Saturday’s UFC Fight Night main event between former middleweight title challengers Paulo Costa and Marvin Vettori has been changed to a 195-pound catchweight.
The status of the fight was thrown into jeopardy on Wednesday, when Costa confirmed he was well above the 185-pound middleweight limit. Vettori immediately agreed to a catchweight, but details such as the weight amount of penalties needed to be discussed.
Ultimately, the two sides agreed on a 195-pound weight limit as well as a 20 percent fine of Costa’s purse. That fine will go towards Vettori.
“I’m ready to fight Saturday, Marvin or some other guy, I don’t care,” Costa told ESPN on Wednesday. “I don’t care for weight or who I face on Saturday. I just came here to Vegas. I’m doing a lot of stuff, a lot of interviews, and I’m looking for Saturday to do an amazing fight. I hope Marvin comes to Saturday to fight and we bring a great show.”
Vettori, of Italy, stated he never cared what weight the bout took place at, but resented Costa’s lack of professionalism.
“It just shows he’s not elite,” Vettori said. “If he was elite, he’d be showing up at the right weight and he’d make sure the main event happens. By doing this, he’ll bring so many problems to the table. The fight is this close to being scratched. This is not what I go by.”
Costa and Vettori are coming off failed title bids versus defending champion Israel Adesanya. Costa suffered a TKO loss to Adesanya in September 2020. Vettori challenged Adesanya for the belt in June and lost via five-round decision.
