There is some tension brewing between Paulo Costa and Derek Brunson.
Costa had been involved in social media banter with Sean Strickland but it appears things were going nowhere. As a result, “Borrachinha” shifted his focus to Brunson. Costa threw down the challenge, saying it’s time for Brunson to “accept or run away.”
Paulo Costa & Derek Brunson: War Of Words
Derek Brunson responded to Paulo Costa on Twitter, calling “Borrachinha” a heavyweight.
. @BorrachinhaMMA focus on your own weight class . You’re a heavyweight . I tried to fight you multiple times . Your disappeared until I got a fight . I’m not fighting soon, I’m working on my craft . I’m waiting on your 2nd heavyweight fight . Paulo Pasta pic.twitter.com/jrb9YdsXfs
— Derek Brunson (@DerekBrunson) March 31, 2022
“Focus on your own weight class. You’re a heavyweight. I tried to fight you multiple times. You disappeared until I got a fight. I’m not fighting soon, I’m working on my craft. I’m waiting on your 2nd heavyweight fight. Paulo Pasta.”
Costa fired back at Brunson in an Instagram post, expressing his belief that the fellow top five-ranked UFC middleweight is scared.
“He said I’m heavyweight hahahaha. ‘How can I fight a heavyweight in the middleweight? It’s [an unfair] fight. This is guy is so big. He is on PEDs he is a cheater. I don’t want [to] fight Costa.’ Derek Brunson lol. I knew he was shaking as well.
“These fighters in middleweight are unhappy for me fighting at 185 cause they can’t fight big like me. I have 15 fights and just missed weight once after injures in training camp. Many fighters missed weight a couple times and [are] still ok. It’s an illogical thing, just look [scared], right?”
Costa is coming off his second loss in a row. He fell short in his fun five-round battle with Marvin Vettori. “Borrachinha” lost the fight via unanimous decision.
Brunson is also looking to rebound. He was knocked out by Jared Cannonier in the second round of their UFC 271 bout back in February.
