Jim Malaro urged listeners to cross the co-main entirely off their pre-fight bet slip. He expects Roman Kopylov to surprise with takedown attempts because the Russian bleeds on first contact, and Paulo Costa still throws heavy combinations that sway judges and crowds. Yet Costa’s last finish was Uriah Hall back in 2018, his pull-outs and late-night partying make every camp a guessing game, and the fight was already cancelled once this summer. Malaro said the bout has "Wonderboy-BOMFIM vibes"—a messy, judge-swayed circus where either man could gas. His plan: skip the money-line chalk on Kopylov, wait to see if Costa looks dialed-in, and only fire a live bet if round-to-round momentum presents plus money.

Andy Lang called Paulo Costa the most live dog on the main card, arguing Roman Kopylov’s ballooning price ignores lingering flaws: shaky cardio, zero head-movement and a face that cuts at the first jab. Lang has cashed repeatedly on Kopylov’s rise but believes the Russian’s decision over Chris Curtis masked how frequently he still eats clean shots. Costa, despite only one win since 2019, just survived the full 15 with Robert Whittaker and pushed Sean Strickland hard, proving his chin, pace and kicks still translate over three rounds. Lang expects the Mexican crowd to roar every time Costa lands a thudding body kick or hooks that visibly bloody Kopylov, influencing scorecards in a bout he pegs 50-50. His plan is simple: take pre-fight Costa moneyline at big plus numbers, then be ready to live-bet Kopylov if "the circus music" shows up and Costa gases. Official play: Costa by split or majority decision, cashing on visible damage rather than volume.

Sniper labeled Paulo Costa at $7,300 and +195 moneyline his single favorite underdog on the card. He argued the market is overrating Roman Kopylov, a pure boxer priced at $8,900 despite a minus-160 fight-to-decision line that screams low DFS ceiling. Costa, meanwhile, brings non-stop pressure (6.5 significant strikes landed per minute), a willingness to shoot reactive doubles as shown against Luke Rockhold, and battle-tested durability from five-round wars with Sean Strickland, Robert Whittaker, Marvin Vettori and Israel Adesanya. Sniper emphasized that all of Costa’s recent losses came to elite competition, not middling gatekeepers like Kopylov’s best win Chris Curtis. If Costa mixes in even two takedowns—Kopylov attempted defensively awkward shots versus Caesar Almeida—he can combine top control with trademark body kicks and out-land the Russian over three rounds. Sniper plans to be overweight on Costa exposure in GPPs, sprinkle the +195 moneyline before sharps bet it down, and hit the X-button on Kopylov given his capped scoring profile.

Kunath backed Paulo Costa even though the market favors Roman Kopylov. Costa’s recent defeats came only to champions or title challengers, while Kopylov’s resume is filled with fringe names like Josh Fremd and Claudio Ribeiro and includes late-fight cardio fades. Costa has proven he can maintain volume through five-round wars with Whitaker and others, and he is the same age as Kopylov—so no real age decline. Kunath expects a ‘vintage Borrachinha’ performance: constant forward pressure, combination punching, and lightning-quick high kicks that could slice through Kopylov’s guard. Given the perceived step down in competition and a betting line Kunath calls "just wrong," he projects Costa to take a decision.

Welch expects Paulo Costa to knock out Roman Kopylov. Although Costa is 1-4 in his last five, those setbacks came against elite names like Sean Strickland and Robert Whittaker. Costa has promised to return to the violent, walk-forward style that produced 11 KOs in his first 13 wins. Kopylov is 6-1 over his last seven with 12 career KOs, so Welch predicts a firefight where Costa’s explosive one-two power ends it inside the distance.

For the final PrizePicks square, Guru took Costa ‘less than 63.5 sig strikes’ against Roman Kopylov. He pointed out Costa hasn’t cleared 64 landed blows since the Yoel Romero brawl in 2019 and averaged only 34.5 significant strikes in his last two three-round fights. Costa has adopted a lower-volume, power-shot style while conserving cardio, and Kopylov’s lateral movement should limit pocket exchanges. Guru expects a stalking chess match where Costa throws heat but at a reduced clip, making the under attractive.

Bedtime MMA said the co-main event between Paulo Costa and Roman Kopylov "is probably going to be a decision." He pointed to Costa’s more measured style since multiple five-round fights and Kopylov’s excellent distance management that rarely leaves him over-extended. With both fighters historically durable—each has just one career stoppage loss—the tout prefers the over 2.5 rounds and fight-goes-to-decision props. He views the bout as a lower-ceiling DFS target relative to its price tags, recommending a fade unless chasing contrarian leverage.