- Sean Strickland told Paulo Costa that a fight between them makes sense and he wants to make it happen soon
- The pair have had their fair share of verbal exchanges in the past
Sean Strickland has managed to get back to his winning ways. He’s currently at No. 7 in the official rankings and would like to make a legitimate return to the Top 5 by facing and beating No. 6 contender Paulo Costa.
Sean wants Paulo
The rivalry between Strickland and Costa has only been verbal so far as both top 185-pounders had exchanged insults in the past. However, “Tarzan” appears to be serious about facing the Brazilian this time but of course, he still did it via Strickland fashion.
According to Strickland, he doesn’t care about what Costa has been up to as of late but a fight between them “makes sense.”
“Yo, Costa, I think we should fight, bro,” Strickland said on Instagram. “It f*cking makes sense, you know. I don’t know if you’ll be drunk or be able to make weight, eating cookies – let’s make this sh*t happen.”
To ensure Costa gets his message quick, “Tarzan” even tagged “Borrachinha” in the caption.
“I think me and @borrachinhamma should do the man dance? I’ll even buy the wine….. What do you all think?,” he wrote.
Costa responds
No matter how serious Strickland is about a fight with Costa, the Brazilian seems to be not into it.
“Strickland deep,deep, deep down in his heart is a nice guy, I just think one of his many problems is because he’s been shot several times in the head and now he’s kind of living on a permanent concussion making jokes so old he couldn’t think of something updated lolall good Bro,” Costa tweeted.
Strickland deep,deep, deep down in his heart is a nice guy, I just think one of his many problems is because he's been shot several times in the head and now he's kind of living on a permanent concussion making jokes so old he couldn't think of something updated lolall good Bro👍 pic.twitter.com/yL8OwnKkic
— Paulo Costa ( Borrachinha ) (@BorrachinhaMMA) January 31, 2023
It could really make sense
Strickland may be known for his silly antics and foul words but he seems to be right when he said that a fight with Costa makes sense. While it’s already Israel Adesanya who got the title shot, Strickland vs. Costa could cause a shakeup on the list of next title challengers.
The winner between the “Tarzan” and “Borrachinha” could have a shot at reclaiming his spot at the Top 5 and edge closer to a crack at the title.
In terms of past fights, it also seems fitting as both fighters are coming off a decision win. Strickland secured a decision victory after outpointing Nassourdine Imavov at UFC Vegas 67, while Costa dominated former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold en route to a decision win of his own at UFC 278.
