Fighter Profile›Featherweight

“The Dalmatian”

Melquizael Costa

26-79 UFC

Pressure Fighter

Form

· 6W

Hot Streak

Early Chaos

5'10"ht·71"reach·Southpawstance·29age

Last fightWDan Ige·KO/TKO·R1·2mo ago

Fighter Context

7–2UFC·

2KO

2Sub

3Dec

9.2min/fight

83UFC min

vs. Winning-Record Opps

6–2(8 fights)

67%finish rate

+1.0str diff/min

vs. Veteran Opps

3–0(3 fights)

67%finish rate

+3.0str diff/min

CQ Key Stats

Striking Differential

+1.41

Positive

80%ile

Significant strikes landed per minute minus strikes absorbed per minute. Positive values indicate a net striking advantage.

Adj. TD Threat

0.298

Strong

68%ile

CageQuant derived signal for measuring takedown offense adjusted for average division opponents.

Durability

Durable

54%ile

CageQuant derived signal that measures how well a fighter holds up to damage. Based on stoppage history and knockdowns absorbed over their career.

Round Win Rate

68%

Strong

79%ile

CageQuant derived signal. Completed rounds won, scored by CageQuant's proprietary formula rather than official judging.

Striking

Costa

Distance Striker

Body Attacker

Featherweight avg

Sig. Strikes / Min4.38

Str. Accuracy49%

362UFC landed/729attempted

Sig. Absorbed / min

−1.0 vs avg2.97

Str. Defense54%

KD Rate / fight0.22

2UFC knockdowns

KD Absorbed / fight0.11

CQ KO Power

Below Avg33%ile0.55

Strike Distribution

By Target

Head

47%

Body

33%

Leg

21%

By Position

Distance79%

Clinch12%

Ground10%

Sig. Strikes by Round

	Round 19 rounds	Round 26 rounds	Round 34 rounds
Avg. Landed	19	18	20
Avg. Absorbed	7	17	20
Avg. Net	+12	+2	0

Grappling

Costa

Control Wrestler

·109s ctrlActive Control

Featherweight avg

Offense

TD Landed / 15 Min2.00

TD Attempts / 15 MinUFC ONLY4.90

TD Accuracy40%

11UFC landed/27attempted

Sub Attempts / 15 Min1.10

2UFC wins/6attempted

Defense

Solid TD Def

TD Defense58%

27UFC defended/46opp. attempts

Sub Defense

Rarely Tapped

Finishing

Finish Rate

57%

Average

div avg 47%

How They Lose

2UFC losses

Win Breakdown

KO / TKO2 / 7

Submission2 / 7

Decision3 / 7

KD → Finish

2/2Lethal

Loss Breakdown

KO / TKO1 / 2

Submission1 / 2

Decision0 / 2

Loss Pattern

2 of 2 losses by finish in R1–R2

Fast and versatile. 3 of 4 finishes inside R1-R2, by both KO and submission

Finish Round Distribution

KO/TKO W

KO/TKO L

SUB W

SUB L

Cards & Decisions

Recovery Rate

33%

2 of 6 rounds won following a lost round

Decision Margin

1.8pts

W3 dec

—

L0 dec

field avg 1.95 pts

Decision Types

3UD

0SD

0MD

Career Trajectory

Win

Loss

D/NC

Elite opp (15+ wins)

Veteran opp (8+ wins)

Div. change

sig. strikes trending up. Averaging 7 more in second half of career

9 UFC fights · hover for details · colored line = 3-fight rolling avg

Pace & Cardio

Output

Absorbed

Diff

R1n=9

R2n=6

R3n=4

Outputsig strikes / min

4.2

4.4

4.8

Absorbedsig strikes / min

1.6

4.0

4.8

Diff

+2.6

+0.4

+0.0

Per-round averages across career · partial final rounds included at actual elapsed time · rounds below 5 min. career total suppressed · dashed lines = division avg

Last 8 Fights — Trend

KD Abs

▲TD Acc+56%L3

Last 8 UFC fights · Absorbed & Strike Diff = index vs career avg (1.0 = avg, 0 = breakeven) · Orange dots = KDs absorbed

Elite oppVeteran opp

Costa — 9 UFC Fights

Result

Method

9 fights

Dan IgeVeteran

KO/TKO R1 · 4:56Feb '26

+12

·19 SS (48%)·7 abs·1/1 td·1 td taken·32s ctrl·1 kd landed

Morgan Charriere

KO/TKO R1 · 1:14Dec '25

·4 SS (44%)·2 abs·1 kd landed

Julian ErosaVeteran

U-DEC R3May '25

+33

·102 SS (50%)·69 abs·2/3 td·3 td taken·23s ctrl·1 sub att

Christian Rodriguez

U-DEC R3Mar '25

·65 SS (62%)·64 abs·1/2 td·6 td taken·293s ctrl·1 sub att

Andre FiliVeteran

SUB R1 · 4:30Feb '25

+20

·27 SS (48%)·7 abs·0/1 td·1 td taken·1 sub att

Shayilan Nuerdanbieke

SUB R3 · 1:50Jun '24

+10

·16 SS (46%)·6 abs·2/2 td·4 td taken·180s ctrl·2 sub att

Steve Garcia

KO/TKO R2 · 1:01Dec '23

-23

·6 SS (60%)·29 abs·2/10 td·281s ctrl·1 kd taken

Austin Lingo

U-DEC R3Jul '23

+61

·100 SS (45%)·39 abs·3/8 td·164s ctrl·1 sub att

Thiago Moises

SUB R2 · 4:05Jan '23

·23 SS (46%)·22 abs·4 td taken

All Fighters

Featherweight

“The Dalmatian”

