"You just didn't handle it professionally" - Josh Thomson reacts to Paulo Costa's rant about $35,000-purse after Marvin Vettori fight
Josh Thomson has addressed UFC middleweight star Paulo Costa’s recent rant about getting paid only $35,000 for his five-round war against Marvin Vettori. Costa faced Vettori in a light heavyweight bout in October 2021 and lost the closely-contested fight via unanimous decision.
Costa initially agreed to fight Vettori at middleweight (185lbs). However, the bout was later rescheduled to be contested at catchweight (195lbs), as Costa claimed he’d be unable to cut to middleweight. He later asserted he couldn't make 195 pounds, which is why the fight was eventually contested at 205 pounds.
What a fight! 😤
Marvin Vettori and Paulo Costa went hammer and tongs for five rounds like we know they would!
Toughness and heart on display from the Italian Dream! https://t.co/30AOQF0sb0
In a recent edition of The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, Paulo Costa revealed that he earned a meager $35,000 for the Vettori fight. The Brazilian has been highly critical of the UFC’s fighter pay lately and continues to demand a pay raise.
On the Weighing In podcast, former UFC lightweight Josh Thomson and former MMA referee John McCarthy discussed Costa’s statements. Criticizing 'Borrachinha' for being unprofessional, Thomson highlighted that his paycheck was low because he refused to make weight twice and forfeited 20 percent of his fight purse to Vettori:
“You [Costa] just didn’t handle it professionally. And so, not just the commission [Nevada State Athletic Commission] took some money from you, the promotion [UFC] probably took some money from you. You pi**ed off a lot of people, man. And so, to say, ‘Oh, I only made 35 grand.’ You did it to yourself.”
Nevertheless, ‘The Punk’ and 'Big' John suggested that despite all the fines levied on Costa and miscellaneous expenses, the overall estimates of fighter pay for top-tier UFC stars like Costa seem quite low.
Watch Thomson discuss the topic at 1:22:25 in the video below:
Paulo Costa reveals his condition for re-signing with the UFC
'The Eraser' is coming off a unanimous decision victory over former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold in their epic three-round middleweight war that transpired at UFC 278 on August 20. While Paulo Costa is riding high on the win, he’s confirmed that his next fight will be the last one on his current UFC contract, one that he’s unhappy with.
In the same MMA Hour interview, ‘The Eraser’ suggested he’s willing to re-sign with the UFC, provided they increase his pay. Shedding light upon his UFC future, Costa said:
“I need to talk with them [UFC] and see. I’m not rushing up to sign, but we need to see. We need to figure it out. I’m not happy with the current contract, of course.”
Watch Paulo Costa’s statements in the video below:
youtu.be/UXik0evHGKk.@BorrachinhaMMA says he has one fight left on his UFC deal and is" looking forward to being a free agent."
"I’m on a high, high level, fighting the best of this division and my contract is too old. When I fought Marvin Vettori, I got $35,000.”
▶️ youtu.be/UXik0evHGKk https://t.co/Tw2NM00Ft2