Paulo Henrique Costa (born 21 April 1991) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the

Middleweight Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to . Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have be ...

division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of August 1, 2022, he is #6 in the UFC middleweight rankings.

Background

Costa, the son of odd-jobber Carlos Roberto and Maria Augusta, was born in 1991. He has an older brother, Carlos Costa, who is a former mixed martial artist and one of Paulo's coaches. Paulo grew up in Contagem playing

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

and eventually picking up

Muay Thai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...

at the age of nine in order to learn discipline and avoid street fights he was constantly getting into. As a teenager, Paulo joined a jiu-jitsu gym with his brother only to quit the sport after their father died of throat cancer when Paulo was 17. A couple of years later, Costa returned to jiu-jitsu and started competing under the tutelage of his brother who was already a purple belt at the time. In order to help his mother with bills, Costa worked in real estate and as an IT teacher teaching Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Costa made his professional MMA debut in his native country of Brazil in February 2012. Eventually, his brother convinced their mother to support Paulo monetarily for a year in order to pursue his professional martial arts career. Over the next five years, he amassed a record of 8–0 with 7 knockouts and 1 submission.

The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil

Costa was chosen to be a fighter on '' The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 3''. In the opening elimination round, he defeated José Roberto via submission ( guillotine choke) in the second round. Costa was the second middleweight fighter chosen by coach Wanderlei Silva. His next fight was against Márcio Alexandre Jr., and Costa lost via

split decision A split decision (SD) is a winning criterion in boxing, most commonly in full-contact combat sports, in which two of the three judges score one particular competitor as the winner, while the third judge scores for the other competitor. A split dec ...

after three rounds.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Costa made his promotional debut on 11 March 2017, at

UFC Fight Night 106 ''UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Gastelum'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 106'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on March 11, 2017, at the Centro de Formação Olímpica do Nordeste in Fortaleza, ...

against

Garreth McLellan Garreth McLellan (born 9 January 1982) is a South African professional mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the Middleweight division of the EFC. A professional since 2009, he was one of the first South African MMA fighters to c ...

. He won the fight via TKO in the first round, earning his first

Performance of the Night UFC Bonus Awards are three separate cash bonuses usually awarded to four fighters after each UFC event, based on internal decisions by UFC management. More/fewer bonuses have been awarded at some events, especially when no knockouts or submissions ...

award. Costa faced

Oluwale Bamgbose Oluwale Bamgbose (born August 4, 1987) is a Nigerian-American mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Education Oluwale was raised by traditional parents who were very s ...

on 3 June 2017, at UFC 212. He won the fight via TKO in the second round. After the fight with Bamgbose, UFC offered a new contract but the parties did not come to an agreement with the financial terms. The UFC then proposed a fight with former welterweight champion Johny Hendricks, with a promise to renegotiate after the bout. Costa faced Hendricks on 4 November 2017, at UFC 217. He won the fight via TKO in the second round. After the bout Costa signed a new, multi-fight contract. Costa was expected to face Uriah Hall on 21 April 2018, at

UFC Fight Night 128 ''UFC Fight Night: Barboza vs. Lee'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 128'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on April 21, 2018, at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Background ...

. However, Costa pulled out of the fight in mid-March with an arm injury. In turn, promotion officials elected to pull Hall from that event entirely and reschedule the pairing for 7 July 2018, at UFC 226. Costa won the fight via technical knockout in round two. The win earned him his second Performance of the Night award. Costa was scheduled to face Yoel Romero on 3 November 2018, at UFC 230. However, Romero indicated in mid-August that, while he had been cleared to fight, his medics had recommended that he wait another four to five months to allow facial injuries incurred during his most recent fight to fully heal. The bout was rescheduled again, and was expected to take place on 27 April 2019, at

UFC on ESPN+ 8 ''UFC on ESPN: Overeem vs. Harris'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 8'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on May 16, 2020 at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida, Unite ...

. Costa was removed from the card for an undisclosed reason. He was replaced by Ronaldo Souza. Romero then pulled out of the fight due to pneumonia, and Costa was scheduled to face Souza, but a

United States Anti-Doping Agency The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA, ) is a non-profit, non-governmental 501(c)(3) organization and the national anti- doping organization (NADO) for the United States. To protect clean competition and the integrity of sport and prevent ...

