Cage Titans fan-favorite Randy Costa is ready to do his annual “full send,” only this time on a much bigger stage, UFC 236.
The Taunton, Massachusetts, native has had all of New England’s eyes on him for a while now. Randy Costa was made for the big stage and at UFC 236, he will be the storm that is waiting for Brandon Davis. This is something the Joe Lauzon product has known might be happening, but not this soon.
“[UFC Matchmaker] Sean Shelby reached out to my team in the past. They said when I was 5-0, I’d get a Contender Series shot. They started talking to me in August. My name has been coming up for a little while, even met with Shelby when I was in Denver.”
The groundwork had been laid for Costa to enter some sort of deal with the UFC, but at only 4-0 he was not expecting to get the call already. Most recently in action in late January, Costa was set to fight for Cage Titans in April, but that all changed with one call.
“Shelby actually called my coach [and manager] Joe Lauzon and asked if I was 5-0 yet. Joe said I will be on April 6th [with Cage Titans]. My thought was, ‘Okay, in June, I’d fight for the UFC or Contender Series. Two days later, my coach texted me, ‘Brandon Davis UFC 236 bantamweight debut.’ I’m thinking, ‘Why is he texting me this?’ He replied, ‘That’s for you.’” Costa’s response was exactly what could be expected “Holy f***, let’s f***ing go.”
Randy Costa is absolutely grateful for the opportunity to be getting such an intriguing offer from the top promotion in MMA, he knows this is a chance that doesn’t come often. It is not common that a fighter gets signed so early in their MMA career, but Costa has shown enough hype and promise to be one of the few. That’s something he won’t take for granted.
“I’m grateful. A little bit of right place, right time, I already was in fight camp for a fight at this weight so this gives me an extra week. I love everything about this, going to make the best out of all of this. Both Max Holloway and Chris Weidman were signed at 4-0, look at them now.”
It absolutely shows that the UFC thinks highly of the Massachusetts native, and he would love to have the success of Holloway or Weidman in his UFC career.
A last-minute opponent change is nothing new to most regional fighters, but a complete venue, promotion and opponent change may become a distraction during training, not for Randy Costa.
“It’s the same. I train with the best guys in the world so I’m always prepared. Only thing changing is a couple more lights in my face come fight night. One thing that might change is the style. I was training a lot for a wrestler, but I love this matchup even more because it is striker vs. striker. Davis is a gangster, a fan-favorite, a brawler, that’s what I want in a fight.”
Costa admits to actually being a fan of Brandon Davis and meeting him at UFC 220 in Boston wishing him luck. Fast forward and the two will be meeting inside the Octagon at UFC 236.
“He’s been in there with a lot of tough dudes. He’s a savage. Ton of respect for him man. It’s crazy how things are coming around full-circle like this.”
As for the venue, Costa is excited for some extra eyes watching him come fight night in what could absolutely become a card of the year candidate. The 24-year-old does not shy away from the attention, in fact he thrives in it. That mixed with his impressive resume has all the makings of a fan-favorite in the UFC.
“I love the attention, I love putting on a show for people. Brandon is coming off a fight with Zabit [Magomedsharipov] so he has eyes on him too. Max Holloway when he was signed at 4-0 fought Dustin Poirier, it’s crazy. It is going to be a big night for the future of two divisions in the UFC, and me and Brandon are going to make it the 4th of July with the fireworks in our fight.”
It is not a secret that the New England MMA scene has been very successful of recent years when it comes to UFC signees. From undefeated Manny Bermudez to rising contender Rob Font, New England MMA has been alive and well, and Costa is the latest to join the ranks of his fellow New Englanders.
“For those who don’t know my fights, one thing I can promise is it’s going to be a sick walkout, beautiful hair and there will be head kicks everywhere. The New England scene is cool because a lot of us train together, we help each other’s careers. It’s going to be awesome knowing that New England is going to be backing me up.”
As for making that UFC entrance, Costa is not worried in the slightest about nerves getting in the way of the spotlight. Anyone who has been inside the building at Cage Titans during a Costa fight knows usually the roof is nearly blown off. We can expect the same thing at UFC 236.
“It’s not a secret that at Cage Titans I sell a lot of tickets. It’s a party when I fight. Obviously, this venue is bigger but I am not nervous about anything at the end of the day, it is a fist fight. I don’t care if there are three people in the audience or 3 million, a fist fight is a fist fight. I have a tough task at hand, but I am ready mentally and physically, I am ready for it all, lets do it.”
Catch Randy Costa in his UFC debut at UFC 236 against Brandon Davis where the New England native attempts to continue his dominant undefeated career on the biggest stage.
