Paulo Costa offers ‘fair’ option in UFC ultimatum; Magomed Ankalaev responds

Paulo Costa is at odds with the UFC over the last fight of his current deal with the organization, and former champion Magomed Ankalaev has decided to volunteer for the task.

Costa knocked out previously undefeated Azamat Murzakanov at light heavyweight to put himself in an interesting position with only one bout left in his UFC contract, but it seems that the conversations with the promotion are not advancing in the direction he was hoping for.

On a two-fight winning streak now over Roman Kopylov and Murzakanov in two weight classes, Costa posted a “simple and clean” message to the UFC on social media.

“I have 1 fight left,” Costa wrote. “On my contract the purse is set for 3 rounds, not 5. I’m asking for the 3-round fight that was already agreed on contract. It can be anyone on the UFC LHW roaster.”

Costa said UFC’s chief business officer Hunter Campbell has “three options” to choose from, one being releasing him from his contract “now.”

Ok, I’m making this public and clear:
I have 1 fight left. On my contract The purse is set for 3 rounds, not 5. I’m asking for the 3-round fight that was already agreed on contract . It can be anyone on the UFC LHW roster.

I think Hunter has 3 options now:
A) Give me that last 3-round fight (I’ll take any opponent).
B) Give me a 5-round fight at LHW against anyone in 6 weeks. I’ll take it, BUT raise my purse accordingly. That’s the minimum that’s fair, right?
C) Release me from my contract now.
Simple and clean. I hope everyone understands.
9-18-26
Las Vegas, Nevada
Sincerely,
Paulo Costa.

It remains undecided what the UFC will do at the top of the light heavyweight division. Carlos Ulberg suffered a knee injury during his championship victory over Jiri Prochazka and remains sidelined until 2027, and Costa has campaigned for a fight for the interim belt if offered enough money to re-sign with the promotion.

Ankalaev, who could be standing across the cage against Costa for that belt after finishing Bogdan Guskov this past July, responded to his post.

“You beat me, you become a free agent and make millions,” Ankalaev wrote. “I beat you, everybody expected me to beat you anyway. You have nothing to lose. I’m your get-out-of-jail-free card. Let’s fight.”