, have found it disrespectful.
A big win for @BorrachinhaMMA - how did you score that one? #UFC278 https://t.co/PRxM0hVTtD
Teixeira condemned his fellow Brazilian's attempt to stir controversy in return for some views. Costa addressed these comments in an interview with BT Sport ahead of UFC 278:
"The fighters need to keep talking with the audience, the fans. The audience, the fans are the most important thing in this business. And I care a lot to give my best for the people. It is so important. [Glover Teixeira] doesn't understand that. Who pays him? His salary? Or our salary? It's the people. And they pay very good money to watch this. So they deserve the best."
Watch the video below: