UFC middleweight Paulo Costa has teased a switch to the boxing ring after the conclusion of his "miserable" contract with the promotion.
Costa is currently ranked as the sixth leading contender in the UFC's middleweight division, and has yet to become champion after falling short in his maiden title challenge against Israel Adesanya in 2020. The Brazilian will return to action next February at UFC 284 where he will challenge Robert Whittaker as he looks to start a new surge up the rankings after defeating Luke Rockhold back in August.
The Brazilian star has just one fight remaining on his current UFC deal and it remains unclear if he intends to fight with the organisation again when he becomes a free agent next year. And the 31-year-old made a public declaration of his frustration, tweeting: “My miserable contract with the UFC was up in a few short months. will expire in time. A new #boxer is coming to town!"
Costa late expanded on his plans during an interview with the MMA Hour where he revealed he is open to holding further talks with the UFC before making the decision to turn his back entirely. He said: “I have one more, I didn’t know, I thought this was the last one but I have one more. I’m looking forward to being a free agent for sure, I will not lie to you. I’d (thought) this was the last one of this contract.
“I really believe it’s not just for me, it’s for everybody. I’m on a high, high level, fighting the best of this division and my contract is too old. When I fought Marvin Vettori, I got $35,000. $35,000. For this one was a couple more, a couple more, I got the win bonus, and because when I fought Marvin Vettori, I got a 20 per cent reduction. I need to talk with them and see. I’m not rushing up to see, but we need to see, we need to figure it out. I’m not happy with the current contract, of course.”
Costa will first need to compete before parting ways with the UFC if that is what he elects to do, but he has already began talking about potential fight options in the squared circle. This includes YouTube star Jake Paul who he recently made a threat to "kill" on his social media, in a bid to step up their rivalry further.
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The former UFC title challenge has previously vowed not to fight Paul but to instead send bare-knuckle fighter Mike Perry into a contest with the content creator. He said: "Jake Paul has been doing great things. He was just a YouTuber, he came into the fight business and has done great.
"I understand Jake is doing a great job and of course I'd like to get an easy money with him, but I have a better challenge for him. Mike Perry, he's almost the same weight class. Mike Perry is a savage if Jake wants a real fight."
