Even Israel Adesanya couldn’t hate on Paulo Costa after he returned to winning ways at UFC 318.
The middleweight duo shared a bitter rivalry before and after their title fight in September 2020.
Including his knockout loss to ‘The Last Stylebender’, Paulo Costa was riding a 1-4 streak into his latest fight.
Roman Kopylov was expected to hand the Brazilian another defeat, but that’s not how things played out at UFC 318 on Saturday night.
Israel Adesanya reacts to Paulo Costa’s UFC 318 win
Israel Adesanya watched UFC 318 and shared a video of his live reactions on YouTube.
“Costa is looking good, man,” the former two-time 185lb champion said during the co-main event.
“Costa is looking f—ing clean!
“Bro, he’s selecting them nice. That uppercut, right to the body as well.”
He added when the fight ended: “Costa is on today, he’s backy.
“Good job, buddy. Finally!
“That was vintage. He looked good.”
Israel Adesanya’s pre-fight words worked…
Adesanya gave Costa a brutal reality check ahead of his return to the Octagon at UFC 318.
The 35-year-old urged Costa to ‘get serious’ about his career, and it seemed to work as he won for the first time in three years.
“Paulo Costa, where’s he been. Can’t remember,” Adesanya said.
“He is still a dangerous dude. … Costa! Show up, man! Just show up and f—– show them. Costa has got the goods, but I don’t know. Who is he training with now?
Costa just needs to get serious again,” Adesanya continued. “Costa is fun, he is entertaining to watch…(but) just show some balls, man. Go back to who you were before you fought me.
“Take it more seriously. Just f— everything else. … I do like Costa. I don’t think he is a bad guy. But again, just show some balls. Get back to being serious. Show up to fight. He’s had so many — like, once he didn’t make weight. Just show some balls, bro. Be motivated, be disciplined.”