Paulo Costa offers to save UFC 288 card by volunteering to fight former LHW champion on short notice
UFC 288 lost its co-main event Oliveira vs. Dariush last week, and Paulo Costa has offered to step up to fight former light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz in a replacement bout. 'Borrachinha' put out a hilarious tweet making reference to his 'Secret Juice' gimmick:
"[The] May 6th PPV event is in trouble. Jan Blachowicz vs Costa could be the salvation. I [will] go up to 205, on all juice. Let me know @ufc"
May 6 ppv event is in trouble. Jan blachowicz vs Costa could be the salvation. I go up 205 on all juice 🥤 . Let me know @ufc
Costa posted two replies to his own thread, the first being:
Abs I come back to fight gourmet Chen Chen at October no worries
He followed it up by:
Fat Paulo is ready
Paulo Costa last fought Luke Rockhold in the former 185-pound champion's retirement fight at UFC 278 and won the three-round barnburner of a fight via unanimous decision. The bout had some moments that would make anyone's stomach turn with Rockhold rubbing his blood all over 'Borrachinha' while in his closed guard.
Paulo Costa vs. Khamzat Chimaev: Will Costa be able to overcome the 'Gourmet Chen Chen' Chimaev?
Paulo Costa has a pretty hilarious beef with Chechen-born Swede Khamzat Chimaev. It all started when the two ran into each other at the UFC PI, with 'Borz' challenging 'Borrachinha' to fight him right there.
Here's what Chimaev said to Costa when they met:
"You want to fight now? You said [that] you want to fight now, yeah? I want to f**k you up right now. I'm going to f**k you up right now. What happened with Israel [Adesanya]? He f**k your a**."
Check out the Chimaev-Costa altercation below:
In return, Costa stole Chimaev's hat during an interview with Henry Cejudo and The Schmo. Not only that, 'Borrachinha' proceeded to rub the hat on his crotch. While The Schmo was skeptical of the act and tried to protect 'Borz's' hat from the Brazilian, Cejudo was in a fit of laughter throughout.
Here's what 'Borrachinha' said to 'Borz' after the act:
"Chimaev, I've got your hat. I will give this hat back to you, okay? Just let me know where and when, and I can give this back to you."
Watch Costa steal Chimaev's hat below:
As per reports, the two have been booked for this year's Abu Dhabi event in October. Paulo Costa is currently ranked No.5 in the middleweight rankings, while his Chechen-born counterpart is unranked at middleweight. However, Chimaev has a 100% win rate at 185 pounds.
The fight between Paulo Costa and Khamzat Chimaev has the potential to win multiple bonuses. Although Chimaev is undefeated, Costa has more experience fighting in the octagon and at middleweight. Costa has a UFC record of 6-2 and an overall MMA record of 14-2, while Chimaev has a promotional record of 6-0 and an overall MMA record of 12-0.
Chael Sonnen reveals Khamzat Chimaev vs. Paulo Costa in the works for UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi 😱😱
#UFC294 #MMA | @KChimaev @BorrachinhaMMA https://t.co/zt39zr4J7h