Charles Oliveira was set to face Islam Makhachev at UFC 294 in a rematch of their vacant title fight at UFC 280. However, an injury forced him to be replaced by featherweight champion, Alexander Volkanovski, the number 2 pound-for-pound fighter in the world.
However, this setback did not stop him from planning ahead. In a recent interview by MMA Fughting’s Guillermo Cruz, “Do Bronx” laid out his plans for a money fight with the sport’s biggest superstar, the former two-division champion, “The Notorious” Conor McGregor.
Oliveira wants McGregor “money fight”
In the aftermath of his absence at UFC 294, Oliveira is already planning his next moves. He further emphasized what he had already said about Conor McGregor. Since his title fight claiming victory over Michael Chandler at UFC 262, Charles Oliveira has been gunning for a fight against McGregor.
McGregor did fight Dustin Poirier at UFC 264, but he suffered a catastrophic leg break during the fight. This injury has kept him out of competition for over two years. McGregor’s comeback was a frequent topic in the news, and Oliveira even welcomed the idea of facing him. In an interview with MMA Fighting, he further emphasized his willingness to fight the Irishman in any weight class, from lightweight to middleweight.
Charles Oliveira last fought inside the octagon at UFC 289 in the co-main event against Beneil Dariush, a top contender on an 8-fight win streak. Oliveira won the fight via TKO in the very first round and immediately called for a title shot. However, the Brazilian lightweight was initially hesitant to take on Makhachev in Abu Dhabi. Eventually, he agreed but injured his eyebrow 12 days before the fight.
Conor McGregor is presumed to make his long-awaited return inside the octagon at UFC 300 against Michael Chandler. Chandler, like McGregor, will be coming off a loss to former interim lightweight champion, Dustin Poirier.
Oliveira recovery timeline
Charles Oliveira in the recent interview given to MMA Fighting provided an update about his injury. It was a deep cut under his right eyebrow. Oliveira said that it would take about two weeks to heal. He further said that he would require MRI scans to detect the presence of clots.
Interestingly, Oliveira has used this to his advantage. He now plans to fight McGregor which would be the biggest money fight he could do. “Do Bronx” clarified that he knows that he missed the title shot. Furthermore, Ali Abdelaziz, the manager of Islam Makhachev and Justin Gaethje is of the opinion that Gaethje is next in line for the title shot.
Charles Oliveira’s first meeting with Makhachev was disastrous. He was submitted by the Russian in the second round of their bout at UFC 280 in the presence of Khabib Nurmagomedov. Prior to his defeat to Makhachev, Oliveira was on an 11-fight win streak in the UFC.
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