Charles Oliveira will be looking to secure his eighth consecutive win when he faces Tony Ferguson at UFC 256 on Dec 12th, a win which he believes will secure his place as next in line for a shot at the UFC’s Lightweight Division.
Oliveira and Tony Ferguson will be the co-main event of UFC 256 in Las Vegas. “Do Bronx” believes that a win will earn him a title shot.
Speaking to MMA Fighting, Charles Oliveira said: “It’s very clear: Whoever wins this fight is the next title contender, I have to stay focused and concentrated. He was coming off 12 wins in a row and I think he made a mistake against Justin Gaethje, so we can’t make mistakes in there.”
The Lightweight division is looking very entertaining at the moment after the recent retirement of the undisputed lightweight champion and pound for pound number one UFC fighter, Khabib Nurmagomedov. However UFC boss, Dana White has constantly stated that he believes the undefeated fighter will return to the octagon.
Charles Oliveira went on to say that he intends to finish Tony Ferguson.
“Winning this fight I’ll be the next challenger, no doubt. Seven wins in a row at the moment. It will be eight after this, and I don’t plan on leaving it in the judges’ hands. It will be eight finishes in a row. There’s no way I have to wait. I’m the next challenger.”
The Brazilian has no doubt about who is opponent will be for the vacant belt in 2021 as well. Oliveira believes he will fight the winner of the Conor McGregor Vs Dustin Poirier clash at UFC 257, a fight which he believes McGregor will win.
Charles Oliveira also believes that Khabib will stay retired.
“Conor McGregor retired many times, Paul Felder retired many times; they all retire and come back,” Oliveira went on to say. “But we’re talking about Khabib. His family, his religion, the man says he’s retired. Someone told me that he sworn on his father’s grave that he wouldn’t fight anymore. If that’s true, there’s no way he comes back. If he comes back, he would be going over his own word and his own father. If that’s true, the guy won’t come back. It’s over.”
He first has to get past Tony Ferguson who recently lost for the first time in 12 fights against Justin Gaethje. Oliveira is aware of the challenge in front of him.
“He’s super tough, he has his own fighting style, he spins with the elbow, the arm, the leg. He shoots for takedowns in a completely different way. We know the difficulties that this fight brings, the problem coming my way, but this is my moment. My time has come. There’s not much to do, just train and dedicate.”
“I’ll have the perfect strategy for this fight and I’ll make it happen. He’s tough and has an incredible cardio, so let’s go.”
Charles Oliveira has the most submission victories in UFC victory but he is aware of ‘El Cucuy’s’ ground game.
“Good jiu-jitsu, if you give him an opening he goes there and taps you. You have to respect that. We can’t fool around because I can make a mistake and he submits me too. Fights are unpredictable, brother, anything can happen. But, like I said, this is my moment, this is my time. I’ll be 100 percent focused for this fight. I won’t make mistakes up there.”
“His jiu-jitsu, his wrestling, his muay Thai, the crazy spinning things he does out of nowhere — I’ll be ready for all that.”
Do you see Charles Oliveira beating Tony Ferguson and if he does, does he deserve a title shot?