Paulo Costa gives humble three-word reaction to UFC 302 loss 

Paulo Costa recently issued a post-fight statement following his loss to Sean Strickland at the co-main event of UFC 302. The pay-per-view event took place this weekend at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

Costa squared off against Strickland in a middleweight bout, which marked his second fight of the year. Both fighters were hoping to make up for their previous defeats and advance toward another title shot by winning the bout.

Prior to the fight, Costa had suffered three losses in his last five fights. He was coming off a unanimous decision defeat against Robert Whittaker at UFC 298. Meanwhile, in his last octagon appearance at UFC 297, Strickland lost his middleweight title to du Plessis via split decision.

Costa troubled Strickland with leg kicks in the opening round. He was able to hit Strickland in the calf a couple of times, which seemed to affect his opponent's movement. Despite this, Strickland continued to apply his trademark pressure.

In the second round, Costa felt the strain starting to get to him. With no answers, the Brazilian fought mostly off his rear foot and retreated towards the cage for the majority of the round.

Strickland's third-round performance was flawless, as he knocked his opponent to the ground. The former UFC middleweight champion continued to attack Costa with jabs. In the closing moments of the fifth round, Strickland's aggression did pick up speed as he threw a final flurry of punches and kicks meant to end the bout.

The bout lasted five rounds and ended in a split decision victory for Strickland. The judges scored the contest 46-49, 50-45, and 49-46.

Check out the post below:

Following the loss, Costa took to X and appreciated everyone by writing:

''Thank you all''

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