Paulo Costa claims that Sean Strickland refused a fight between the pair. The Brazilian has made some major accusations against the American recently. Strickland’s MO has always been that he is not someone who backs down from a fight or says no to a fight. However, according to Costa, the former UFC Middleweight Champion refused a fight against ‘Borrachinha’. The Brazilian made the comments while on a recent podcast.
Paulo Costa is fresh off a loss against Robert Whittaker at UFC 299. The Brazilian lost via unanimous decision against the former champion. ‘Borrachinha’ is now looking for his next opponent for his fight and while on the Coach And Casual podcast, he had this to say about Sean Strickland,
“Unfortunately, I don’t know what happened, Strickland said no. He don’t want to fight me. Strickland he refused to fight me, unfortunately.”
BREAKING NEWS UFC COMING UP UPDATE @coachandcasual podcast . @RamseyNijem pic.twitter.com/vbcssIGdlS
— Paulo Costa ( Borrachinha ) (@BorrachinhaMMA) April 8, 2024
According to Paulo Costa, the UFC offered him a fight against Sean Strickland, which he believes is more exciting than a fight against Jared Cannonier. Costa claims that the organization initially tried to offer him a fight against Cannonier before pitching the Strickland fight.
However, to his dismay, the former middleweight champion did not take up the fight offer and deprived the Brazilian of an exciting opportunity. Meanwhile, things took an interesting turn when the former UFC Middleweight Champion responded to the allegations on Instagram.
Sean Strickland responded to Paulo Costa’s claims on Instagram
Sean Strickland was quick to respond to Paulo Costa’s accusations on Instagram. The American denied the rumors and revealed what he actually said. Soon after Costa posted the video of him talking about the UFC’s fight offer on Instagram, Strickland commented on the post, saying,
“I never say no.. I say “how much”
Sean Strickland responds to Paulo Costa pic.twitter.com/qrWaxVAXT9
— mma casual (@mmafanatixzx) April 9, 2024
Sean Strickland revealed that he never says no to the fights that the UFC offers him. He only asks how much he will get paid for the fight. However, it makes sense for Strickland to refuse the fight because he is eyeing his rematch against Dricus Du Plessis. Although Strickland lost the fight via decision, the bout was very closely contested. With controversies about the decision running wild, it is only fair that Strickland deserves another shot at the title against Du Plessis next.
