Paulo Henrique Costa is a professional mixed martial artist from Brazil. He currently competes in the middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). However, he also competed in the light heavyweight division in 2021. He is currently ranked as No.7 in the UFC Middleweight rankings.
Paulo Costa was born on April 21, 1991 in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil. He made his UFC debut on March 11, 2017, in a fight against Gareth McLellan at UFC Fight Night 106. He won the fight by TKO in the first round, thereby earning him his first Performance of the Night Award. He is a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. He has earned the nickname “Borrachinha,” which means Little Eraser.
Paulo Costa has an MMA record of 17 fights so far. He has achieved a win in 14 fights. Out of these, he won 11 fights through knockout, 1 fight through submission, and 2 fights through decision. Similarly, he lost 3 fights, 1 fight via knockout and 2 via decision. He is currently all set to face off against Sean Strickland at UFC 302 on June 1, 2024.
Paulo Costa Nickname
Paulo Costa has earned the nickname of “Borrachinha.” The meaning of the word in Portuguese is little rubber. He earned this nickname from his older brother, who was called a rubber man because of his elasticity. However, Costa did not like the English translation well and decided to use the nickname “The Eraser”. He stayed true to this nickname and won the fight against Hendricks via TKO in Round 2. This helped him to elevate his stardom further, thereby establishing “Borrachinha” as an apt nickname for him.
Paulo Costa Record
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location |
| Loss | 14-3 | Robert Whittaker | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 298 | 17 February 2024 | 3 | 5:00 | Anaheim, California, United States |
| Win | 14–2 | Luke Rockhold | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 278 | 20 August 2022 | 3 | 5:00 | Salt Lake City, Utah, United States |
| Loss | 13–2 | Marvin Vettori | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Costa vs. Vettori | 23 October 2021 | 5 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States |
| Loss | 13–1 | Israel Adesanya | TKO (punches and elbows) | UFC 253 | 27 September 2020 | 2 | 3:59 | Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates |
| Win | 13–0 | Yoel Romero | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 241 | 17 August 2019 | 3 | 5:00 | Anaheim, California, United States |
| Win | 12–0 | Uriah Hall | TKO (punches) | UFC 226 | 7 July 2018 | 2 | 2:38 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States |
| Win | 11–0 | Johny Hendricks | TKO (punches) | UFC 217 | 4 November 2017 | 2 | 1:23 | New York City, New York, United States |
| Win | 10–0 | Oluwale Bamgbose | TKO (punches) | UFC 212 | 3 June 2017 | 2 | 1:06 | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |
| Win | 9–0 | Garreth McLellan | TKO (punches) | UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Gastelum | 11 March 2017 | 1 | 1:17 | Fortaleza, Brazil |
| Win | 8–0 | Adriano Balby de Araujo | KO (punch) | Jungle Fight 90 | 3 September 2016 | 1 | 3:25 | São Paulo, Brazil |
| Win | 7–0 | Eduardo Ramón | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Jungle Fight 87 | 21 May 2016 | 1 | 2:40 | São Paulo, Brazil |
| Win | 6–0 | Bruno Assis | TKO (punches) | Jungle Fight 84 | 5 December 2015 | 1 | 1:17 | São Paulo, Brazil |
| Win | 5–0 | Wagner Silva Gomes | TKO (punches) | FTF 11 | 24 April 2015 | 1 | 4:37 | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |
| Win | 4–0 | Gérson da Conceição | TKO (doctor stoppage) | FTF 9 | 19 December 2014 | 1 | 5:00 | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |
| Win | 3–0 | Fábio Moreira | TKO (punches) | BH Fight: MMA Grand Prix | 1 November 2013 | 1 | 1:26 | Belo Horizonte, Brazil |
| Win | 2–0 | Ademilson Borges | TKO (head kick and punches) | Upper Fight: MMA Championship 2 | 15 June 2013 | 1 | 0:32 | Teófilo Otoni, Brazil |
| Win | 1–0 | Téo Esteves | TKO (head kick and punches) | MMA Total Combat: Santa Luzia | 5 February 2012 | 1 | 2:08 | Santa Luzia, Brazil |
Also Read: What is Paulo Costa's UFC record?
FAQs On Why is Paulo Costa called Borrachinha?
A. Paulo Costa is currently 33 years old.
A. Paulo Costa is 6 '1 " in height , weighs 186 lbs and has a reach of 72 in.
A. Paulo Costa competes mainly in the middleweight division. However, in 2021, he also competed in the light heavyweight division.
A. Paulo Costa is from Brazil.
A. Paulo Costa is all set to face Sean Strickland on June 1, 2024.
