Paulo Costa has a better chin and more weapons than Kelvin Gas, and he’s taller

[Iron Nick]

So why are people pretending that Izzy won’t be hit clean by the Natty Goat?

Costa stood in the pocket with Romero and Was never in danger, meanwhile kelvin received CTE via 10 knockdowns vs Izzy

KG is also weaker and one dimensional compared to Costa. Costa doesn’t just have hands, he throws heavy body kicks and knees that will punish Israel’s mid section.

The Natty GOAT will knockout Izzy in round 1, believe it.

Kelvin Gastelum might be smaller than Paulo Costa, but he hits just as hard. Ask Michael Bisping.
One dimensional? Gastelum's boxing and ability to close the distance fast is nearly unparalleled at his divison. His wrestling is better than that of Paulo Costa as well.

Don't get me wrong, Paulo Costa is a very dangerous fight (for anyone at middleweight). But he's not as fast Gastelum, nor does he have his gas tank.

Also: Gastelum "received CTE" by the same Adesanya who finished Whittaker in two rounds - something Yoel Romero couldn't do in 10.

 

[Sir Punchalot]

In case you haven't noticed, Adesanya has some pretty decent counters, and he can be very precise. He is also difficult to hit. And Costa coming forward constantly means he will be walking into punches, which eventually is going to put him on his ass, especially when fatigue sets in later in the fight. Costa has good hands, but he doesn't have the sneaky attacks that Kelvin does, and Izzy just has a waaay too big toolbox for him.

If Costa had great takedowns, I'd give him a better shot. But he doesn't. And Izzy's TDD is obviously on point. So they're going to spend most of the time standing, which is bad news for Costa, seriously. Izzy is going to pick him apart coming in and at times make him look silly.

I'm not saying he won't have some success. Izzy can be hit too, as we've seen. But his chin appears to be more than decent, and I don't see Costa landing cleanly on him as much as Kelvin did.

Don't get so impressed by a great looking body. You don't win fights based on how good you look on a poster. I'm not saying Costa isn't a threat, but it's hard to see him beating Israel Adesanya. I frankly don't, even if they were to fight three times. He comes forward like a tank, but that plays more into Israel's hands (literally) than you think.

 

[moosaev]

Costa is a different beast though. Constantly pressing forward and cutting off angles. Even Brunson was able to get Izzy on the fence multiple times. Kelvin was able to get him there too, but he kept letting him escape. I dont think he'll escape these situations against Costa without taking major damage. The way Izzy leans back to avoid punches is suicide against someone like Costa. His body is going to get blown up so bad in this fight.

Maybe. I have my doubts that he can get to Izzy before he takes some big shots himself.

 

[LampShade94]

Maybe. I have my doubts that he can get to Izzy before he takes some big shots himself.

He took huge shots against Romero and he was fine. I dont think Izzy is KO'ing Costa unless Costa gasses heavily in the later rounds. These guys with freakishly gigantic necks (Romero, Costa, etc) can take punches like they're nothing.

 

[NaughtyBoy]

Against Kelvin, he landed these mostly in the later rounds after Kelvin slowed down significantly. I'm not sure if Izzy can survive multiple rounds against Costa with his boxing defense being so bad. He leans back and leaves his body wide open. Costa throws huge shots to the body.

Whittaker was lunging out at him constantly and left himself wide open to counters. Costa doesnt lunge. He presses forward and keeps his chin tucked. He won't be susceptible to the same counters Whittaker was hit with.

Right now Costa is +145. I'm waiting for dumb money to pour in on Izzy. Hoping I can bet Costa around +200.

I hope you can make some money if that theory is right. I think is helluva good fight but I'm giving the edge to Israel. I think he's patience enough to make right moves to land and counter his opponents also very very unpredictable.

 

[Danielator]

There will be bloodshed. There will be broken bones. The cries of a nation will be heard in either direction for many moons to come.

Brazil vs Africa for all the marbles my friend.

Niiiiice!!! You got me even more excited for this one! CANT WAAAAIIIT!!!!

 

[moreorless87]

Agreed, my observation is that while Costa is walking Izzy down he'll be taking lots of damage trying to deal with Izzy's mobility and eventually he'll be underwater before Izzy IMO.

I think the biggest issue could well be cardio, he had trouble going 3 rounds with Romero pushing that fast pace so the choice against Israel might well be a case of either having to finish early or having to shift tactics fighting at a slower pace.

 

[ThunderStruck]

So why are people pretending that Izzy won’t be hit clean by the Natty Goat?

Costa stood in the pocket with Romero and Was never in danger, meanwhile kelvin received CTE via 10 knockdowns vs Izzy

KG is also weaker and one dimensional compared to Costa. Costa doesn’t just have hands, he throws heavy body kicks and knees that will punish Israel’s mid section.

