Paulo Costa issues statement following decision loss to Marvin Vettori at UFC Vegas 41

UFC middleweight contender Paulo Costa issued a statement following his unanimous decision loss to Marvin Vettori at UFC Vegas 41.

Costa and Vettori went to war for 25 minutes in the main event of UFC Vegas 41. In what was originally scheduled to be a middleweight main event, the fight was shifted up to the light heavyweight division after Costa showed up heavy on fight week. Despite the weight issues, though, Costa put up one hell of a fight against Vettori. The two blown-up middleweights stood in the pocket and slugged it out for five rounds, with Vettori eventually winning the fight by unanimous decision on the judges’ scorecards. It was a fantastic fight and one that Costa feels like he did enough in order to get his hand raised.

Taking to his social media the day following his war with Vettori, Costa released a statement where he suggested that he should have been the one who won the decision.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CVa-Hs5PT4z/

Thank you Lord, thank you all for your support. I think I caused more damage to my opponent and for that reason I should have won, but in order to leave no doubt, I had to get the knockout. Despite this, I didn’t do enough to feel like a winner, I’m very critical of myself because I know my potential. I’ll make sure I don’t leave it to the judges next time. I will correct what you need and continue to be aggressive and forceful. God be praised always, amen.

UFC president Dana White said following the event that Costa must fight at 205lbs going forward, but “Borrachinha” has said that will go back down to 185lbs instead. It will be interesting to see who blinks first, but more than likely, Costa is a light heavyweight now.

What do you think is next for Paulo Costa following his decision loss to Marvin Vettori at UFC Vegas 41?