Paulo Costa is now 220 pounds of Grade-A Brazilian beef

On Saturday night, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) officially announced the long-awaited showdown between Middleweight champion Israel Adesanya and division wrecking ball Paulo Costa. The two will face off at UFC 253 on Sept. 23, 2020, and my body is ready. And so is Costa’s, based on this new video blog he posted from his fight camp.

Titled, “FINALLY BROKE THE 220LBS BARRIER,” the video goes into detail on how “Borrachinha” has beefed up to the max in preparation for his fight with Adesanya.

To say Costa has undergone an impressive physical transformation would be an understatement. He hasn’t fought since Aug. 2019 with a biceps injury, and he got pretty chunky even before the lockdown 15 most people have gained since March.

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

Now, he’s looking like a ball of pure muscle, just underscoring Adesanya’s narrative that this is a “skinny boy vs. beefcake” showdown.

Costa’s video blog shows just how the change occurred: via buckets of sweat in the gym and a regiment of United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA)-approved supplements.

Now that “Borrachinha” is up to 220 pounds, he’ll have to cut an impressive 35 pounds to weigh in at the Middleweight title limit of 185 pounds. But don’t worry, his team clearly has a plan for that, too. Indeed, Costa’s vlog ends with him going over detailed documents from his doctors and nutritionists laying out exactly how his weight cut will go. The man is going to be huge inside the Octagon across from Adesanya.