Strickland vs Costa Prediction: A Striking-Centric Fight

One of the most intriguing middleweight matchups that the UFC could make is taking place this weekend — and our Strickland vs Costa prediction is that this will fight will live up to the hype.

Although both Sean Strickland and Paulo Costa are coming off of defeats, a win this weekend for either man will be enough to get them back into the UFC title conversation. 

And our Sean Strickland vs Paulo Costa prediction will let you know which of them is more likely to get their hand raised. 

Strickland vs Costa Prediction: Whose Style Will Reign Supreme?

Sean Strickland Preview

Sean “Tarzan” Strickland — an American fighter with a 28-6 professional record, which includes 11 KO and 4 submission victories — lost his middleweight belt to Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 297 in January.

Although it was an extremely close fight that could have gone to either fighter, most people agree with Du Plessis was deserving of the win. 

Strickland brings the same game plan to every fight: live and die by the jab, throw a lot of teep kicks, and keep pressuring the opponent throughout the entire fight. 

This usually works pretty well for him. And while it sometimes takes Strickland a round or so to figure out his opponent's timing, he always appears to improve as the fight continues. 

And our Strickland vs Costa prediction is that Strickland would be wise to stay patient against Costa. He should try to get Costa tired in the early rounds, which will give him a massive advantage once this co-main event fight makes it to the championships rounds (despite it not being a championship fight.)

Paulo Costa Preview

Paulo “The Eraser” Costa — a Brazilian fighter with a 14-3 professional record, which includes 11 KO and 1 submission victory — is guaranteed to produce an entertaining fight. 

While Costa has only one win since 2020, he has only fought the very best in the UFC's middleweight division. And he looked very impressive against Robert Whittaker in his most recent defeat.

Costa is always looking for a knockout. And in 11 of his 14 pro victories, he has found that. 

While Costa is sure to have the power advantage over Strickland, he needs to pace himself in order to win. Then again, our Sean Strickland vs Paulo Costa prediction is that Costa's best chance at winning will be to catch Strickland early, so he may want to try and do that.

Our Strickland vs Costa Prediction: Strickland Steals the Decision

Our official Strickland vs Costa prediction is that Sean Strickland will win by decision, which is currently available at +150.

Strickland doesn't have enough one punch power to put Costa out clean. Yet, he is the much more patient and measured fighter in the octagon; which should serve him very well against the aggressive Costa. 

And because we don't see either fighter getting a finish, we think that taking the fight to go the distance, which is available for +110, is another great bet to make. 

Regardless of who wins this bout, it's sure to entertain the New Jersey crowd!