Paulo Costa is sitting comfortable at light heavyweight, but still has his eyes set on UFC middleweight gold.
Costa (16-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC) made good in his return to 205 pounds when he finished Azamat Murzakanov by TKO at UFC 327 in April. His most recent loss came to current UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland by split decision at UFC 302.
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Although Costa admitted he’s closer to a title shot at 205 pounds than middleweight, he’s still interested in running things back with Strickland (31-7 MMA, 18-7 UFC). Their fight was a rather lackluster affair, and Costa acknowledges it.
“Would I like a rematch with Strickland? Yes,” Costa told Compare.bet. “It wasn’t a good fight for either of us. My strategy was very wrong. I was technically and physically very well prepared, but tactically I wasn’t adjusted properly. I kept moving backwards. I think I should have made it more of a firefight, stayed in the center of the octagon more, mixed punches, kicks and takedowns, made the fight messier. I’d definitely like a rematch. I think it makes sense.”
Strickland upset Khamzat Chimaev to claim the middleweight title at UFC 328. Chimaev is obsessed with avenging his close decision loss to Strickland, but UFC CEO Dana White was non-committal when asked about the possibility of a rematch.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Paulo Costa: Rematch with UFC champion Sean Strickland ‘makes sense’