Melquizael Costa

26-79 UFC

Form

5'10"ht·71"reach·Southpawstance·29age

Last fightWDan Ige·KO/TKO·2mo ago

Fighter Context

7–2UFC·

2KO

2Sub

3Dec

9.2min/fight

83UFC min

vs. Winning Record6–2

vs. Veterans (8+ W)3–0

CQ Key Stats

Str. Differential

+1.41

80%ile

Significant strikes landed per minute minus strikes absorbed per minute. Positive values indicate a net striking advantage.

Adj. TD Threat

0.298

68%ile

CageQuant derived signal for measuring takedown offense adjusted for average division opponents.

Durability

54%ile

CageQuant derived signal that measures how well a fighter holds up to damage. Based on stoppage history and knockdowns absorbed over their career.

Round Win Rate

68%

79%ile

CageQuant derived signal. Completed rounds won, scored by CageQuant's proprietary formula rather than official judging.

Striking

Costa

Featherweight avg

Distance StrikerBody Attacker

Sig. Strikes / Min4.38

Str. Accuracy49%

362UFC landed/729attempted

Sig. Absorbed / Min

−1.0 vs avg2.97

Str. Defense54%

KD Rate / Fight0.22

2UFC knockdowns

KD Absorbed / Fight0.11

CQ KO Power

Below Avg33%ile0.55

Strike Distribution

By Target

Head

47%

Body

33%

Leg

21%

By Position

Dist79%

Clinch12%

Ground10%

Sig. Strikes by Round(career avg per round)

	R1 n=9	R2 n=6	R3 n=4
Landed	19	18	20
Absorbed	7	17	20
Net	+12	+2	0

Grappling

Costa

Featherweight avg

Control Wrestler

109s ctrlActive Control

Offense

TD Landed / 15 Min2.00

TD Attempts / 15 MinUFC ONLY4.90

TD Accuracy40%

11UFC landed/27attempted

Sub Attempts / 15 Min1.10

2UFC wins/6attempted

Defense

Solid TD Def

TD Defense58%

27UFC defended/46opp. attempts

Sub Defense1 loss / 4 attempts

Finishing

Finish Rate

57%

Average

Win Methods

2KO/TKO

2Sub

3Dec

Loss Methods

1KO/TKO

1Sub

0Dec

Finish Round Distribution

KO (W)

KO (L)

Sub (W)

Sub (L)

Cards & Decisions

Recovery RateRounds won after a lost round.

33%2 of 6 rounds

Decision MarginAvg pts/round on judges' scorecards.

1.8pts

W3 dec

—

L0 dec

field avg 1.95 pts

Decision Types

3UD

0SD

0MD

Career Trajectory chart available on desktop.

Pace & Cardio

Output

Absorbed

Diff

R1n=9

R2n=6

R3n=4

Outputsig strikes / min

4.2

4.4

4.8

Absorbedsig strikes / min

1.6

4.0

4.8

Diff

+2.6

+0.4

+0.0

Per-round career averages · partial rounds time-adjusted · dashed = division avg

Costa — UFC Fight Log

Dan IgeVeteran

KO/TKO·R1·Feb '26

19 SS (48%)·7 abs·1/1 td·1 td taken·32s ctrl·1 kd

Morgan Charriere

KO/TKO·R1·Dec '25

4 SS (44%)·2 abs·1 kd

Julian ErosaVeteran

U-DEC·R3·May '25

102 SS (50%)·69 abs·2/3 td·3 td taken·23s ctrl·1 sub

Christian Rodriguez

U-DEC·R3·Mar '25

65 SS (62%)·64 abs·1/2 td·6 td taken·293s ctrl·1 sub

Andre FiliVeteran

SUB·R1·Feb '25

27 SS (48%)·7 abs·0/1 td·1 td taken·1 sub

Shayilan Nuerdanbieke

SUB·R3·Jun '24

16 SS (46%)·6 abs·2/2 td·4 td taken·180s ctrl·2 sub

Steve Garcia

KO/TKO·R2·Dec '23

6 SS (60%)·29 abs·2/10 td·281s ctrl·1 kd taken

Austin Lingo

U-DEC·R3·Jul '23

100 SS (45%)·39 abs·3/8 td·164s ctrl·1 sub

Round 19 rounds

Round 26 rounds

Round 34 rounds

Avg. Landed

Avg. Absorbed

Avg. Net

+12

n=9

n=6

n=4

Landed

Absorbed

Net

+12