UFC middleweight star Paulo Costa had one name in mind following his comeback win at UFC 318.
Former UFC middleweight title challenger Paulo Costa returned to the win column for the first time in almost three years at UFC 318. In a back-and-forth slugfest, Costa outpointed Roman Kopylov by unanimous decision to snap his two-fight losing skid.
It was Costa’s first win since he outpointed former UFC champion Luke Rockhold at UFC 278. He returned to the Octagon at UFC 302, losing by split decision to Sean Strickland.
After returning to the middleweight title mix, Costa had one name on his mind after his win at UFC 318.
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Khamzat Chimaev/Paulo Costa feud hits a new level after UFC 318 callout
Earlier during UFC 318 fight week, Costa accused undefeated middleweight Khamzat Chimaev of direct messaging his girlfriend threats aimed at him. According to Costa, Chimaev messaged his girlfriend that she ‘should look for a better man’ ahead of their scheduled fight at UFC 294.
Chimaev denied Costa’s accusations in a recent social media post. After Costa’s victory, he doubled down on his claims and promised an endless pursuit of Chimaev.
In his UFC 318 post-fight interview, Costa went off on Chimaev.
“Everybody knows I hate that guy, everyone knows that m*********** Chimaev,” Costa said.
“He’s a big a******, and my wife is over here, he DMed her. This is not good, this is a bad thing. But he never sent them to me, because he’s a coward. Chimaev, I’m going to show you why you’re a coward. I am here, I’m going to look for you, chase you, and I will not stop until I get you!”
It didn’t take long for Chimaev to take notice of Costa’s latest comments.
In a recent post on X, Chimaev responded to Costa’s fiery post-fight callout.
“It was she who wrote me habibi [LAUGHS],” Chimaev wrote.
Chimaev will fight for the UFC middleweight title against champion Dricus du Plessis at UFC 319 next month. Unbeaten in his MMA career, Chimaev earned the next middleweight title shot with a nasty finish of Robert Whittaker at UFC 308 in October.
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Paulo Costa received high praise from Jon Jones following UFC 318 win
As Costa coasted to the decision win at UFC 318, former UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones led the praise from fans on social media. Jones called Costa’s leg kicks ‘freaking deadly’ as he praised the UFC 318 victor.
Jones announced his retirement from MMA last month after months of contract talks with the UFC brass to fight Tom Aspinall. But he has since pivoted on that stance as he now targets a return to the Octagon for the UFC’s planned event at The White House next year.
Jones returned to the UFC’s drug testing pool and appears serious on a comeback attempt in 2026. Jones last fought in a successful heavyweight title defense against Stipe Miocic at UFC 309.