(USADA) investigation prevented Costa from participating, so neither Romero nor Costa competed in the event. It was revealed that Costa had been suspended for six months by USADA and Comissão Atlética Brasileira de MMA (CABMMA) for receiving prohibited intravenous infusions (IV) more than 100 mL in 12 hours after the weigh-ins in June 2017 at UFC 212 against

and November 2017 at UFC 217 against Johny Hendricks. Costa was fined a third of his purse of the fights, which were reverted to his opponents. The suspension was retroactive to 10 August 2018, and Costa was eligible to fight again in February 2019. On 23 March 2020, Lucas Penchel

MSc MSC may refer to: Computers * Message Sequence Chart * Microelectronics Support Centre of UK Rutherford Appleton Laboratory * MIDI Show Control * MSC Malaysia (formerly known as Multimedia Super Corridor) * USB mass storage device class (USB MSC ...

, who provided the infusions in question, accepted a two-year ban from USADA, starting on 13 March 2020. Costa finally faced Romero on 17 August 2019, at UFC 241. He won the fight via unanimous decision. This fight earned him the Fight of the Night award. On the strength of his five fight win streak in the UFC, Costa faced Israel Adesanya for the

UFC Middleweight Championship Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships. Historical notes At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight classe ...

on 27 September 2020 at UFC 253. He lost the fight via technical knockout in the second round, making this his first professional loss.

Post Title Shot

Costa was scheduled to face

Robert Whittaker Robert Whitaker or Whittaker may refer to: *Robert Whittaker (fighter) (born 1990), Australian mixed martial artist *Robert Whitaker (equestrian) (born 1983), British showjumper *Robert Whitaker (author) (active since 1989), American author *Robert ...

on 17 April 2021 at

UFC on ESPN 22 ''UFC on ESPN: Whittaker vs. Gastelum'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 22'' and ''UFC Vegas 24'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on April 17, 2021 at the UFC Apex facility in Enterpr ...

. However, on 16 March Costa withdrew from the fight due to illness. Costa was scheduled to face Jared Cannonier on 21 August 2021 at

UFC on ESPN 28 ''UFC on ESPN: Hall vs. Strickland'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 28'' and ''UFC Vegas 33'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on July 31, 2021 at the UFC Apex facility in Enterprise, N ...

. However, on 4 June, Costa withdrew from the bout due to unknown reasons. Costa later claimed he never signed the bout agreement and cited issues with his payment, while not confirming them as the reason for his withdrawal. Costa faced Marvin Vettori in a light heavyweight bout on 23 October 2021 at

UFC Fight Night 196 ''UFC Fight Night: Costa vs. Vettori'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 196'', ''UFC Vegas 41'' and ''UFC on ESPN+ 54'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on October 23, 2021 at the UFC ...

, which was originally scheduled as a middleweight contest and briefly changed to a catchweight bout. Costa received widespread criticism for showing up twenty-five pounds over the middleweight limit. Costa lost the fight via unanimous decision. In the post-fight press conference, UFC President Dana White said that Costa would no longer compete at Middleweight. Costa was scheduled to face former UFC Middleweight Champion Luke Rockhold on July 30, 2022, at

UFC 277 ''UFC 277: Peña vs. Nunes 2'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on July 30, 2022, at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, United States. Background A UFC Women's Bantamweight Cha ...

. However, the bout was postponed to

UFC 278 ''UFC 278: Usman vs. Edwards 2'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on August 20, 2022, at Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Background The event marked the promotion' ...

for unknown reasons. Costa won the fight via unanimous decision. The fight earned him the'' Fight of the Night'' award. Costa was scheduled to face

on February 12, 2023, at

UFC 284 ''UFC 284: Makhachev vs. Volkanovski'' is an upcoming mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that will take place on February 12, 2023, at RAC Arena in Perth, Australia. Background The event will mark the promoti ...

. However, Costa disputed the official announcement by the promotion indicating he had never signed a contract and the fight would not take place.

Championships and accomplishments

Jungle Fight Jungle Fight is a Brazilian mixed martial arts and kickboxing promotion. It was created in 2003. The name is derived from its origin, the Amazonas state in Brazil. History Jungle Fight was founded by pioneering MMA fighter and long-time Brazi ...

**Middleweight Championship (One time) ***One successful title defense * Ultimate Fighting Championship **

(Two times) vs.

and Uriah Hall ** Fight of the Night (Two times) vs. Yoel Romero & Luke Rockhold *

MMAjunkie.com MMA Junkie is a news website that covers the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA). It was founded in 2006, and is owned by Gannett Company since 2011. The site and its content have been featured in ''Time (magazine), Time'' magazine'', ''ESPN The Ma ...

