Latest news with #Kopylov
USA Today
20-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
UFC 318 results: Paulo Costa shines against Roman Kopylov, calls out Khamzat Chimaev
Paulo Costa is back in the winner's column. Roman Kopylov tried his best to mount a late surge, but Costa (15-4 MMA, 7-4 UFC) built a lead too big to overcome. The middleweight bout served as the co-main event of UFC 318 at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. After 15 minutes, "The Eraser" outstruck Kopylov (14-4 MMA, 6-4 UFC) to win a unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28). Costa started the action with a series of hard kicks. Kopylov attempted to find a home for a few punches, but Costa was quick to slip and counter as they exchanged in the center. Costa continued to land well as the round wore on, mixing up his targets with punches and kicks. With a minute to go in the round, Kopylov attempted to close the distance and got dropped with a hard punch. His mouthpiece went flying, too. Costa swarmed for the finish, but Kopylov remained tight defensively to get back to his feet to see the next round. Early in Round 2, Costa continued working Kopylov's body and legs with hard kicks. Costa's pressure was high as he feinted and bounced around lightly on his feet, hitting his target repeatedly. A big punch stunned Kopylov, but he didn't go down. A moment later, another big right hand cracked Kopylov. Heading into the final round with all of the momentum, Costa continued to stick and move. Kopylov turned up the pressure, knowing he needed to turn the tide of the fight. As they traded strikes, Kopylov landed a very stiff punch that buckled Kopylov, but he couldn't capitalize on the moment as Costa taunted while firing back. During his post-fight interview with Daniel Cormier, Costa called out Khamzat Chimaev, mentioning he wants revenge for sending DMs to his wife. Chimaev is currently set to face Dricus Du Plessis for the middleweight title at UFC 319 on Aug. 16. With the win, Costa gets back on track after a rough 1-4 patch, including back-to-back losses to former champions Robert Whittaker and Sean Strickland. Costa's previous win came against another former titleholder, Luke Rockhold, by unanimous decision at UFC 278 in August 2022. The result halts Kopylov's momentum, who entered as a winner of two straight against Cesar Almeida and Chris Curtis. Up-to-the-minute UFC 318 results
Indianapolis Star
19-07-2025
- Sport
- Indianapolis Star
UFC 318: Paulo Costa vs. Roman Kopylov odds, picks and predictions
In a 3-round middleweight bout on the main card, Paulo Costa and Roman Kopylov meet Saturday at UFC 318 at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. Early prelims start at 6 p.m. ET, prelims at 8 p.m. ET (both on ESPN / ESPN+ / Disney+), and the main card at 10 p.m. ET (pay-per-view). Their fight is expected to start around 11 p.m. ET. Let's analyze BetMGM Sportsbook's UFC odds around the UFC 318: Costa vs. Kopylov odds, and make our expert UFC picks and predictions. Records: Costa (14-4-0) | Kopylov (14-3-0) It's been all downhill for Costa since suffering a title bout loss to Israel Adesanya at UFC 253 in Sept. 2020. He is 1-4 in his past 5 bouts, with 3 losses coming by decision -- including a split-decision setback to Sean Strickland at UFC 302 last time out. For Kopylov, he picked up a Round 3 KO/TKO at 4:59 against Chris Curtis in his most recent outing in January. He is 6-1 in his past 7 fights, with only a Round 2 submission loss at UFC 298 against Anthony Hernandez. If the Russian fighter has a weakness, it's on the mat, going 0-2 by way of submission in his career. The southpaw is 14-3-0 across all formats and 12-0 by way of KO/TKO. Kopylov holds a 3-inch reach advantage over the Brazilian fighter, although Costa has a 6.22-to-4.96 significant strikes landed per minute advantage. He is also more accurate on those strikes, landing them at 59.78%, while Kopylov lands at just 53.0%. Kopylov holds a 1.17-to-0.36 takedown average, although Costa is much more accurate at 75.0% on those takedowns. Neither fighter has made a mark in submission average. Watch this card with ESPN+ by signing up here. Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 10:46 a.m. ET. It's hard to trust Costa, as he enters with 4 losses in the past 5 fights. It's like he lost his mojo in that title fight against the Stylebender, and he hasn't been able to get it back. Kopylov (-235) is too expensive to play on the 2-way line, though, as he will cost you well in excess of 2 times your potential return. Even with a boost or promo, that's too much for a singular wager, although including him in a multi-leg parlay is worth a look. You'll have to get more specific, so look to the method of victory. Since neither fighter is good via submission, avoid that avenue. Take KOPYLOV BY KO/TKO (+275) on the 7-way method of victory line for the chance to nearly triple up. Play our free daily Pick'em Challenge and win! Play now! NO (+135): FIGHT TO GO THE DISTANCE? is a strong play at plus-money, since we like Kopylov to get the job done by KO/TKO. It requires a bit of a leap of faith, as Costa has gone the distance in 4 straight bouts -- and lost 3 of them. Kopylov, on the other hand, has 6 finishes in his last 7 fights, including 5 wins by KO/TKO and a split-decision victory over Cesar Almeida at UFC 302. Visit MMA Junkie for more fight news and analysis. For more sports betting picks and tips, check out and BetFTW.
USA Today
17-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
UFC 318's Roman Kopylov views Paulo Costa as middleweight elite, despite recent skid
Roman Kopylov is in no way underestimating Paulo Costa. NEW ORLEANS – Paulo Costa has seen better days, but Roman Kopylov still considers him to be at elite level. In easily the biggest fight of his MMA career, Kopylov (14-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) takes on Costa (14-4 MMA, 6-4 UFC) in the co-main event of UFC 318 (pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+), which takes place Saturday at Smoothie King Center. "Borrachinha" finds himself in dire need of a win. He's on a two-fight losing streak and 1-4 in his past five bouts dating back to 2020. Despite Costa's career rut, Kopylov is taking him seriously, and still finds him to be among the elite at 185 pounds. "Either way, with all the delays and the mishaps in his career, he's still in the top 15, which is the elite part of the division," Kopylov said at Wednesday's UFC 318 media day. "I think he's exactly where he's supposed to be in his career." This is the first time Kopylov fights a former UFC title challenger, and the first time he's part of a co-main event bout of a UFC pay-per-view. The Russian fighter understands this is a big career opportunity, and he's happy that he's on the path to his ultimate goal – UFC gold. "It's a really big fight for me and a huge opportunity," Kopylov said. "A win over such an opponent like Paulo Costa would just bring me closer to the top of the division. Every victory gets me closer to where I want to be."
USA Today
23-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Paulo Costa vs. Roman Kopylov officially moved from UFC 317 to next month's UFC 318
UFC 317 loses Paulo Costa vs. Roman Kopylov due to illness. UFC 317 has lost a notable bout. The middleweight clash between former UFC title challenger Paulo Costa and Roman Kopylov has been moved to next month's UFC 318, which goes down on July 19 at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, La. Costa won't be able to compete this Saturday in Las Vegas due to illness, thus postponing the bout for the next UFC pay-per-view. The UFC officially announced the news of the change on Monday. Costa is looking to get himself out of a career rut. Since getting a middleweight title shot after going 13-0 in his professional career, Costa has gone 1-4 with his lone win being a unanimous decision victory over Luke Rockhold in 2022. Costa was last seen in action in June 2024 when he lost a split decision to Sean Strickland. In a much more different position, Kopylov attempts to build on his current winning streak. Being 6-1 in his past seven bouts and on a two-fight winning streak, Kopylov looks to establish himself as a contender and add the biggest name he's faced to date in Costa. Kopylov is coming off a TKO win over Chris Curtis in January. Updated UFC 317 fight card
