Charles Oliveira

UFC: Dustin Poirier – Charles Oliveira was meant to be

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This past Saturday at UFC 264, we saw the conclusion of the trilogy between Dustin Poirier (28-6, 1 NC) and Conor McGregor (22-6). The fight ended in dramatic fashion when McGregor broke his leg at the end of the first round.

With McGregor not being able to continue, the fight was called and Poirier was declared the winner. While it’s not a clean result and definitely not the kind of win Dustin Poirier probably wants to celebrate, it still counts.

Now, the UFC is able to move past the rivalry between the two men for now and put on the title fight that should have happened in the first place. UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira (31-8, 1 NC) was sitting cageside for the main event.

Dana White said before the fight took place that the winner would fight Oliveira for the lightweight title. With Poirier’s hand getting raised, the promotion now gets to put on the title fight that the entire world wants to see.

UFC: Oliveira – Poirier

Make no mistake about it, the two best active lightweights in the UFC are Poirier and Oliveira. Going back to January’s knockout, Poirier has been nearly perfect inside the octagon lately. The lone loss came against former undisputed champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Charles Oliveira has won nine fights in a row on his way to capturing the UFC lightweight title. In those nine victories, only one of them went the distance and that is only because Tony Ferguson didn’t tap from one of the nastiest armbars I’ve ever seen.

If Ferguson was a normal man, Oliveira would be on a nine-fight finish streak. Nevertheless, the winning streak is just as impressive given the fact that he beat Tony Ferguson from pillar to post for three rounds.

Poirier and Oliveira have been on similar paths inside the UFC. Both men have lost and both men have found great success in a weight class above where they started. Both men were top prospects at featherweight before becoming stars at 155 pounds.

Now, the two men will square off to determine who is the king of the UFC lightweights. Poirier was ranked ahead of Oliveira before Oliveira became the champion. The Diamond will likely be the betting favorite heading into their fight. However, Oliveira has proven over the last few years that he just might be the best in the business at 155.

Sound Off: Who will win between Poirier and Oliveira?

Winner of UFC 264 main event next for the lightweight title

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dusin porier, conor mcgregor

This weekend we will see one of the most highly anticipated matchups of the year in the main event of UFC 264. The trilogy between Conor McGregor (22-5) and Dustin Poirier (27-6, 1 NC) will come to a close.

The rivalry that started seven years ago will come to a close and there’s a lot on the line. Dana White confirmed yesterday with MMA Junkie that the winner of Saturday night’s main event will fight for the lightweight title next.

The new UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira (30-8, 1 NC) will actually be cageside for the main event. With this new wrinkle added in, arguably the biggest fight of 2021 has just become even bigger.

McGregor and Poirier met for the first time back in 2014 with McGregor getting the first round finish. The two men met again back at UFC 257 for the second time. After a hot start for McGregor, Poirier settled in and earn himself a TKO victory in the second round.

UFC Title Eliminator

The series is even with both men having earned a finish leading into UFC 264. It’s going to be very interesting to see the approaches of both men on Saturday night. For McGregor, his mistake was very clear in the second fight.

I believe that the former two-division UFC champion was extremely confident that he would be able to finish Poirier with his boxing in the first round. However, Poirier was able to absorb the shots and attack McGregor’s lead leg with calf kicks.

With McGregor taking a boxing-heavy style in the second fight, he left his leg there to be compromised. In this third matchup, he’s going to need to return to the old style that he utilized when he was on the rise.

For Poirier, I think it’ll be important just to whether the early storm. Poirier is at his best when the fight gets long and tough. He said last week that he wins a war ten out of ten times against Conor McGregor. It’s going to be an incredible matchup with a ton on the line Saturday night.

UFC: Michael Chandler hopes to return near the end of the year

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Michael Chandler (22-6) is still dealing with the disappointment from failing to capture the UFC lightweight title last Saturday. In the headliner of UFC 262, Chandler took on Charles Oliveira (31-8, 1 NC) for the vacant lightweight championship.

The first round of their fight at UFC 262 was one of the best opening rounds of a championship fight I’ve seen in a while. It had it all and both men looked like they could finish the fight in the first round.

