Paulo Costa claims he drank a bottle of wine the night before his title fight with Israel Adesanya

UFC middleweight contender Paulo Costa claimed that he drank too much wine the night before his title fight with Israel Adesanya at UFC 253.

The then-undefeated Costa was considered a live dog to defeat the champion Adesanya, but he proved to be an easy night at the office for the champion, who picked him apart with strikes from the outside before knocking Costa out. It was a fantastic performance by Adesanya, for sure, but it was still hard to believe Costa couldn’t offer more resistance. And now, the Brazilian is speaking out and explaining just why he performed so poorly, blaming it on a night of drinking, a decision that Costa surely wishes he hadn’t made.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, the UFC middleweight contender credited Adesanya for knocking him out but claims he drank too much wine the night before which impaired him.

“I was kind of drunk (when) I fought, maybe, on a hangover. I couldn’t sleep because of the cramps. Keep in mind that the fight happens at 9 a.m., we have to wake up at 5 to get ready, stretch, wrap the hands. The UFC told us to wake up at 5 in the morning to go to the arena to fight. I hadn’t slept until 2:30,” Costa said (h/t MMAFighting.com).

“It was my mistake and I don’t blame anyone else, it was something I chose, but, in order to try to sleep, because I had to sleep since I was awake for 24 hours, I had wine, too much wine, a bottle to try to blackout. I had a glass and didn’t work. Two glasses, it didn’t work. Half bottle didn’t work. I had it all.”

If Costa truly was impaired in the fight, it makes you wonder how he passed the medical screenings. If there were signs that he was impaired then he should not have fought, raising serious questions with the UFC and the local commission. Regardless, it was a poor performance by Costa and hopefully, he doesn’t make another bad decision like that the night before he fights Whittaker this spring. Costa returns to the Octagon on April 17.

Do you think Paulo Costa will be able to defeat Robert Whittaker and potentially earn a rematch with Israel Adesanya?