Melquizael Costa is looking for a finish at UFC 334, and he is making no secret of how he sees Saturday going. The 30-year-old said he expects to either knock out Jared Gordon or submit him in New York, and he does not believe the fight will last long enough to reach the scorecards.
That is why his name is drawing attention now. Costa enters the bout with a clear plan for the night and an even clearer plan for what comes after it: if the fight ends quickly, he wants to be back in December for UFC 335. He said he is already thinking ahead because the UFC has been booking cards on short notice lately, and he wants to stay active while the window is open.
Gordon is not the sort of opponent a fighter usually talks down without risk. He has won half of his 18 UFC octagon appearances and comes in on a two-fight skid against Rafa Garcia and Jim Miller, but Costa still described him as a dangerous, high-level test. Even so, Costa also said Gordon is going to get beaten badly, adding that somebody is going to pay for the fight and that he does not expect it to go to the judges.
For Costa, that confidence comes with a change in weight class that he believes should matter on fight night. He said he built his career at lightweight and that he was a lightweight fighting at featherweight, where he felt the cut was suffering way too much and was holding him back. His recent featherweight run was strong enough to make him relevant at the division, though: he won six straight before dropping a decision to Arnold Allen in May, with finishes over Dan Ige, Morgan Charriere and Andre Fili along the way.
The question now is whether the move back to 155 pounds gives Costa more than a lighter weight cut. He said he has fought at lightweight before in the UFC and in his pre-UFC career, and that this version of him should show up in better shape with a more manageable cut. If he gets the kind of fast win he is predicting, the next date is already sitting in his head.
Costa said he is aiming for a war, but he wants the kind that clears the way for another booking before the year ends. That makes Saturday more than a single fight in New York; it is a test of whether his return to lightweight can bring the speed, durability and momentum he says he was missing at 145 pounds.
