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Manager Insists Paulo Costa Is Remaining At MW Despite White’s Claim

Paulo Costa’s manager insists that “Borrachinha” is staying put in the middleweight division.

It was unclear if Costa could handle the weight at 205 and make it all five rounds against Vettori. As commentator Michael Bisping mentioned early in roun…

Paulo Costa’s manager insists that “Borrachinha” is staying put in the middleweight division.

It was unclear if Costa could handle the weight at 205 and make it all five rounds against Vettori. As commentator Michael Bisping mentioned early in round one, “I’m tellin’ ya, Paulo Costa’s fading already…” Dana White echoed these comments in the post-fight show. However, “Borrachinha” hung around after everything “The Italian Dream” unleashed.

The days leading up to UFC Vegas 41 kept MMA fans confused and Marvin Vettori frustrated as to whether the fight would happen at middleweight or catchweight, but despite the one-sided weight hurdles, both men put on an outstanding battle, throwing heavy attacks until the final bell. The pre-fight tension certainly let everyone know these two meant business, and it was an exciting matchup to see.

After Costa failed to make weight for a middleweight fight—moving the fight from 185 to landing at 205 pounds—and did not take home the victory against Vettori, Dana White made the call to move him to light heavyweight.

“He’s a light heavyweight,” said White. “I mean, you guys saw him tonight. He’s massive.”

Costa’s Manager Claims Costa Will Remain At Middleweight

Despite White’s insistence that Costa move to 205 permanently, Costa’s manager, Wallid Ismail, remains determined to see his fighter become a champion at middleweight and claims White’s notion of Costa moving up a weight class has changed since the post-fight conference.

“The UFC is not the biggest fighting company in the world by chance,” Ismail told Sherdog.com. “They know that ‘Borrachinha’ was injured and that’s why he had problems with his weight. There is no doubt his next fight will take place in the middleweight division.”

So why was it difficult for Costa to make weight? He initially kept the MMA world in the dark about why he could not hit the 185lb mark. It was only during the post-fight press conference that Costa informed us about his weight-cut journey, in which he reported he “needed to stop some weeks in training” due to an injury to his left bicep.

Of course, Vettori shunned the excuse, claiming this explanation didn’t make any sense and that he didn’t buy Costa’s explanation.

Either way, Costa, now 13-2-0, is headed into a new UFC journey after his loss to Marvin Vettori, 18-5-1, during UFC Vegas 41 on October 23, moving down to #5 in the UFC middleweight rankings.

We now anticipate what comes next for “Borrachinha” and whether or not he will indeed remain in the middleweight division.

Do you think Paulo Costa should compete at middleweight or light heavyweight moving forward?

Continue Reading Manager Insists Paulo Costa Is Remaining At MW Despite White’s Claim at MMA News.

Yair Rodriguez: ‘I Don’t Care What Happens’ Against Max Holloway

Yair Rodriguez is keeping an open mind heading into to his UFC Vegas 41 main event opposite Max Holloway.

Rodriguez will be facing the former featherweight champion in his first fight in about two years, following injuries, a suspension for a USADA…

Yair Rodriguez is keeping an open mind heading into to his UFC Vegas 41 main event opposite Max Holloway.

Rodriguez will be facing the former featherweight champion in his first fight in about two years, following injuries, a suspension for a USADA whereabouts violation, and a rough run with COVID-19. He is not taking an easy fight in his return, either, facing Holloway who is coming off of a career-defining performance against Calvin Kattar, earlier this year.

This jump into the deep end is precisely what Rodriguez was looking for, as he explained on The MMA Hour. Here, the Mexican contender said that he was excited to test his growth over the last two years, and is ready for whatever outcome presents itself.

“We already know how to swim, so let’s swim in the deep waters. I like it. I’ve been putting myself in some situations… all that I can think of is just growth. Growth outside myself, my body, my mind, and I don’t really care about anything. I don’t care about winning this fight specifically, I just want to see what I’m capable of doing after this layoff of two years and after being training for so long. I’ve been training for this fight or any other fight for so long, and I want to see my improvements and how I improved in this time, what still needs to be improved. This is more than anything for myself, for my growth,” Rodriguez said.

“For me, it’s going to be great because he has all this experience that I will be able to absorb that night, and my career is just going to take (off). It doesn’t matter what happens, like I don’t care what happens. I’m just going to go out there and give my all as always, and that’s what you guys will see. A true f—king warrior, two f—king warriors getting to go out there and f—k each other up. That’s it.”

To be clear, just because Yair Rodriguez says that he does not care what happens does not mean he lacks the desire to win. He made it known that the only thing that matters is giving his best, and in doing so, he would be able to handle a loss.

