(ALSO SEE: Sean Shelby’s Shoes: What’s next for champs Israel Adesanya, Jan Blachowicz after UFC 253?)
Although they both seemed poised to be champions, Paulo Costa and Dominick Reyes were beaten badly in their title-fight opportunities at UFC 253 on Saturday.
Costa (13-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) had next to nothing to offer Israel Adesanya (20-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) in their highly anticipated middleweight title headliner at Flash Forum at Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, getting picked apart en route to a second-round TKO and the first loss of his MMA career.
Reyes (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) put up a little more resistance in his vacant light heavyweight title matchup with Jan Blachowicz (27-8 MMA, 10-5 UFC) in the co-main event, but ultimately he was met with the same fate in the form of a second-round TKO. It was just a few months ago that Reyes was unbeaten and giving Jon Jones arguably the most competitive fight of his career, but now he’s lost back-to-back fights.
What do the title fight results mean for Costa and Reyes going forward? Watch the video above for thoughts and analysis on their futures after UFC 253.