Yoel Romero vs Paulo Costa UFC Picks & Predictions - 8/17/2019
Yoel Romero vs Paulo Costa
UFC 241
Honda Center
Saturday, August 17, 2019
Yoel "Soldier of God" Romero (13-3-0) will face off in the Octagon against Paulo "The Eraser" Costa (12-0-0) at UFC 241 in Honda Center on Saturday, August 17, 2019. The opening line has Romero coming in at -172 while Costa is priced at +139.
Yoel "Soldier of God" Romero comes into this fight with 13 wins and 3 losses. The Coconut Creek, FL fighter is 42 years old, weighs 185 lbs and is 6'0" tall. He has a 73.5" reach and fights in the middleweight division. Romero has a total of 12 fights in the UFC. In his last time out, Romero lost in round 5 against Robert Whittaker by split decision. In the middleweight division, he is 10th in strikes with 707 and 95th out of all fighters in the UFC.
When it comes to strike accuracy, Yoel Romero sits at 132nd among fighters in the UFC and 21st in the middleweight division connecting on 58.8% of the shots he's thrown. He also has a total of 20 takedowns which has him ranked at 77th among fighters in the UFC and 7th in the middleweight division. Romero finishes 35.7% of his takedown tries which has him ranked at 278th among fighters in the UFC and 36th of all fighters in the division. He sits at 8th of all fighters in the division and 87th among fighters in the UFC for significant strikes with 502. Of those significant strikes, 287 of them were directed at the head while 101 of them were aimed at the body which has him ranked at 10th and 7th respectively of all fighters in the division.
At UFC 221: Romero vs. Rockhold, he came away with the win via stoppage in the third round when he fought Luke Rockhold. In the fight before that, Romero lost in round 5 when he fought Robert Whittaker at UFC 213: Romero vs. Whittaker by unanimous decision.
Stepping into the Octagon for this matchup, Paulo "The Eraser" Costa has a total of 12 wins and 0 losses. The 28-year-old out of Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil measures 6'1" tall and weighs 185 lbs. The Champion Team fighter competes in the middleweight division and has a 72.0" reach. He has collected a total of 4 fights in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Paulo Costa stepped out of the ring with a win by unanimous decision when he faced Uriah Hall in his most recent fight at UFC 226: Miocic vs. Cormier. With regard to strikes, Costa is 317th out of all fighters in the Ultimate Fighting Championship and 36th among division fighters with 198.
With regard to strike accuracy, he is connecting on 60.4% of the shots he has taken which is good for 14th in the middleweight division and 107th in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. With 189 significant strikes, he currently sits at 273rd in the Ultimate Fighting Championship and 30th among division fighters. Costa currently sits at 12th among division fighters for significant strikes pointed at the body with 77 and 35th for significant strikes directed at the head with 106. At UFC 217: Bisping vs. St-Pierre, he stepped out of the ring with a win via KO/TKO in round 2 when he faced Johny Hendricks. Before that, Costa stepped out of the ring with a win in round 2 when he faced Oluwale Bamgbose at UFC 212: Aldo vs. Holloway by KO/TKO.
When breaking down the fight with Yoel Romero and Paulo Costa, you will want to know how these two fighters stack up to each other. Paulo Costa lands punches more consistently, while connecting 60.4% of his punches meaning Yoel Romero is going to want to look to be careful going toe-to-toe. Relating to their physical traits, we are going to look at Yoel Romero who is 6'0" and the fighter on the other side of the cage 6'1". Relating to reach, Romero measures 73.5" while Costa has a reach of 72.0" meaning Romero should consider creating more distance so Paulo Costa cannot use his reach. Romero has been around longer at 42 years of age while Costa is the younger of the two fighters at 28 years of age. With respect to experience in the UFC, Romero has 12 fights making him the more experienced man in this fight while Costa has fought 4 fights in his UFC career. With respect to overall MMA experience, Romero has 13 victories and 3 defeats while Paulo Costa holds an overall mixed martial arts record 12 victories and 0 defeats.
Who will win tonight's UFC match against the spread?
Josh's Pick: Take Yoel Romero (-172)
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