Alessandro Costa steps in for injured Osbourne to face Cody Durden at UFC 329

Alessandro Costa will replace the injured Ode Osbourne opposite Cody Durden in a flyweight bout at UFC 329, scheduled for July 11 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The Brazilian was confirmed as Durden’s new opponent on Wednesday after Osbourne pulled out weeks ago following an eight-week training camp cut short by injury.

Costa carries a professional record of 16-5 and has gone 4-3 inside the Octagon. He arrives in good form, having won back-to-back bouts against Stewart Nicoll and Matt Schnell, respectively.

Durden, now 18-10, will be looking to build on his own recent momentum. The American snapped a four-fight losing streak with a victory over Jafel Filho on April 25, making this matchup a meeting of two fighters eager to establish upward trajectory in the flyweight division.

The bout slots into a stacked UFC 329 card headlined by a welterweight clash between Conor McGregor and Max Holloway. McGregor has not competed since suffering a broken leg in his loss to Dustin Poirier in July 2021, while his history with Holloway dates back to a unanimous decision victory over the Hawaiian at UFC Fight Night 26 on August 17, 2013 — a featherweight contest that predates both men’s rise to championship level.

Elsewhere on the card, the preliminary bouts feature the Octagon debut of Gable Steveson and Robert Whittaker’s first venture into light heavyweight competition, where he faces Nikita Krylov. A flyweight contest between Tracy Cortez and Cong Wang is also highlighted among the prelims.