NEWARK, N.J. – Sean Strickland entered Prudential Center on Saturday to a walkout song of “When Johnny Comes Marching Home,” then Paulo Costa down for five rounds.
Fans in attendance at UFC 302 cheered loudly for Strickland (29-6 MMA, 16-6 UFC), booed the performance that led to a unanimous decision (46-49, 50-45, 49-46) win, and then got back on the bandwagon during his post-fight interview.
Strickland’s style doesn’t always quench the thirst of those interested in brawls and highlights, but it’s largely proven frustrating and overwhelming for those he faces.
Costa (14-4 MMA, 6-4 UFC) found himself in the position of many of Strickland’s opponents, on the retreat. Strickland marched forward with his Philly shell guard as he jabbed, leg kicked, and punched at Costa.
Throughout the fight, Costa was unable to find much, if any, significant success. Costa was knocked down in Round 1, and ate a massive stunning jab in Round 3. In Round 5, Strickland went on a rampage in the final seconds of the bout, as he bounded at Costa with jumping kicks and punches.
Though one judge scored it in favor of Costa (to the audible surprise of those in attendance), the other two went with Strickland – who was named the winner.
After the victory and shaking hands with former president Donald Trump, who was in attendance, Strickland called for a title shot after being “a company man” and taking the Costa fight.
With the victory, Strickland reenters the win column after a title loss to Dricus Du Plessis in January. He’s won four of his most recent five fights with victories over Nassourdine Imavov, Abus Magomedov, and Israel Adesanya, in addition to Costa.
With the defeat, Costa falls to 1-4 in his most recent five. Saturday’s fight was a rare standard-length turnaround for “Borrachinha,” who co-headlined February’s UFC 298 in a loss to Robert Whittaker.
Up-to-the-minute UFC 302 results include:
- Sean Strickland def. Paulo Costa via split decision (46-49, 50-45, 49-46)
- Kevin Holland def. Michal Oleksiejczuk via technical submission (armbar) – Round 1, 1:34
- Niko Price def. Alex Morono via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Randy Brown def. Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Roman Kopylov def. Cesar Almeida via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 30-27)
- Jailton Almeida def. Alexandr Romanov via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 2:27
- Grant Dawson def. Joe Solecki via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
- Jake Matthews def. Phil Rowe via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
- Bassil Hafez def. Mickey Gall via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
- Ailin Perez def. Joselyne Edwards via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Andre Lima def. Mitch Raposo via split decision (30-27, 28-29, 30-27)
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 302.
