Jared Cannonier Explains Why He 'Leans More Towards' Paulo Costa In Khamzat Chimaev Fight

The UFC's upcoming return to the Middle East is beginning to come together. And in addition to a blockbuster championship rematch between Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira, an intriguing middleweight showdown will go down on October 21.

Heading to Abu Dhabi later this year will be #7-ranked contender Paulo Costa. Having not competed since a victory over Luke Rockhold 11 months ago and had a planned scrap with Ikram Aliskerov at UFC 291 not come to fruition, "Borrachinha" will hope to return to the cage with a bang.

He'll certainly have the chance to do so inside the Etihad Arena at UFC 294, where Costa is slated to face the challenge of Khamzat Chimaev, an undefeated phenom who has bulldozed his way to the top five at welterweight.

Following some trouble on the scale last September, "Borz" will be moving up for his next outing in pursuit of making an immediate arrival into contention at 185 pounds.

But according to one veteran at the higher weight, Costa could very well put a stop to that.

Cannonier Backs Costa To Stall Chimaev's MW Ambitions 

During a recent interview with Helen Yee, former UFC middleweight title challenger and current #4-ranked contender Jared Cannonier provided his assessment of Chimaev's scheduled return to the division, which "The Kill Gorilla" originally appeared to be the likely opponent for.

While he'd have no doubt been confident of becoming the first to defeat "Borz" in professional mixed martial arts, Cannonier believes that Costa also has a good chance of accomplishing that feat come fight night on October 21.

"That's a good fight, right? That's a really good fight," Cannonier said. "We haven't seen much of Costa on the ground because he's no slouch on the ground, you know what I mean? I guess he'd rather be on the feet punching and kicking at people than using his high-level skills on the ground.

"If I was a betting man, I'd lean more towards Costa in that one. He's a big guy. We haven't seen Khamzat compete against a guy of that size, that stature, and of that skill level as well," Cannonier continued. "But, as in every combat situation, Khamzat's got the skills to pay the bills as well."

Costa will hope to prove Cannonier right at UFC 294 and rejuvenate his career on MMA's biggest stage in the process. Amidst infrequent activity and talk of contractual disputes with the promotion, the Brazilian's once hyped potential appears to have dimmed.

With a victory over Chimaev, however, "Borrachinha" will certainly be back in the championship conversation at 185 pounds.