Photo by Buda Mendes/Zuffa LLC
Lightweight Charles Oliveira wants the toughest challenges in the UFC’s 155 lb division.
Charles Oliveira is fresh off the biggest win of his MMA career. The Brazilian submission ace picked up an fantastic finish of top-ranked lightweight Kevin Lee in the main event of UFC Brasilia. But even amid that fantastic success, ‘Do Bronx’ believes he is still has not reached his full potential in the Octagon.
After seven straight wins, all finishes, Oliveira sees himself as a fighter born again since he came back from the featherweight division in 2017. The Gold Team fighter has suffering just a single loss over the past three years, to versatile striker Paul Felder.
Not only does he hold the record for most submission wins in the UFC, but over this latest stretch of his career, Oliveira has shown immense improvement in his striking. Even picking up two knockout wins in his last three outings. In an interview with Ag Fight, Oliveira says he has been able to correct many mistakes from his Felder loss.
“This last seven wins have been sensational. I turned it around, Oliveira admitted. “I was born again from the ashes. I scored two big knockouts, I won all the other fights by submission. I really overcame myself alongside my team. We planned everything and they gave me the motivation, telling me nobody would ever beat me again. For my Kevin Lee fight, I trained for one whole month with an injured shoulder. I felt that in the beginning of the fight, but I overcame that and won.”
“No doubt (I was able to show my development on the feet). I scored two big knockouts since that Paul Felder loss, in which we really had a brawl. We corrected a lot of things, but I know how much I still can evolve. I’m not afraid and I’m ready to reach the top.”
Oliveira’s 3rd round guillotine submission win over Lee at UFC Brasilia was his 7th straight since that loss to Felder—including wins over Clay Guida, Jim Miller and Nik Lentz. No telling when he’ll next get the chance to compete again, but if he keeps on the track he’s been on, he could find himself in title contention sometime in the not-too-distant future.