Paulo Costa sure has a way with words.
The undefeated, 29-year-old Brazilian has finished 12 of his 13 career opponents en route to what he expects to be his crowning achievement: His UFC 253 main event title fight against another undefeated competitor in UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.
In a virtual media day Thursday promoting the bout, Costa (13-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) made it clear in rather colorful terms that he plans on adding Adesanya (19-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) to his list of finished foes.
“If he’s (expletive) his pants for before the fight, bad for him,” Costa said. “Too bad for him. I’m confident. I’m confident in myself, I’m confident in my training, I know what I did on sparring days. I know everything I am working for. I worked for cut his head off. I don’t care if his mind is broken or not. I don’t care. I go there. I will erase him.”
Costa was asked if he’s in Adesanya’s head going into the Sept. 27 bout in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, but he insists it’s not something he pays any mind.
“I don’t try and break him mentally before (the fight),” Costa said, “If he’s broken, it is because he is weak, mentally. I don’t care about him.”
In any event, Costa believes be the time the duo steps in the cage, he’ll have done everything he possibly can to prepare himself for the moment.
“In any case, if he’s good or not, if he (expletive) his pants or not, I will finish him. That’s why I train so hard to not prepare for my opponent. I prepare for me. As good as I know I am now. I can fight for no weights, free weights, like the old times of Vale Tudo. That is my mindset. That’s how I feel about that.”
You can check out Costa’s entire virtual media day even in the video linked above.
Paulo Costa’s plan for Israel Adesanya at UFC 253: ‘I will erase him’