A middleweight collision between Paulo Costa and Marvin Vettori is on tap.
ESPN’s Brett Okamoto is reporting that Costa vs. Vettori is close to being finalized to serve as the main event for a UFC card on Oct. 23.
“Paulo Costa vs. Marvin Vettori is being finalized to headline a UFC Fight Night event on Oct. 23, per multiple sources. Costa’s side wanted it. Vettori’s side wanted it. Let’s have some fun, yeah?”
Costa was last seen inside the Octagon back in Sept. 2020. He fell short in his bid for the UFC Middleweight Championship. “Borrachinha” was stopped by Israel Adesanya via TKO in the second round. This was the first loss in Costa’s pro MMA career.
Vettori’s last bout was also against Adesanya. He was bested by “The Last Stylebender” after five rounds of action. Vettori lost the fight via unanimous decision. The defeat snapped Vettori’s five-fight winning streak.
Last month, Costa’s manager, Wallid Ismail, told Okamoto that Costa is ready for Vettori and wanted to make the fight happen.
“Asked MMA manager Wallid Ismail for an update on Paulo Costa. He said the fight he wants to make and is pushing UFC for is Marvin Vettori. Both talk trash, fun matchup. Wallid is trying to make it from his end.”
Vettori’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, responded with the following on his Twitter account.
“We ready, just call Mick Maynard.”
Costa and Vettori have been trading barbs through the media. Vettori took aim at Costa during an interview with BT Sport. “Borrachinha” fired back, calling Vettori a “moron.”
