Athletes
Melquizael Costa Aiming To Continue His Impressive 2025 Campaign
Featherweight Melquizael Costa Aims To Secure His Sixth Win In A Row And A Spot In The Rankings With A Win Inside Toyota Center
Not many athletes on the UFC roster had a bigger 2025 than Melquizael Costa. But it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows for the Brazilian who first stepped onto the scene back in 2023, stepping in on short notice and up a weight class to face veteran Thiago Moises in his UFC debut.
Things unfortunately didn’t go his way; he was submitted in that fight. But after going down to his natural weight class, the 29-year-old picked up his first win against Austin Lingo in his sophomore outing, before falling to Steve Garcia to close out 2023.
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However, since then, there has been a fire lit underneath him, and something has changed because Costa has been racking up wins left and right. Costa now enters his matchup against No. 14-ranked featherweight Dan Ige this Saturday, looking to secure his sixth win in a row and finally crack into those rankings.
Melquizael Costa Submits Andre Fili In Round 1 | UFC Seattle
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Melquizael Costa Submits Andre Fili In Round 1 | UFC Seattle
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Before Costa makes the walk to the Octagon, let’s look at the victories he has picked up along the way.
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Following his loss against Garcia, it would be six months before the Brazilian would make the walk to the Octagon again, but when he did, he would end things in incredible fashion. Costa took things into the third round to get the submission by rear-naked choke over Shayilan Nuerdanbieke.
It wasn’t an easy path to victory, fighting the grappling over Nuerdanbieke in the first two frames, but once he was able to land a takedown of his own, Costa sunk in the submission and earned his first of many finishes inside the Octagon.
His submission over Nuerdanbieke marked his lone fight of 2024, but he kicked off his 2025 campaign last February against seasoned veteran Andre Fili in Seattle, and it was only the beginning of what was to come for the year.
The Brazilian got the job done within the first round of the fight, securing the finish by guillotine at 4:30 of round one. Costa was able to capitalize on a mistake by “Touchy” when he went for the takedown, leaving his head open, and allowing Costa to secure the submission.
The fun didn’t stop there for Costa, who stepped back into the Octagon a month after his win over Fili for a matchup with Christian Rodriguez in Mexico City. This time, Costa went the full 15 minutes, leaving the CDMX arena with his hand raised by unanimous decision and his third win in a row.
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The featherweight showcased his striking abilities in this matchup, earning victories on the judges’ scorecards for the first and second rounds, with Rodriguez finding more success in the final frame, but still coming up short when the decision was read.
Costa continued his path forward with a matchup against Julian Erosa, a fight that many fans knew would be exciting the moment it was announced, and it did not disappoint.
Melquizael Costa Fight Week Interview | UFC Houston
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Melquizael Costa Fight Week Interview | UFC Houston
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The action got underway right off the bat in the first round with the Brazilian landing shots that hurt “Juicy J” a few times, but Erosa didn’t back down, still taking the fight to Costa and providing an all-action fight over 15 minutes. Things went to the scorecards once again, and it was Costa who left Las Vegas with his hand and earned Fight of the Night honors with his performance.
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Perhaps the biggest win of his career came two months ago on the final event of 2025, and what a way it was for him to close out his 2025 campaign. This time around, Costa left the judges out of it, knocking out Morgan Charrier in 74 seconds.
Costa was able to land a high kick that immediately sent the Frenchman down to the canvas, and it was game over. The victory marked his fifth straight win in a row and solidified that he is someone to watch in the 145-pound division.
UFC Fight Night: Strickland vs Hernandez took place live from Toyota Center in Houston, Texas on February 21, 2026. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!