Watch: "Scariest middleweight" Paulo Costa unloads explosive punches during workout

Paulo Costa, a middleweight prospect for the UFC, has been out of the octagon for quite some time. The No.4-ranked middleweight was last seen getting into action against Marvin Vettori at UFC Fight Night 196 held on October 23, 2021.

Despite there being rumors of a potential Paulo Costa vs. Luke Rockhold fight, confirmation has yet to arrive from the UFC. 'The Eraser' appears to be fully prepared to face whoever the UFC sends his way despite all the uncertainty surrounding his upcoming fight.

In a recent video uploaded to his Twitter account, the Brazilian fighter could be seen working out in the gym and unloading some explosive punches.

You can check out the video uploaded to his official Twitter account below:

Paulo Costa made his UFC debut at UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Gastelum where he fought against Garreth McLellan. The fight against McLellan earned him a Performance of the Night bonus as he defeated 'Soldier Boy' within 90 seconds of the match.

At UFC 212, Costa faced Oluwale Bamgbose in his first UFC PPV fight. Costa finished Bamgbose via TKO to secure a win in the second round of the bout.

He further maintained his momentum by winning his next three fights against UFC veterans Johny Hendricks, Uriah Hall, and Yoel Romero respectively to earn a title shot against Israel Adesanya at UFC 253.

However, at UFC 253, Costa was outclased by Adesanya's kickboxing arsenal as he handed 'The Eraser' his first defeat in MMA. Israel Adesanya won the match via TKO in the second round.

A year later, Costa fought Marvin Vettori at UFC Fight Night: Costa vs. Vettori. However, Paulo struggled to make it to middleweight, forcing the bout to be moved to catchweight (190 lbs) and then light heavyweight. Costa put on a competitive performance, but despite this, he fell short against the tenacious Vettori and was defeated by a unanimous decision.

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Paulo Costa praises Vladimir Putin admist Russia-Ukraine war

‘The Eraser’ has never been the one to shy away from expressing his thoughts and opinions.

In a now deleted tweet, Costa extended his support to Russian President Vladimir Putin in the midst of the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.

Costa mentioned that Putin was not a weak leader and stated the examples of Joe Biden (American President) and Emmanuel Macron (French President) to prove his point. The Brazilian MMA fighter also claimed that Putin is a former military man with strong leadership skills unlike anyone else in the past.

Penning down his thoughts on the Russian President, ‘The Eraser’ wrote:

"Vladimir Putin is not a weak leader like Biden or Macron. He’s a former military man who has already been stabbed in the belly and survived. He is another level of world leader. Do you know another Leader who has the same characteristics past?"

Check out the deleted tweet by Paulo Costa: