Paulo Costa No Longer Pursuing Fight vs. Chimaev

Paulo Costa (16-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC) recently hit a career milestone with his 20th professional fight last month in UFC 327 from Miami's Kaseya Center, the home venue of the Miami Heat of the NBA. Bout number 20 for Paulo Costa came in the form of the UFC 327 co-main event on the second Saturday night in April.

For the contest, Costa, who was ranked at No. 14 in the middleweight division, moved up to the light heavyweight ranks to take on Azamat Murzakanov (16-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC.) At the time of the contest, Murzakanov had yet to lose as a professional in MMA and staked claim to the No. 6 spot in the 205-lb division.

Paulo Costa delivered in a huge way upon moving up to 205 for UFC 328, landing a head-kick knockout inside the third and final round of action. The victory served as the 12th by way of knockout in his pro career. After the fight, he was interviewed by Joe Rogan and the topic of if he'd stay at light heavyweight was addressed.

Paulo Costa on Switching to Light Heavyweight Ahead of UFC 327

"I have a mindset," Paulo Costa said at the time. "I can make some sacrifice to achieve my goals. I can make 185 anytime, not like 12 weeks, but fighting at light heavyweight, I can prove I have skills enough to come at this stage and perform very well."

Ultimately, Costa left the decision of moving to light heavyweight on a permanent basis up to the powers that be at the UFC.

"I think we need to talk, right?," he asked. "Let's talk: Which is better? I want to bring great performance, you know, doesn't matter weight, doesn't matter who. I'm here to stay and bring fire in this cage!"

Paulo Costa Showing No Interest in Fighting Khamzat Chimaev in the Future

Regardless of who he fights next and in what division, "The Eraser" took to Instagram this weekend to make one point succinct: He will not be fighting Khamzat Chimaev  (15-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) at any point. 

While Costa and Chimaev have never clashed inside the Octagon, the rivalry had been stewing for a long time ahead of a scheduled fight in 2023 at UFC 293 before the bout was postponed amid Costa suffering an elbow infection. As recently as this past March, Paulo Costa was advocating for a showdown against Chimaev on X, posting "This wolf is a poodle. Give me him ASAP."

"I just came to tell you guys one thing," Costa began on Instagram, "I know many of you guys want to have me facing gourmet Chenchen Chimaev, a.k.a., gourmet Chen Chen. I don't think this is going to happen. Why? Because he's broke."

Paulo Costa Unleashes on Chimaev in Instagram Takedown

Costa didn't stop there. He continued to express his thoughts on Khamzat Chimaev throughout the rest of the video.

"I think he's done," he said of Chimaev. "I don't think he'll be back, and even if he can, grow up and be back, this will not be this year, so let's move on."

With a fight against Khamzat Chimaev tabled for now, Paulo Costa mentioned when he'd like to set foot in the Octagon again. The weight class is also not an issue for him as he looks ahead to his next outing in the UFC.

"I have a bunch of fights, great fights, great matches to do," he continued. "All right, I want to fight as soon as possible. I think August is an amazing date, even July. I can fight middleweight, light heavyweight, even heavyweight."