**2019 August Fight of the Month vs. Yoel Romero * Sherdog **2019 Round of the Year vs. Yoel Romero (round 1)

Controversies

Alleged assault on a nurse

On May 31, 2022, Costa was questioned by the police in the Metropolitan Region of Belo Horizonte, Brazil regarding an incident in which he allegedly assaulted a nurse with an elbow during a dispute over a COVID-19 vaccination card. Costa claims he was already vaccinated but had not had it recorded on his vaccination card, and that he asked the nurse to sign his card. The nurse, however, claims that Costa was not vaccinated and he refused the vaccination, and that he attempted to flee with the filled-out vaccination card without the shot being administered. She went on to say that in a measure to prevent him from leaving, she grabbed Costa by the arm and she was hit with an elbow, which caused her lips to become swollen. No charges were filed.

Racial slur controversy

In response to a challenge put forth by former UFC fighter Mike Perry, Costa responded via Twitter with a tweet that said "This nigga really wants that smoke. Mike Platinum Black Perry. Wakanda". Costa came under fire from many fans for his use of the racial slur, and has since deleted the tweet, but posted a mock apology, and tweeted a picture of himself in photoshopped

blackface Blackface is a form of theatrical makeup used predominantly by non-Black people to portray a caricature of a Black person. In the United States, the practice became common during the 19th century and contributed to the spread of racial stereo ...

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 14–2 , Luke Rockhold , Decision (unanimous) ,

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Salt Lake City, Utah, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–2 , Marvin Vettori , Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Costa vs. Vettori , , align=center, 5 , align=center, 5:00 , Las Vegas, Nevada, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–1 , Israel Adesanya , TKO (punches and elbows) , UFC 253 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:59 ,

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the capital and second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the centre of the Abu Dhabi Metropolitan Area. ...

, United Arab Emirates , , - , Win , align=center, 13–0 , Yoel Romero , Decision (unanimous) , UFC 241 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Anaheim, California, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 12–0 , Uriah Hall , TKO (punches) , UFC 226 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:38 , Las Vegas, Nevada, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 11–0 , Johny Hendricks , TKO (punches) , UFC 217 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:23 , New York City,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 10–0 ,

, TKO (punches) , UFC 212 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:06 , Rio de Janeiro, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 9–0 ,

, TKO (punches) , UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Gastelum , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:17 ,

Fortaleza Fortaleza (, locally , Portuguese for ''Fortress'') is the state capital of Ceará, located in Northeastern Brazil. It belongs to the Metropolitan mesoregion of Fortaleza and microregion of Fortaleza. It is Brazil's 5th largest city and the t ...

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 8–0 , Adriano Balby de Araujo , KO (punch) , Jungle Fight 90 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:25 , São Paulo, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 7–0 , Eduardo Ramón , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Jungle Fight 87 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:40 , São Paulo, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 6–0 , Bruno Assis , TKO (punches) , Jungle Fight 84 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:17 , São Paulo, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 , Wagner Silva Gomes , TKO (punches) , FTF 11 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:37 , Rio de Janeiro, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Gérson da Conceição , TKO (doctor stoppage) , FTF 9 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 5:00 , Rio de Janeiro, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Fábio Moreira , TKO (punches) , BH Fight: MMA Grand Prix , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:26 ,

Belo Horizonte Belo Horizonte (, ; ) is the sixth-largest city in Brazil, with a population around 2.7 million and with a metropolitan area of 6 million people. It is the 13th-largest city in South America and the 18th-largest in the Americas. The metropol ...

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Ademilson Borges , TKO (head kick and punches) , Upper Fight: MMA Championship 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:32 , Teófilo Otoni, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Téo Esteves , TKO (head kick and punches) , MMA Total Combat: Santa Luzia , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:08 , Santa Luzia, Brazil , , - , - , Loss , align=center, 1–1 , Márcio Alexandre Jr. , Decision (split) , rowspan=2, The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 3 , (airdate) , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , rowspan=2, São Paulo, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , José Roberto , Submission (guillotine choke) , (airdate) , align=center, 2 , align=center, N/A , , -

Pay-per-view bouts

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Costa, Paulo 1991 births Living people Brazilian male mixed martial artists People from Belo Horizonte People from Minas Gerais Middleweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Muay Thai Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Doping cases in mixed martial arts Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Brazilian Muay Thai practitioners Sportspeople from Belo Horizonte