“Of course, I’m going to win. I’m for the win. Nobody goes in there think they’re going to lose,” Rodriguez said. “What I mean is, I don’t care. If I lose I won’t take it hard on myself. I know he’s a tough opponent, and it’s a hard task. I put myself in a situation where I need to outperform him, and I like to put myself in that position.”

The fight between Max Holloway and Yair Rodriguez promises to deliver fireworks from start to finish. It will be interesting to see how the fight plays out and if “El Pantera” can get the biggest win of his mixed martial arts career.

Watch the full interview below:

Continue Reading Yair Rodriguez: ‘I Don’t Care What Happens’ Against Max Holloway at MMA News.

Holloway Still Open To 155lb, Might See Makhachev ‘In The Near Future

Max Holloway is not ruling out a return to the lightweight division.

Holloway is known for his championship-winning efforts at featherweight, being considered one of the greatest fighters in that division’s history. However, he did attempt to move …

Max Holloway is not ruling out a return to the lightweight division.

Holloway is known for his championship-winning efforts at featherweight, being considered one of the greatest fighters in that division’s history. However, he did attempt to move to the 155lb division while still featherweight champ, ultimately losing a decision to Dustin Poirier for the interim title.

Another fight that he was expected to have, was a short notice title fight against Khabib Nurmagomedov when Tony Ferguson pulled out of their vacant title fight but was ruled ineligible to compete. When asked in a recent interview with RT Sport what his game plan would have been if he did fight Khabib, Max would not give an answer, because he says that he might return to 155lb at some point and could end up fighting Khabib’s protégé, Islam Makhachev.

“(I would) go out there and fight my fight, you know? Do what Max Holloway does, fight my pace, fight my fight, get in his face, get early, and just get it done. I can’t give away too much. Your boy still might go up to ’55, and there’s Islam over there, that trains with, that is Khabib’s protege that’s coming up. So at the end of the day, I can’t give away my secrets too much, ’cause we might see this guy in the near future,” Holloway said.

Max Holloway has long been flirting with an eventual move to lightweight, but if he is able to get past Yair Rodriguez at UFC Vegas 42 this weekend, he will likely be next for the title shot. That said, if he comes up short in a third fight against Alexander Volkanovski, a move to lightweight could make the most sense for his career.

You can check out the full interview with Max Holloway below:

Continue Reading Holloway Still Open To 155lb, Might See Makhachev ‘In The Near Future at MMA News.

Holloway Knows He’s ‘Always On The Short List’ For McGregor Rematch

Max Holloway would love to have a rematch with Conor McGregor and knows the UFC would be down for it too.

Holloway fought McGregor way back in 2013, long before either man became champions, with the Irishman getting the better on that night. Given …

Max Holloway would love to have a rematch with Conor McGregor and knows the UFC would be down for it too.

Holloway fought McGregor way back in 2013, long before either man became champions, with the Irishman getting the better on that night. Given the paths both men have taken since then, with the Hawaiian only losing to Alexander Volkanovski and Dustin Poirier since then, there have long been talks of a rematch, even being teased between both men.

This even popped up recently, with McGregor hinting that he wants to fight Holloway again on social media. Speaking on The MMA Hour ahead of his UFC Vegas 41 main event against Yair Rodriguez, the former featherweight champ explained that he has a lot of big options ahead of him after this fight and that a fight with McGregor is never too far away.

“I mean, yeah. I’ve got five title defenses and I would like that sixth, but you know, with possible fights and stuff, there are bigger fights that the UFC discussed us with, you know. I got a win over the 155lb champ right now. We’re always on the short list for Conor. Before we got injured, we were one of the replacement fighters. And I’m the best boxer in the UFC, so use your imagination my friends, it’s a wild world today,” Holloway said.

Max Holloway Conor McGregor — Image Credit: Jared Wickerham/Getty Images

“We’ll see what happens…. At the end of the day, obviously, Conor wants Dustin, or he wants Nate, or whatever. But anybody at ’55 or ’45 after those guys, my name pops up. You can go call Hunter right now, ask him who can sell, who’s gonna sell numbers with Conor, and they’re going to drop my name all the time. At the end of the day, I’m always on the shortlist for Conor, so we’ll see what happens. First things first, I have a fight on November 13th, and we’ll go from there.”

There is little doubt that a rematch between Max Holloway and Conor McGregor would look vastly different from their initial encounter. If that does end up happening, there would likely be no complaints from the fans.

Check out the full Max Holloway interview below:

Continue Reading Holloway Knows He’s ‘Always On The Short List’ For McGregor Rematch at MMA News.

