Credit:Joao Baptista
Credit:Joao Baptista
Credit:Joao Baptista
Paulo
Costa and Jared
Cannonier will headline a UFC event on Aug. 21.
ESPN was first to report the middleweight booking, which is
expected to be finalized soon. The location for the card has yet to
be determined.
Costa hasn’t competed since suffering a second-round TKO loss to
Israel
Adesanya in a middleweight championship bout at UFC 253 last
September. “Borrachinha” was slated to face Robert
Whittaker on April 17 but was forced to pull out of the bout
due to illness. The 30-year-old Brazilian was victorious in his
first 13 pro outings before falling to Adesanya.
Cannonier was tabbed as a title contender in waiting following a
trio of TKO victories against David
Branch, Anderson
Silva and Jack
Hermansson. That momentum was derailed, however, in a decision
defeat to Whittaker at UFC 254 in October.