Watch Sean Strickland vs. Paulo Costa full fight video highlights from their main event showdown Saturday night, courtesy of multiple outlets.
Makhachev vs. Poirier took place June 1 at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. Sean Strickland (28-6) and Paulo Costa (14-3) squared off in the the main event clash. The fight aired live on pay-per-view on ESPN+.
Catch all the video highlights below.
For. more on Strickland vs. Costa, check out the live blog below.
Round 1
Both men out in orthodox and Costa takes the center. Strickland with that guard up and Costa fires two calf kicks early. Strickland checks the third. And now Strickland is trying to walk him down but Costa is circling well early. And another low kick.
Strickland lifting his legs in his weird little march to deter the kicks. Then teeps. Costa still circling very well, not getting marched down. Big left hook from Costa lands. Strickland moves to southpaw, perhaps the kicks got to him early.
Strickland putting bone in between them with his march and blocks. Costa keeps kicking. Strickland throwing a lot of front kicks now as Costa circles. Disrupting rhythm of Costa now though who is slowing with the low kicks. But he does attack the body.
Strickland checks a low kick. Eats a right hand to the body. Costa hook high then to the body. He’s attacking that body which is so smart against what Strickland does defensively.
Strickland really pressuring fast now. He’s walking as quickly as he can into the space. Eats another kick. Costa circling off the cage though. But he is losing the pressure battle which is not ideal for him.
Costa keeps hitting that leg. And then flashing the left hook, then attacking the body. Strickland without much offense that’s landing, but he is moving Costa around freely now. Cost backing up and Strickland catches a kick then lands a right right hand. Costa sits but stands up immediately. Strickland still pressuring. If he could cut the cage, this would be devastating. Now it’s just draining. And he teeps again.
MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9 Costa.
Round 2
Costa might have won the battle that round, but he’s losing the war. He landed the better shots but Strickland got what he wanted at the end. Costa has to either sit down and back Strickland up or simply stop backing up. Just stand your ground and tie up in the middle. We’ll see if he does either.
Costa opens with a teep that Strickland catches. Strickland backing him up again. And he checks a pair of low kicks. Then Costa lands one. Costa now is accepting the fence on his back. He’s backing up and OK staying there more. But then he circles and lands a good left hook as they trade.
Another HARD low kick that gets a reaction from Strickland. Costa is standing his ground in the middle now and lands another hard low kick. Strickland just keeps coming though. Another low kick lands and Strickland lands a right hand.
Strickland keeps forward, Costa moving away again. When he didn’t he had success. When he’s retreating, Strickland owns it. And lands a good right hand, his best punch of the fight. Strickland getting Costa to the fence freely now and Costa is openly eyeing low. He isn’t pretending to go up top. Unless this is the setup for a big shot.
Boo birds come out a bit as Strickland 1-2s and checks a kick. Strickland lands a jab, teep, then checks. He’s getting into good rhythm now. Cuttnig the cage more too and Costa tries to clinch. Strickland pivots out and back to tapping away. Low kick lands for Costa. And another. He’s staying in this fight and with 60 seconds, it’s up for grabs.
Costa goes for a wheel kick that Strickland sees coming. Strickland keeps that pressure coming and Costa is fading. Strickland lands a good right hand that gets a reaction from Costa. He’s tiring. But Costa keeps kicking as the round ends.
MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9 Strickland, 19-19 overall.
Round 3
Costa is definitely fading. But he can fight tired. Strickland doesn’t get tired though. And his corner wants him to step it up.
Strickland right back on the pressure and firing the teep to the gut. Costa kicking the legs. Then sticks a jab to the body. That’s such a good punch for him. And he lands two more, then a body kick. Strickland keeps the march. Costa upping his volume and Strickland lands a good right hand that Costa rolls off. He shakes his head and the crowd cheers.
Solid body kick from Costa. Strickland catches it after but can’t do anything. Strickland checks a kick and Costa is hurt! He shakes it off but that got a limp out of Costa. And Strickland keeps coming. Good left hand lands against the fence.
Costa has not thrown a fool right hand all fight and he might need to start with more power shots. Strickland staying right in his face and keeps working. Jab here, teep there, right hand shoot the gap. Slowly adding points to the board.
Costa kicks low twice and lands. Strickland walking through those with ease now. He’s focused. Misses a 1-1-2 though as Costa slides out. Credit to Costa, he’s tired and still fighting pretty well.
60 seconds and Strickland is cruising this round. Costa needs a change but lands a decent right hand that Strickland fades off. Strickland narrowly misses a left hook and Costa panics a bit, but gets off the fence with short time. And Strickland lands a nice uppercut on a ducking Costa as the round ends.
MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9 Strickland, 29-28 Strickland overall.
Round 4
Costa needs something. This fight is slipping beyond his grasp.
Strickland goes right back to his style. Costa is backing up. Actually, circling a little more this round and jabbing the body. Then the low kick. That’s all his offense. Strickland isn’t pressing for the moment which is interesting. He’s trying to counter a bit in there, allowing Costa to get going.
But another check from Strickland gets a reaction from Costa. That’s tough scenes for him. And now Strickland is marching. Costa tries to step in for a clinch but Strickland steps out.
This fight is getting a bit boring. Strickland keeps doing the same thing and it’s effective but he does not feel any need to try and finish fights. “To the death” is a lie. To the decision.
Costa landing a little in here now but he’s losing the numbers game badly. Costa comes forward a bit. I’m drifting off. Costa landing some stuff as Strickland sort of coasts a bit down the stretch this round and it’s now up for grabs maybe with 30 seconds.
Strickland lands a combo but Costa blocks. Then he lands a lunging right hand before the horn.
MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9 Strickland, 39-37 Strickland overall.
Round 5
Strickland’s coach is not happy. “You’re leaving this way too close.” Classic Sean Strickland. Scores could be 4-0 Strickland or even 3-1 Costa. Neither man can feel comfortable.
Costa comes out and jabs the body. He comes out with pep. This is the final round, so he’s gonna dump it. Strickland stepping in quickly. Costa glances a right over the guard. Leg kick for Costa.
He’s swinging harder now but Strickland’s slips a combo. So Costa goes to the body. Strickland can’t slip that. Strickland catches a body kick and lands a right hand. Fires the jab. Costa looks refreshed in there and lands a good body kick. He’s leading this round.
Strickland coming forward slower now. Costa breathing from the mouth and Strickland’s offense is not as much. Good jab though. Costa staying busy with him though. He’s rising to the challenge in this round. Good body shots. He’s out-landing Strickland considerably this round.
Strickland pressuring and lands a jab and a teep. His bread and butter. 2 minutes to play and another jab finds the mark. Costa returns the favor.
Costa really going to the body while Strickland is looking for a big punch of his teep. Costa digging deep for this. Strickland jabbing. He’s getting back the numbers. This is a very close fight now. 60 seconds and could be up for grabs.
And both men are picking away. Costa tries for a clinch but Strickland circles off. Strickland lands a jab and Costa misses a backfist. Big combination from both men with short time and Strickland tries to steal the round at the end with a big barrage! Head kick blocked but sends Costa reeling as the horn sounds and Strickland runs after him.
MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9 Strickland, 49-46 Strickland overall.