The Natty GOAT will knockout Izzy in round 1, believe it.

Costa would murder prime Silva.

 

[moosaev]

He took huge shots against Romero and he was fine. I dont think Izzy is KO'ing Costa unless Costa gasses heavily in the later rounds. These guys with freakishly gigantic necks (Romero, Costa, etc) can take punches like they're nothing.

The connection between the chin and neck is mostly a myth. KOs have many factors but the biggest are the accuracy and timing of the punch, followed by the punching power and then conditioning (how tired/healthy the person taking the punch is). Prime situation for a KO is when you have your opponent gassed and hit them flush on the chin with something they don't see. Thats when guys go stiff.

If Izzy tires Costa and catches him with something unexpected he'll KO him stiff. Romero doesn't have the striking to catch Costa off guard in the same way.

 

[moreorless87]

Romero isn't some polished striker. He's a Cuban missile.

I would say he's reasonably polished but has never been high output.

 

[gibson5413]

Costa may very well crush Israel but Kelvin's hand speed and combinations are on a different level that Paulo's.

I agree. Cosat seems to throw a lot of winging hooks and Kelvin mixes it up with more angles including more straight punches. I don't know if I seem him holding a belt but I think too many people sleep on Kelvin. Maybe it's because he has had weight cut issues but he is a really good MMA fighter.

 

[rushbeg]

So why are people pretending that Izzy won’t be hit clean by the Natty Goat?

Costa stood in the pocket with Romero and Was never in danger, meanwhile kelvin received CTE via 10 knockdowns vs Izzy

KG is also weaker and one dimensional compared to Costa. Costa doesn’t just have hands, he throws heavy body kicks and knees that will punish Israel’s mid section.

The Natty GOAT will knockout Izzy in round 1, believe it.

Natty Goat is gonna erase Izzy out of relevance.
Imagine if he had to fought weak competition like the previous brazilian mw champion did

 

[ElLunico]

Lmao I heard this before

 

[MGS]

So why are people pretending that Izzy won’t be hit clean by the Natty Goat?

Costa stood in the pocket with Romero and Was never in danger, meanwhile kelvin received CTE via 10 knockdowns vs Izzy

KG is also weaker and one dimensional compared to Costa. Costa doesn’t just have hands, he throws heavy body kicks and knees that will punish Israel’s mid section.

The Natty GOAT will knockout Izzy in round 1, believe it.

The way Izzy like to slip punches/kicks, dodging with head movements, it's crazy dangerous against a guy who doesn't stop ( the guy has great cardio for his output, power and aggression, prove me wrong ), Izzy is great fighting at range, he's not a brawler, but with Costa's pace, he'll get stuck on the cage at least once and this is bad news for Izzy. This is a GREAT fight imo. Can't wait!

 

[Right Hook nut shot]

If Costa is on roids? Why is his gas tank shit?

 

[Alpha-Q-Up]

Costa got dropped by Uriah hall lol

 

[TRYHARD 2001]

I can't say Costa has no chance, but Uriah Hall had him hurt and he is like Israel Light

Uriah hits harder than Izzy and Costa wasn't that badly damaged. Romero landed clean on Costa and the dude weathered it with minimal issue. As it turns out, Costa is way better than I thought. Knew he had power, wasn't sold on his stamina and chin; post-Romero, I see he has both. Even if he deserved to lose that one (and he did).

That being said, Israel may well have the best cardio in MMA. In all honesty, the 5 rounds he put on against Gas were simply stunning. Crazy killer instinct and he retains his power as deep as you can possibly go in a fight. He also has snake-like movement in the pocket and is able to weave away and then pop back in to crack your jaw without even moving his feet, just his torso. Dude honestly reminds me of a cobra! He'll piece Costa up and finish him inside of 3, methinks.

I will admit though, Costa's penchant for body punches makes this much more interesting and less of a sure thing. Izzy's got a long, slender target between his head and hips and traditionally guy's with that type of physique don't wear huge body shots well. Come to think of it, no one really does. Awesome clash of styles in this one.

 

[TRYHARD 2001]

If Costa is on roids? Why is his gas tank shit?

His gas tank is LIGHT YEARS beyond what it was when he was on TUF: Brazil. Guy was sucking wind through his asshole halfway into the second round against a natural WW who really wasn't that good. That performance negatively affected my perception of him for years after. Nowadays, his gas tank holds up pretty well, especially when you look at the pace he fights at.

 

[rjmbrd]

Costa is a problem for everybody.

The fact that he has shown such an iron chin really got me on board. He isn't the most skilled, but he's huge for the division, durable, solid cardio and he's a hitter.

 

[R3DV1P3Rx28]

Stood with romero and wasn't in any danger? The dude left in a fucking wheelchair