- Charles Oliveira is not sure if the UFC is planning to book him against Islam Makhachev for a January bout
- The Brazilian vows to be aggressive in his return
New reports state that Charles Oliveira is being slated to face Islam Makhachev once again to pick up where they left off. Nothing is concrete yet but “Do Bronx” already knows what he needs to do in his return.
It could be true
MMA journalist Ariel Helwani broke the news on social media and reported that the UFC initially booked Alexander Volkanovski vs. Ilia Topuria for UFC 297 on Jan. 20 in Toronto. However, they decided to change it to Oliveira vs. Makhachev 2.
The current plan – though not finalized just yet – is to have Islam Makhachev x Charles Oliveira 2 – headline UFC 297. That event, while not officially announced yet, is currently slated to Jan. 20 in Toronto.
The original plan for that main was Volkanovski x Topuria, but now…
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) November 4, 2023
When asked about it, Oliveira admitted that he is not sure if there’s truth to it but one thing certain is he’s planning to return in January.
“We just heard this in the locker room you know, people start asking us on the messages but this is the first time we hear about it but that’s the timeline: January, maybe so, who knows,” Oliveira told ESPN MMA through a translator.
The old Charles is back
Oliveira currently holds the record for most finishes in UFC history. However, the Brazilian failed to do what he is known for against Makhachev which resulted in him being dethroned as the lightweight champ. If the report happens to be true, “Do Bronx” insists to bring back the old Oliveira and go for the finish right away.
“You’ll see the Charles you always see, always going forward, always looking for the submission, for the knockout, going for the win,” Oliveira vowed.
“I want to be champion… I want to be the next champion that’s what I want,” he added.
Before incurring a nasty cut on his eyebrow ahead of his rematch with Makhachev, Oliveira was coming off a sensational first-round submission win over Beneil Dariush at UFC 289. As of now, all he wants is to carry on with the botched rematch and take the lightweight belt once again.
Aside from Oliveira, Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje were also linked to a title fight with Makhachev. Despite the Oliveira vs. Makhachev report, Gaethje thinks that the UFC might book his title fight with Islam in either February or March next year.
Check out Oliveira’s full interview below:
