Charles Oliveira is ready to regain the UFC lightweight championship that he never technically lost. Following what many consider to be a botched weigh-in ahead of his UFC 274 bout with Justin Gaethje, ‘Do Bronx’ was stripped of his title. Now he aims to get it back but must go through Khabib Nurmagomedov’s streaking protege to do so.
In the main event of UFC 280 on October 22nd, Charles Oliveira will meet Islam Makhachev to crown a new lightweight king. While Oliveira has looked as impressive as ever over his last three fights, Makhachev walks into his first pay-per-view main event with a 10-fight win streak and a truckload of momentum.
Discussing the upcoming bout with Brazilian MMA Legends on YouTube is Charles Oliveira’s coach Dhiego Lima. The former UFC welterweight recognizes that Islam Makhachev is a very well-rounded opponent, but feels that ‘Do Bronx’ is better that the Dagestani star in almost every aspect of the fight game.
“Makhachev is a very good fighter. We’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, he’s never fought a top five, but f*ck it. The guy is tough, you know? The guy is coming off 10 wins in a row. The guy is good at striking, on the fence, and on the ground. The guy has good jiu-jitsu. Despite them making these jokes about Sambo, he trains jiu-jitsu. And I’m aware that he’s really good at jiu-jitsu, you know? Even this friend of mine who was my athlete trained jiu-jitsu with him and said he’s good.
“So it’s like that. he’s a tough guy and it’ll be a big challenge, you know? But Charles is better at striking [and] on the ground. Charles is the champion. He has the champion’s mind. So, this fight won’t end on points. Especially because Charles is a guy who seeks the knockout or submission all the time. He doesn’t hold the fight, unlike Makhachev. Makhachev will want to hold the fight. Not as much as Khabib. Khabib used to hold more. Makhachev likes to stabilize, but he prefers to finish the fight soon.”
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UFC 280: OLIVEIRA vs MAKHACHEV ➡️ October 22 as Charles Oliveira takes on Islam Makhachev for the vacant lightweight championship 📍Etihad Arena, Yas Island.
#ADShowdownWeek #inAbuDhabi #UFC280 pic.twitter.com/QLlXuFdxii
— Rayna Tours (@raynagroup) August 22, 2022
Lima Expects Charles Oliveira to Finish Makhachev in the First 15 Minutes
With two fighters who are arguably the best in the world at what they do, their highly-anticipated showdown will be decided by the smallest of details.
“So it will be a fight decided in the details. I talk about details because both have a very high level, but in my opinion, Charles is ahead. I’m even suspect to speak, for being his coach. For being by his side, but Charles will knock him out or submit him in the first three rounds.”
Should ‘Do Bronx’ recapture the UFC lightweight championship, a long-rumored clash with superstar Conor McGregor could be next for Oliveira. While many have criticized that potential match-up given McGregor’s recent issues with getting into the win column, there is no doubt that the fight would draw fans making millions of dollars for Oliveira, McGregor, and the UFC.
