‘It pays more, much more’ – Costa interested in boxing when UFC contract is up

Paulo Costa lost to Marvin Vettori back in October 2021. | Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC

UFC middleweight Paulo Costa might be interested in the new trend among MMA fighters. It seems that the trend of mixed martial ar…


UFC Fight Night: Costa v Vettori
Paulo Costa lost to Marvin Vettori back in October 2021. | Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC

UFC middleweight Paulo Costa might be interested in the new trend among MMA fighters.

It seems that the trend of mixed martial artists turning to boxing has caught another UFC fighter’s attention. Although Paulo Costa still has to finish his current contract before he can jump ship, ‘Borrachinha’ confesses to be quite interested in the money he could earn in the ring.

In an interview with Ag Fight, Costa explained that the opportunity to make more money in a shorter period of time is rather tempting. However, the Brazilian also points out that in the UFC he gets better exposure, as opposed to boxing promotions.

“Boxing is in now. It’s a new opportunity. It’s just something to consider for now. I’m still under contract with the UFC, so I can’t really do anything. First, I have to finish the contract.”

“This is a tough question to answer.” Paulo continued. “Boxing pays more, much more, in a shorter period of time. However, it doesn’t have the promoting power that the UFC has. The UFC pay is low, but they have a high promoting power. It’s ideal to have both. Take the best of both worlds. That’s what Ngannou did. He became an UFC champion with a really bad purse. Now he’s doing the right thing. He’s taking advantage of the fact that he’s at the top to get in a better financial situation, outside of the UFC.”

Currently on a two-fight losing skid, Costa (13-2) lost to Marvin Vettori and Israel Adesanya in his most recent outings. Before that, the 30-year-old was on a five-fight winning streak in the UFC, with wins over notables names, such as Yoel Romero, Johny Hendricks and Uriah Hall, among others.