When Paulo Costa is seen with his glasses on, everyone’s first thought is that he looks exactly like Clark Kent. Mild-mannered, good-looking, and even single, for those interested, and why wouldn’t they be?
🌴 Reporting from SoCal 🌴 #UFC241 pic.twitter.com/qr4Z7oEo9W
— UFC (@ufc) August 14, 2019
When the lights hit and he walks into the Octagon, ready to fight, he may very well be the equivalent of what Superman can be like against his biggest opponents, one who never backs out of a duel, ready for anything, and most importantly, always comes out on top. At 13-0 in his MMA career, 5-0 in the UFC, 11 of his victories have come by way of knockout or TKO, with four of his UFC wins were also by the same result. With heavy hands, a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and the ambitions of someone who resembles that WASP stereotype, the only thing standing in his way is another undefeated fighter in defending UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya (19-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC), who may be a more lethal opponent that Costa will ever face.
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In my wildest dreams
I always imagined this would happen#imagination ðŸ’💫 pic.twitter.com/llMzGSZccA— Israel Adesanya (@stylebender) September 24, 2020
Adesanya is an accomplished kickboxer winning 75 of 80 bouts knocking out 29 while being knocked out himself only once. He has also had a brief boxing stint winning five of his only six fights. As the middleweight champ and his rival have traded barbs over the last several months, this looks like a build-up to what could be a matchup where one fighter stops another’s undefeated streak but could save the division from further carnage, according to their respective view of their opponent…and themselves.
Who will walk out of the Flash Forum at Abu Dhabi’s Yas Island the UFC middleweight champion and cement themselves as one of the premiere 185-lb fighters in UFC history? Tune in and watch UFC 253 this Saturday night on September 26 on Pay-Per-View.