Vettori Says He Will ‘F—k Adesanya Up’ On Sight

Marvin Vettori is tired of being disrespected by Israel Adesanya. Vettori successfully rebounded from his title fight rematch loss to Adesanya by defying pre-fight weight drama and beating Paulo Costa in a slugfest. While most fans watching were entertained by the back and forth fight, the middleweight champ was not so kind and made his […]

Continue Reading Vettori Says He Will ‘F—k Adesanya Up’ On Sight at MMA News.

Marvin Vettori is tired of being disrespected by Israel Adesanya.

Vettori successfully rebounded from his title fight rematch loss to Adesanya by defying pre-fight weight drama and beating Paulo Costa in a slugfest. While most fans watching were entertained by the back and forth fight, the middleweight champ was not so kind and made his feelings known with a video that he posted shortly after.

It seems that Vettori is fed up with the antics of The Last Stylebender and decided to respond when asked about Adesanya’s recent comments while speaking to TMZ. Here, the top middleweight contender said that he is aware of the position he is in right now, having two losses to the champ, but he firmly believes that he will meet Adesanya in the Octagon once more.

“He’s full of shit, man. He never give me credit, but he knows. He knows what’s up. I’m the only guy that’s gonna beat him, and eventually, I will. It’s just a matter of time. Let’s see how he goes with Whittaker, but I’m right there, and I’m the biggest opposition for him, and he knows that,” Vettori said.

That being said, Marvin Vettori is not only limiting the idea of throwing down with Israel Adesanya, to just a fight in the cage. He says even if it is in the streets, the next time he sees Adesanya he is throwing hands.

“I saw a glimpse of that video, and he’s full of shit, man. I’m gonna f—k him up the next time I see him. That’s for sure.”

Vettori’s final message for Adesanya was a simple one. He says that he knows he is on the champ’s mind despite their two fight results, and that one day they will meet again.

“Adesanya, I’m coming for you, man. It’s just a matter of time. I’m in your head rent free. You know that.”

There is certainly a hard road ahead of Marvin Vettori to get another chance to dethrone Israel Adesanya. With that in mind, it is impossible to fault him for trying to go after the champ like this.

Watch the full interview below:

Continue Reading Vettori Says He Will ‘F—k Adesanya Up’ On Sight at MMA News.

VIDEO | Israel Adesanya Watches Costa vs. Vettori Concludes That ‘They’re Both Sh*t’

Reigning UFC middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya has already spent two rounds inside the Octagon against recent headliner, Paulo Costa as well as eight separate rounds with Marvin Vettori in one-sided victories. And has concluded that both middleweight contenders are less than desirable off the back of their acclaimed UFC Vegas 41 headliner last year. Adesanya, […]

Adesanya, a staple of City Kickboxing, is targeted to make his Octagon return on February 12. at UFC 271 in his middleweight title rematch against former undisputed kingpin, Robert Whittaker — off the back of a second career decision victory over the aforenoted, Vettori in June of this year at UFC 262.

Taking main event status at UFC Vegas 41 last weekend despite a turbulent fight week which witnessed several alterations to the originally agreed upon weight limit, Costa met with Kings MMA trainee, Vettori in an eventual light heavyweight showdown.

Headlining the 14-fight card at the UFC Apex facility, Costa and Vettori went the allotted 25-minute distance in their light heavyweight matchup, with Vettori taking home a unanimous decision (48-46, 48-46, 48-46) victory over the Brazilian — who was deducted a point in the second round due to an unintentional eye poke.

**Israel Adesanya concludes that both Paulo Costa and Marvin Vettori are sh*t off the back of UFC Vegas 41**

Sharing his thoughts on the light heavyweight main event between his past title rivals, Adesanya pretended to fall asleep at one stage during the main event bout while viewing — before remarking, “I told you they’re both sh*t” in reference to Costa and Vettori.

“[Costa] did right,” Israel Adesanya said. “Inside leg kicks, I wish he did that more, I wish he stayed with the inside leg kicks because that was working. He tried to hip feint at one point but it was like, this close. It’s like, bro, this what ‘Twist’ (coach Tristam Apikotoa) says, people try to copy what we do but they don’t understand the levels or the uses of what we’re doing. They just think, ‘That looks pretty. Everyone’s using that.’ They try to copy it, but it’s not the same.” (H/T MMA Fighting)

Prior to June’s second career win over Vettori, Adesanya lodged the second successful title defense of his middleweight reign with an eye-catching high kick and strikes knockout win over the above mentioned Belo Horizonte native, Costa at UFC 253 in September of last year on ‘Fight Island’.