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Paulo Costa Withdraws From His Fight Against Jared Cannonier; Kelvin Gastelum Steps in as a Replacement Once Again
Kelvin Gastelum has decided to step in once again as a main-event replacement for Paulo Costa. The Brazilian Cost was set to take on fellow knockout artist Jared Cannonier in a five-round main event on August 21st. However, recent reports suggest that ‘Borrachinha’ has pulled out of yet another fight.
Costa was set to take on Robert Whittaker in the main event on April 17th. The former title challenger pulled out of the fight as he was suffering from severe flu. And therefore, Gastelum stepped in on short notice to replace Costa against the former champion.
This time around Gastelum will have plenty of time to prepare as compared to his fight against Whittaker. At this point in time, the reason why ‘Borrachinha’ pulled out of the fight is unknown.
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Is the fight make or break for Kelvin Gastelum?
Kelvin Gastelum is widely regarded as one of the best fighters at 185-pounds. He proved that when he went toe-to-toe with the current champion Israel Adesanya for the interim title at UFC 236. However, since then things have not been going well for Gastelum.
Following his defeat against ‘The Last Style Bender’ Kelvin lost his next two fights making it 0-3. He then bounced back with a brilliant win over Ian Heinisch in February this year, before succumbing to a loss against Whittaker on short notice in April. This means that Gastelum is 1-4 in his last five fights which is cause for concern. If he loses his next fight against Whittaker, his position in the UFC might come under scrutiny. He will be aiming to bounce back to the win column in August.
However, that will be easier said than done as he takes on perhaps the scariest knockout artist in the middleweight division at the moment.
Cannonier was on a brilliant three-fight win streak, all of which were stoppages before former champion Robert Whittaker clinically dismantled him. Cannonier suffered a fracture in that fight which took place in October last year and therefore has been out of action since. He will also be aiming to bounce back into the win column and establish himself as one of the best at 185-pounds once again.
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What do you make of the fight between Cannonier and Gastelum? Let us know in the comments below!
The post Paulo Costa Withdraws From His Fight Against Jared Cannonier; Kelvin Gastelum Steps in as a Replacement Once Again appeared first on EssentiallySports.