For Oliveira, he was able to get Chandler’s back in the first have of the round. A lot of people thought that if Oliveira could get in that dominant of a position at UFC 262, he could finish the fight by submission.

In fact, I picked Oliveira to win by submission. However, Chandler powered through and got out of the dangerous position. The second half of the round was all Michael Chandler and he hurt Oliveira badly on the feet.

At one point, it appeared that the fight was seconds away from getting stopped. Chandler had the UFC lightweight title within his reach, but Oliveira was able to survive the onslaught and we went to the second round.

Much like the first round changed on a dime, the second round changed on a dime. After coming close to finishing the fight in the first round, Chandler was clipped with a perfect left hook from Charles Oliveira.

Oliveira followed up with some finishing shots and captured the UFC lightweight title. For a moment in the first, Michael Chandler’s perfect UFC start appeared to be going according to plan. However, he left the door open and Charles Oliveira took advantage.

UFC return for Michael Chandler

Michael Chandler sat down with MMA on Point this week to break down UFC 262 and talk about his next steps. Chandler admittedly thought he wouldn’t be in a position to consider his options following a loss.

The former Bellator champion said that he planned on winning the UFC title and wanted to wait for the winner of Dustin Poirier – Conor McGregor 3. If that would’ve happened, Chandler said he thought the UFC would book him anywhere from November to January of 2022.

Despite losing at UFC 262, Chandler is wanting to stick to that timeline. Chandler said, “November at the earliest. December, maybe even January. I’m not getting any younger… Obviously, the stakes are high, the competition is high. No matter what, I’ll step inside the cage with a top five guy.”

Opponents to watch for in his UFC return would be Justin Gaethje, Beneil Dariush, Rafael Dos Anjos, or perhaps Islam Makhachev. The loser of McGregor – Poirier could also be an option. As Chandler said, the UFC will give him a top five guy next regardless and if he wins impressively, he’ll be right back in the title mix.

After capturing the lightweight title at UFC 262, what’s next for Charles Oliveira?

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In the main event of UFC 262, we saw a new lightweight champion crowned. Charles Oliveira (31-8, 1 NC) and Michael Chandler (22-6) went head-to-head for the vacant UFC lightweight champion.

Last year at UFC 254, Khabib Nurmagomedov (29-0) said that he was walking away from the sport. The undisputed lightweight champion lost his father last year and after his last successful title defense, he decided it was time to hang it up.

After Khabib retired, the UFC‘s lightweight division needed a new champion. After Dana White confirmed Khabib’s UFC departure a couple of months ago, the promotion booked Oliveira and Chandler for the vacant title.

Charles Oliveira’s UFC story has been something to behold. At one point, Oliveira was 10-8 with the promotion and looked like one of those fighters who would never truly reach his potential.

He bounced back and forth between lightweight and featherweight before ultimately settling at 155 pounds. A few years ago, Do Bronx started to put it all together and he won eight fights in a row leading up to UFC 262.

Michael Chandler was the prized free agent signing for the promotion in 2020. The former Bellator champion made his debut in January and had a first round knockout win over Dan Hooker.

The fight was close on paper and it was close in reality. In the first round at UFC 262, Michael Chandler was moments away from finishing the fight in the first. However, Oliveira weathered the storm and ultimately came back to win by TKO in the second round. In a lot of ways, Saturday’s main event mirrored Do Bronx’s UFC journey.

What’s next after UFC 262?

So, after his big knockout victory, what’s next for the new UFC lightweight champion. Well, for that answer, we are going to look at the PPV that is coming up on July 10th.

UFC 264 is being headlined by the trilogy matchup between Dustin Poirier (27-6, 1 NC) and Conor McGregor (22-5). The two men fought back in January with Poirier evening the score by finishing McGregor in the second round.

The Diamond is the top ranked lightweight in the UFC and honestly should’ve been the one fighting Oliveira on Saturday. However, Poirier took the trilogy fight with McGregor over the title fight which is the better business decision.

McGregor is still the biggest star in the sport and he’s the biggest fight out there. With a win over Poirier, McGregor would jump straight to the front of the line to fight for the title.

Dana White wouldn’t confirm it on Saturday, but the winner of the UFC 264 main event should be next. It would be the biggest fight for the new champion and that’s what he deserves.

