There was
no plan B.
As a boy he put
everything else aside.
He left home.
No way back.
He had almost nothing.
All of it went into the fight.
For one goal.
World champion.
“I believed so hard in myself that I actually did it.”
Down on the scorecards against undefeated champion Johnny Eblen, Costello reversed position in the fifth round and locked in a rear-naked choke with seconds left. Afterwards he said: “It’s like a movie.”
The boy from Altea headlined the PFL’s first major card in Spain at Palacio Vistalegre. He answered Fabian Edwards’ takedown attempt with elbows along the fence and kept his belt by knockout.
No shortcuts and no safety net. The title was won the way it was chased: rep by rep, in body and in mind.
Years of training in Vlaardingen and camps in Florida. The strength to wrestle for five rounds and still finish in the last seconds.
Losing to John Salter and Douglas Lima did not break him. He kept going back to the gym, because stopping was never an option. “Only in the cage, when the door closes behind me, does everything fall away,” he told VICE in 2018.
Born in Rotterdam, raised on the Costa Blanca. He found MMA in Benidorm and left everything behind to chase it in the Netherlands.
A world champion who gave up everything to get here, with fans in the Netherlands, Spain and on every PFL broadcast.
He stopped school at 17, left Spain at 20 and put everything he had into one goal.
Costello was born on 26 July 1992 to a Dutch father and a Spanish-Filipino mother. The family soon moved south to the Costa Blanca.
He grew up in Altea, the roots behind the name “The Spaniard”. At two years old a dog bit his face and he needed surgery. Kids at school picked on him for looking different.
“My worst enemy as a kid, and my best friend now, because now it’s my signature.”El Español, 2026 · translated from Spanish
He started in the gym at 16 and found MMA in nearby Benidorm at 17. That same year he stopped school. From then on there was one goal, and everything else came second.
His coach saw more talent than Spain could develop and told him to go. At around twenty he left the sea, his friends and his family, and moved in with his godfather in Vlaardingen to train full time under Ricardo Wondel. There was no plan B waiting in Spain.
The first years paid almost nothing. He fought on small shows in Belgium and England for a few hundred pounds a fight, far from home, and put everything he had into training and the next fight.
In 2019 Vlaardingen gave him its sports prize, the Flip Vethaak Trophy. The goal was still further away: a world title.
Pictured: Team van Steenis, PFL Madrid 2026
“This is what any kid dreams of when they start MMA.”
Costello van Steenis, Yahoo Sports, 2026
He debuted in Kerkrade in April 2014 and built his record on the Belgian and English regional circuits, far from any spotlight. Most opponents did not see the second round. By 2017 he was 8–1.
Six straight wins in Bellator followed, in London, Connecticut, Oklahoma and Milan, including a split decision over Fabian Edwards in 2020.
Decision losses to John Salter and Douglas Lima pushed the title further away. For many fighters that is where the dream ends. For Costello there was nothing else to go back to, so he went back to the gym. He added camps at Kill Cliff FC in Florida and came back more complete.
Against undefeated champion Johnny Eblen he was behind after four rounds. With seconds left he locked in the choke. The boy who had given up everything was world champion. “I believed so hard in myself that I actually did it,” he said.
In March 2026 the PFL brought its first major card to Spain, with Costello in the main event. The kid who left Altea came back as champion and stopped Fabian Edwards in the third round in front of family and friends. Before the fight he said: “Spain is going to be one of the biggest countries in MMA.”
Every professional fight since 2014, from Kerkrade to Madrid.
| Result | Record | Opponent | Method | Rd · Time | Event | Date | Location |
|---|
Fight footage, press coverage and a ready-to-use press kit for journalists and broadcasters.
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media@costellovansteenis.com
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Born in Rotterdam, trained in Vlaardingen. A Dutch world champion in a growing sport.
Raised in Altea and headliner of the PFL’s first major card in Madrid. A national story in Spanish-speaking media.
Title fights broadcast worldwide by the PFL, with events from Cape Town to Riyadh to Madrid.
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