"I used to arrive weakened" - Paulo Costa explains how his weight-cut has undergone a huge improvement as he touches down at his lightest for fight week ahead of UFC 278
Paulo Costa has arrived in Salt Lake City, Utah for his UFC 278 fight against Luke Rockhold. According to 'Borrachinha,' he's on point to weigh in successfully on Friday.
During the latest episode of UFC 278 Embedded, Costa said:
"I have never arrived to fight week as light as I am now. With good lean muscle mass. I used to arrive weakened. This time, maybe because of my methodology, the way I've been training, moving nonstop, helped me to lose weight."
Photos and videos of Paulo Costa posted on his social media show the Brazilian fighter looking extremely fit and not as bulky as he has been in the past. That's a good sign, as Costa made a big mess of his last fight by turning up on fight week extremely overweight. His bout against Marvin Vettori was switched from a middleweight bout to catchweight bout, and then changed again to a light heavyweight.
Dana White declared Costa was done fighting at 185 pounds, but 'Borrachinha' must have convinced the UFC he'd get things under control. Now it looks like he's on the path to proving he can still make middleweight, and this cut may be the healthiest of his career.
Watch Paulo Costa on UFC 278 Embedded Ep. 2 below:
Paulo Costa believes his pressure is going to be too much for Luke Rockhold to handle
Paulo Costa and Luke Rockhold are both on two fight losing skids and looking to turn around their fortunes in the middleweight division. Considering Rockhold's two defeats were via nasty KOs, Costa is feeling extra confident about his chances of winning. He said:
"I believe that my style combinations are not favorable to Luke. Because I like to pressure, and I know that he's not good under pressure. We clearly see that whenever he absorbs a strike, he feels it badly. The worst part of it all is not the physical aspect, but the psychological. The lack of trust in himself. The fear of absolrbing a strike. But he's been showing that he's brave, though. He called for this fight. He'll have it, this Saturday."
The state of Luke Rockhold's chin is something of a mystery at this point. The former UFC and Strikeforce middleweight champion has been away from the sport for the past three years, which may have been long enough for him to regain some durability.
He'll need that to survive against Costa, whose five UFC wins include four powerful knockouts.
Paulo Costa finished Uriah Hall at UFC 226, two years ago today
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