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ISRAEL ADESANYA VS. PAULO COSTA

The middleweight title is on the line in Saturday night’s main event as undefeated, undisputed reigning champion Israel Adesanya puts the belt on the line against unbeaten Brazilian contender Paulo Costa in a highly anticipated grudge match carrying all the elements needed to be a Fight of the Year contender.

In his first 25 months on the UFC roster, Adesanya went 8-0 inside the Octagon, winning the interim middleweight title in one of 2019’s best fights opposite Kelvin Gastelum before unifying the belts with a second-round finish of Robert Whittaker last October. In his first title defense, “The Last Stylebender” edged out Yoel Romero in a tactical chess match that allowed the Nigerian-born New Zealander to maintain his place atop the division.

Costa is a perfect 5-0 inside the Octagon and 13-0 overall, with his Fight of the Night-winning victory over Romero at UFC 241 last summer standing as the lone time he’s gone the distance in his career. The aggressive contender earned stoppage victories over Johny Hendricks and Uriah Hall prior to his clash with Romero but has been sidelined ever since after dealing with a torn biceps and various additional injuries and ailments.

Any time two undefeated fighters clash with championship gold hanging in the balance, you know you’re getting a matchup between two elite competitors and this one is no different. What ups the ante, however, is the genuine contempt and animosity that exists between these two, who have been trading barbs and boastful predictions on social media since Adesanya dispatched Whittaker to stand alone as the one true ruler of the middleweight ranks.

Stylistically, this has the potential to be electric as Costa is an aggressive striker who will look to pressure the champion, which should give the sublime counter-striker Adesanya an opportunity to utilize his complete offensive arsenal on Saturday night.

This one could end suddenly in the first round, be a protracted battle like Adesanya’s fight against Gastelum and Costa’s war with Romero, or land somewhere in between. The only thing that is certain is that everyone is already counting down the hours until these two hit the Octagon and will be on the edge of their seats from the moment the challenger starts to make his walk to the UFC cage on Saturday evening.

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