Melquizael Costa Record: 26-8-0

Finding his footing in the UFC

Costa's UFC start was a reality check. He dropped his promotional debut at UFC 283 in January 2023, submitted by Thiago Moisés in the second round, then rebounded with a unanimous-decision win over Austin Lingo in July. A second setback followed in December 2023, a stoppage loss to Steve Garcia, leaving him at a crossroads early in his UFC tenure.

The featherweight surge

From there, Costa transformed his career with a sustained winning run. He submitted the durable Shayilan Nuerdanbieke with a third-round rear-naked choke in June 2024, then opened a huge 2025: a first-round guillotine of veteran Andre Fili, a unanimous decision over Christian Rodriguez, and another decision win against gritty veteran Julian Erosa. He capped 2025 with a spectacular first-round head-kick knockout of Morgan Charrière in December, then opened 2026 by stopping Dan Ige with a first-round spinning back kick and punches. The run vaulted him into the divisional rankings before a five-round unanimous-decision loss to Arnold Allen in May 2026 in his first main-event-level test against the elite.

Fighting style

Costa is one of the more genuinely balanced finishers at 145 pounds. His record breaks down almost evenly – nine knockouts, eight submissions and nine decisions – reflecting a fighter with no single dominant path to victory but danger everywhere. His Chute Boxe striking gives him real power and creativity, evidenced by the head-kick KO of Charrière and the spinning-kick finish of Ige, while his black-belt grappling lets him chain into rear-naked chokes and guillotines when the fight hits the mat. The losses have come against the division's sharper finishers, but his combination of volume, toughness and dual-threat finishing makes him a problem for anyone outside the very top of the rankings.

Career highlights

• Featherweight winning run — strung together victories over Andre Fili, Julian Erosa and others to climb into the UFC's 145-pound rankings.
• Highlight-reel finisher — stopped Morgan Charrière with a head kick and Dan Ige with a spinning back kick in back-to-back first-round knockouts.
• Dual-threat finisher — a Muay Thai and BJJ black belt with nine KO and eight submission wins, equally dangerous standing or on the ground.