UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira is eager to take on the winner of Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier.
The UFC lightweight champion does not mind who his next opponent will be, because he believes they will all suffer the same fate. After knocking out Michael Chandler to become the new king at UFC 262, Charles Oliveira now awaits for the winner of UFC 264 to see who his first challenger will be.
With a trilogy bout between Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier posing as that card’s main event, ‘Do Bronx’ knows he will have his hands full in the striking department, no matter who wins. However, the Brazilian tells Ag Fight during an online press conference that he is no longer only a grappler and is ready to knock out anyone who crosses his path now.
“I never pick opponents. I’ve always been ready to fight. They are two huge names in the sport. Everyone knows a fight with McGregor involves a lot of money. Poirier, not so much, but they’re both great opponents. I’ll be ready. I believe in my jiu-jitsu against any of them. But something tells me that if I were to fight them, I would knock them both out. I feel good.”
“A few years ago, Charlie was a jiu-jitsu guy.” Oliveira continued. “He would walk forward, eat shots and was a bit wary. Nowadays, I’m not afraid of trading shots with those guys. What’s funny is that once I start to trade shots, they’re the ones who want to take me down, to do what I can do better. This shows how much I’m evolving on the feet. It’s going to be a great fight, for sure. Charles is not just a jiu-jitsu fighter. He’s a well-rounded fighter, on the mat and on the feet. I do think they’ll all get knocked out, though.”
In his last outing, Oliveira (31-8-1 NC) became the champion by knocking out Chandler back in May. The win extended the 31-year-old’s current streak to nine straight victories, which also includes wins over Tony Ferguson, Kevin Lee, Clay Guida and Jim Miller, among others. The Brazilian’s last loss happened in December 2017, when he got knocked out by Paul Felder.