Israel Adesanya is more suspicious than ever of his UFC 253 opponent Paulo Costa regarding potential steroid use, and Costa is loving every minute of it.
Israel Adesanya has long accused UFC 253 opponent Paulo Costa of using steroids. Minutes prior to their virtual two-man interview on ESPN SportsCenter recently, Adesanya had an opportunity to question Costa directly on the subject, and he found Costa’s response less than convincing (h/t MMA Junkie):
“Even before the interview kicked off, when I saw him initially, I asked him a few questions that he couldn’t really give me a straight answer to,” Adesanaya told Submission Radio recently. “The last time he got tested? … He couldn’t give me a straight answer, put it that way.”
For his part, Adesanya has been USADA verified ahead of UFC 253, including one unexpected visit leading up to the event. And he couldn’t help but wonder if his muscle-bound foe could say the same.
“Twice in the last three weeks, I got tested – at night, because they tried to catch me off-guard,” Adesanya said. “So it was the first time they ever tested me at night. So, where’s your T-shirt? I’ve been tested over 30 times, but where’s your T-shirt?”
Paulo Costa Provides Taunting Response to Adesanya
Days after being grilled by Adesanya behind the scenes of their ESPN interview, Paulo Costa issued a taunting response to the middleweight champion via Twitter.
“Unfortunately to you RUNNERSANYA, USADA never came to test me in Brasil,” Costa tweeted.
Despite Adesanya’s interrogation, he has stated that defeating Costa would be extra sweet if it is later proven that Costa is, in fact, a steroid cheat. To paraphrase, Adesanya has frequently stated that he would like to be the one to beat Costa before USADA does.
What’s your take on Israel Adesanya’s line of questioning for Paulo Costa and Costa’s taunting response?
