MELBOURNE, Australia – Paulo Costa is expected to be cageside for this weekend’s UFC 243, but if his face is flashed on the screens at Marvel Stadium, don’t expect him to receive a warm welcome.
If a pre-fight Q&A session is any indication of the way he’ll be treated at the event, Costa may be in for a long night.
Costa (13-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) is fully expected to challenge the winner of the UFC middleweight title unification bout at UFC 243 between champ Robert Whittaker (20-4 MMA, 11-2 UFC) and interim titleholder Israel Adesanya (17-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC). As such, he’s attending the card, which takes place Saturday (Sunday locally) at Marvel Stadium. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN2 and UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+.
On Saturday, he was featured in a Q&A session alongside top featherweight contender Alexander Volkanovski. It didn’t take long for the crowd to go in hard on “Borrachinha.”
First up, questions about his cardio.
“How do expect to beat Israel when you can’t last five rounds?”
Then it was concerns about his ability to take a punch.
“During the Romero fight, you got knocked down a few times. What happens when you fight a decent striker like Robert Whittaker, and you’re not going to be able to get back up, mate?”
Then the gloves really started to come off, and the Australian crowd went after Costa’s famously chiseled physique, which has resulted in questions about his adherence to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency’s strict guidelines.
“I was just wondering, after losing to Romero, are you planning on taking any more supplements to come back?”
“You called Israel Adesanya ‘really skinny.’ I think if he had the same doctor as you, he’d probably look like Jon Jones, so don’t worry about that.”
While Costa largely kept his cool during the onslaught, the last question did seem to irk him just a bit, and he had a question of his own in reply – and a quick jab at the offending gentleman’s attire.
“Hey, man, what the (expletive) are you, a (expletive) bully?” Costa asked. “With this horrible hat on your head. What the (expletive) is this?”
While the fans were certainly emboldened by the sheer amount of space and security guard between the seats and the stage, Costa’s direct address did earn a quick change in tone from at least that final heckler, who immediately thanked Costa for his time – and in the middleweight contender’s native Portuguese, no less.
“Obrigado, Paulo.”
To see it unfold, check out the video above.
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