Marvin Vettori and Paulo Costa (Credits: MMA Fighting)
Paulo Costa has dismissed news of fighting Robert Whittaker, claims that he’s awaiting a revised contract
Paulo Costa is embroiled in a contract dispute with the UFC. According to the promotion, Paulo Costa and Robert Whittaker are set to fight. The bout has been announced on the UFC’s website and the network that airs UFC events. The fight is scheduled for February 12 in Perth, Australia, but Costa claims it is not yet official because he is waiting for a new contract and a pay raise before agreeing to face the ex-champ.
Having won by decision at UFC 278, his show purse was disclosed to be $65,000, or 32% of the pay that former champion Luke Rockhold received for the same fight. Like most UFC fighters, Costa’s salary doubled after a victory, and he picked up an extra $50,000 for winning “Fight of the Night.” [via/ MMA Fighting]
Speaking about the details of his conversation with CBO Hunter Campbell in a recent interview with Submission Radio, Costa stated:
“I have got this same payment since 2017. So, it’s crazy. And I have fought the top-five guys and I get money as a beginner. So he agreed. He said, yeah, it’s totally out of date, we need to update this. But after that they announced that fight against Robert. But I didn’t see any contract in my mail, on my table. I have nothing yet. I’m just waiting for Hunter to make his offer. Because he said, OK, we’ll make another offer and you see what you think about it. The time for fighting for free has gone. I love MMA, but I cannot just fight for the love. I have bills to pay.”
Brazilian middleweight Paulo Costa has come to the decision of fighting out his UFC contract. Costa has been openly vocal about fighter pay, and issues in the UFC. While he still has fights left on his contract, his mission towards finishing his contract began with the fight against Luke Rockhold at UFC 278.
The Brazilian hinted at a potential next move in his career on his official Twitter account. In the post, Paulo also made another bold criticism of his current deal with the world’s largest MMA promotion.
“My miserable contract with the UFC was up in a few short months. will expire in time . A new #boxer is coming to town!🙌””
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