Paulo Costa Revives Feud with Khamzat Chimaev Over Light Heavyweight Move

Paulo Costa has never been shy about picking a fight. Now he’s gone back to one of his oldest targets.

The Brazilian contender has reignited his long-simmering feud with Khamzat Chimaev, warning that a rumored move to light heavyweight would be a disaster for the Chechen-born star.

Costa’s words carry a different weight these days. Not long ago, his career looked like it had slipped beyond his control. The man who once bulldozed his way to a title shot against Israel Adesanya at UFC 253 suddenly stalled. That first professional defeat in a championship bout marked the start of a brutal slide: four losses in five fights, the lone bright spot coming against a retiring Luke Rockhold.

The aura faded. The momentum vanished. Costa stepped away.

He took a full year off, trying to figure out how to fix not just his form, but his entire life inside the cage. When he came back, he didn’t just return — he rebooted.

The new version of Paulo Costa has looked dangerous again. He beat Roman Kopylov with authority, then announced himself at light heavyweight with a statement finish: a vicious head-kick knockout of previously unbeaten Azamat Murzakanov in April, a true debut at 205 that reset expectations around his future.

He hasn’t fought since that career-defining win, but he hasn’t gone quiet either. His focus has narrowed to one name.

Khamzat Chimaev.

Costa believes Chimaev’s potential jump to 205 pounds would be a gift to him and a serious problem for the man many see as a future champion across multiple divisions.

“I think that would be great for me,” Costa told Mr. Gamble. Then he twisted the knife. “It would be wonderful for him? I don't think it would be very good, no.”

The Brazilian then drew a pointed comparison, linking Chimaev’s possible move to light heavyweight with Alex Pereira’s unsuccessful step up to heavyweight. Pereira, a destructive force at middleweight and light heavyweight, found the jump to the big men unforgiving. Costa sees the same kind of mismatch looming for Chimaev at 205.

“I think for him it would be like Alex moving up to heavyweight, you know?” Costa said. “I think the proportion is something similar, isn't it? The body type. I don't know. I think they're very light.”

It’s a stylistic warning wrapped in a callout. In Costa’s eyes, Chimaev’s frame and build belong in the lower divisions, and any attempt to test the waters at light heavyweight would leave him outgunned against naturally larger, thicker opponents — opponents like Costa, who now feels he has finally grown into the division.

The rivalry between the two has flickered for years without catching fire inside the Octagon. Costa’s resurgence and Chimaev’s unsettled future across multiple weight classes might finally drag it into the spotlight.

If Chimaev does roll the dice at 205, Costa is already waiting with a target on his back and a point to prove.