Charles Oliveira wants to become the next UFC fighter to become a double champion.
Oliviera became the lightweight champion last year after winning the vacant strap following a second-round TKO win over Michael Chandler.
“Do Bronx” followed it up by successfully defending his title for the first time after submitting Dustin Poirier in the third round of their UFC 269 headliner last month.
As for what’s next for Oliveira? It appears it’s either a title defense against Conor McGregor or Justin Gaethje depending on what the UFC is planning next.
However, Oliveira is also open to potentially moving back down to 145 pounds.
“I really thought I couldn’t drop to 145 anymore,” Oliveira said in a recent interview translated by MMA Fighting. “But this last weight cut, I was really [close to] 155 before the fight with this work we’ve been doing, with lots of water in the body, and we believe we could easily make 145.”
Charles Oliveira Wants To Become First Male Brazilian Double Champ
Of course, Oliveira has looked like a completely different fighter since permanently making the move up to 155 pounds and is undefeated in his last 10 outings.
However, the main reason he wants to move down again is the chance to potentially challenge Alexander Volkanovski for the featherweight title in a bid to become a double champion.
Alternatively, he is also open to moving up to 170 pounds to challenge welterweight king Kamaru Usman.
“If I had the opportunity to go straight for the 145 belt, I’d move down to fight,” Oliveira added. “Also, if I had the opportunity to go straight for the 170 belt, I’d also move up to fight, but I believe it’s more viable to [drop down] to 145 instead of going to 170 at this moment.
“…Becoming a two-division champion, a Brazilian man, would be awesome.”
Whether it happens anytime soon remains to be seen, especially given how stacked the lightweight division is.
However, it would certainly be another feather in Oliveira’s cap as he would be the first Brazilian male fighter to achieve the feat. He would also be just the eighth fighter to accomplish the feat under the UFC banner.
Do you think Charles Oliveira is capable of becoming a two-weight champion?
