Did Paulo Costa Pull Out of UFC 294? Who Will Khamzat Chimaev Face After Brazilian’s Elbow Injury Cast Doubts on Dana White’s Plan?

Fighting the undefeated Khamzat Chimaev is a herculean task. The former Swedish martial artist is a force to be reckoned with and always gives his all in the cage. At UFC 294, he was supposed to be facing middleweight fighter Paulo Costa. The entire world of MMA was ready for the clash to happen but now, it seems that it might not.

While the details of the controversy are still unclear and there are still doubts as to whether the fight is going to be rescheduled or not, there is a rumor afloat that Paulo Costa might be pulling out of the fight or he might have pulled out already. But has he really pulled out of the fight? Is the fight really not happening? Let us find out what transpired.

Is Paulo Costa not part of the UFC 294 fight card?

The latest news is that Paulo Costa might have to pull out of the UFC 294 fight card owing to a serious injury on his elbow. The middleweight fighter had updated the world about the elbow injury that he suffered. However, the injury turned out to be more serious than was let on earlier. That injury turned into a bursitis infection that required Costa to undergo immediate surgery.

However, Costa had shown resistance and had refused to back out of the fight card. He took to Instagram to assure his fans and the rest of the world that he would not be pulling out of the fight unless his doctor advised him against it. But now, the recent news suggests that Costa might not be part of the fight card at all. But how much truth is in that?

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Well, the pictures of the injury that have been circulating on social media look quite serious. And now that Paulo Costa pulling out of the fight card is a possibility, UFC CEO Dana White is having trouble finding a replacement for the Brazilian middleweight under such short notice. If Paulo Costa sits this one out, maybe his title shot opportunity will be delayed as well because there was a good chance that the winner of the UFC 294 co-main event could have had a title shot opportunity against Strickland.

Is UFC 294 co-main event in jeopardy? Who will fight Khamzat Chimaev if Costa backs out?

If the Khamzat Chimaev vs. Paulo Costa fight falls through, for whatever reason, Dana White will have to find a fighter who can come in on short notice and fight Khamzat Chimaev. But, it won’t be easy, given the caliber of fighter that Chimaev is. Apparently, White had reached out to Marvin Vettori to fill in for Paulo Costa in case he has to sit this one out. Unfortunately, Vettori declined to pick up the fight on such short notice.

Now, Dana White has a problem on his hand that he has no solution to – who will replace Paulo Costa to face Khamzat Chimaev? Now that Marvin Vettori has also refused to fight Chimaev, could his former opponent Roman Dolidze be the one to step up to the occasion? Dolidze sent out a tweet stating his interest after the Costa rumors broke. Or will Jared Cannonier rise to the occasion so he can get a title shot against the champ Sean Strickland?

Another possibility is that former middleweight champ Israel Adesanya takes on this challenge to prove his mettle once again and earn his way back up to the top of the division and right into a rematch for the title against Strickland. What do you think Dana White will do? Who do you think should replace Paulo Costa at UFC 294?

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