"I thought he wouldn't hold out for three rounds" - Paulo Costa regrets not finishing the fight against Luke Rockhold

Costa vs Rockhold [Images via @borrachinhamma and @ufcrussia on Instagram]

Paulo Costa reflected on his performance against Luke Rockhold at UFC 278 and claimed that he regrets not finishing his opponent. The Brazilian felt that although Rockhold came prepared for war, his conservative approach in the fight didn't land him a finish.

Costa and Rockhold put on a fight for the ages at UFC 278. Even during moments when it looked like Rockhold couldn't continue, he dug deep to work his way back into the fight. Both fighters fought from pillar to post, and in the end it was Costa who emerged victorious.

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'The Eraser' was the fresher fighter when the fight concluded, but failed to capitalize on his opponent's fatigue to pull out a finish. Deliberating over the fight against Rockhold while speaking to Ag.Fight, Costa said (translated by Brazilian MMA legends):

"I thought he wouldn't last for three rounds. The fight was almost finished, I should've finished it a little earlier. But I thought I'd do it in the next round because he's already pretty hurt. I ended up not being able to do it in the second round either. In the third round I took his back, but he was still defending well, you know?"

Costa added that while he should've chased the finish, he respects the fact that Rockhold came prepared for war:

"He's a fighter, we have to respect him right? He's a former champion, and he came prepared."

Watch Paulo Costa's interview with Ag.Fight below:

Paulo Costa reacts to Jake Paul claiming that he would be an easy fight for 'The Problem Child'

Paulo Costa and Luke Rockhold put on a memorable performances in the co-main event of UFC 278. Both fighters displayed tremendous heart and valour as they battled it out till the last minute of the fight.

The co-main event that lived up to everyone's expectations and beyond was met with a passionate reception online. One person in particular wasn't too thrilled by the display. YouTuber-turned-pro boxer Jake Paul labeled the bout a "glorified street fight." He also claimed that both Costa and Rockhold would be easy fights for him.

Paulo Costa echoed the same sentiment in retaliation by claiming that 'The Problem Child' is easy money for him:

''💰 💵 💰 I think same as you . Easy money for you . Go ahead 🙌 do it"

💰 💵 💰 I think same as you . Easy money for you . Go ahead 🙌 do it twitter.com/jakepaul/statu…

With this victory against Rockhold, Paulo Costa put the lid on a two-fight losing skid. The Brazilian had previously fought Israel Adesanya for the middleweight title at UFC 253, and Marvin Vettori in a light heavyweight bout earlier this year.