After falling short at UFC 262, what’s next for Michael Chandler?

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Over the weekend at UFC 262, Michael Chandler (22-6) took on Charles Oliveira (31-8, 1 NC) for the vacant lightweight title. After Khabib Nurmagomedov relinquished the title earlier this year officially, the lightweights crowned a new king on Saturday night.

Michael Chandler knocked the UFC door down when he made his debut back in January. Chandler knocked out Dan Hooker in the first round and announced to the world that he was ready for that UFC strap.

Charles Oliveira had won eight fights in a row leading up to UFC 262. Do Bronx had come into his own and he looked like one of the scariest lightweights in the world. On paper, this matchup was pure fireworks.

Well, the fight turned out to be pretty good as well. In the first round, Chandler rocked Oliveira early which forced and Oliveira takedown attempt. Chandler was able to lock in a guillotine, but Oliveira fought through it. The Jiu Jitsu expert was then able to get the back of Michael Chandler.

Eventually, Chandler exploded out of the position and they went back to striking. Chandler again hurt Oliveira badly and looked like he was seconds away from becoming the UFC lightweight champion.

However, Oliveira survived and used his legs to keep distance from Chandler’s big shots. The round closed with all the momentum with Chandler. However, moments into the second round, Oliveira landed a massive hook and follow up shots to win the fight and become UFC lightweight champion.

What’s next after UFC 262?

Saturday night showed just how quickly fights can change in the UFC. Michael Chandler had all the momentum and was seconds from finishing the fight in the first round. Seconds into the second round, Oliveira dropped him and stopped him to win the title.

This is a hard one for Michael Chandler because he was so close to realizing that dream. However, it’s important to remember that the UFC title dream is not dead for Michael Chandler. It perhaps just took a detour.

On this detour, who should the UFC pair him with? To me, there’s only one fight that makes sense for all involved. That would be pairing Michael Chandler against former interim champion Justin Gaethje (22-3).

Gaethje and Chandler are both coming off of losses in undisputed title fights. Both men are two of the very best in the world and whoever would win between the two would provide a great challenger for the UFC lightweight title.

Michael Chandler said he’s going to be back in the gym this week and I believe him. I think we could perhaps see a matchup between Gaethje and Chandler in the late Summer this year.

UFC 262 Results: Charles Oliveira stops Michael Chandler to become lightweight champion

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In the main event of UFC 262, we crowned a new lightweight champion of the world. “Iron” Michael Chandler (22-5) was getting a shot at the vacant lightweight championship against Charles “Do Bronx” Oliveira (30-8, 1 NC).

Michael Chandler has been one of the best lightweights in the world for years. However, with him fighting in Bellator, many people didn’t take him seriously. That all changed back at UFC 257 in January.

After signing with the UFC last year, Chandler took on Dan Hooker in the co-main event of UFC 257. Chandler knocked out Dan Hooker in the first round to make a massive statement to the rest of the lightweights.

Between his knockout performance and his willingness to fight anyone, the UFC gave him this shot tonight. Standing in his way was the hottest fighter in the lightweight division, Charles Oliveira.

Do Bronx has really grown up inside the octagon. He made his UFC debut back when the promotion still had shows on Fuel TV which is no longer a television network. Oliveira began his career at featherweight.

After having some ups and downs at 145, Oliveira came into his own at lightweight. Now, Oliveira has won eight straight in the UFC‘s toughest division and the promotion gave him this title shot on the heels of his dominant win over former interim champion Tony Ferguson.

UFC 262 Recap

Round 1

The UFC 262 main event starts with a touch of the gloves. Two big kicks from Oliveira starts the striking. Chandler throws a big right to the body and Oliveira lands another big calf kick.

Big left hook lands for Michael Chandler and Oliveira shoots for a takedown. Chandler has a guillotine and it looks deep, but Oliveira stays relaxed and gets out of it. Oliveira ends up getting the back of Michael Chandler.

Chandler gets up and tries a back slam, but Oliveira sticks to him like glue. Oliveira is bleeding, but he’s got the body triangle locked in. Chandler explodes out of the position and Chandler is back on his feet.

Big shots from the top from Michael Chandler. Oliveira is up and they’re back to striking. Huge hooks land for Chandler and Oliveira is in deep trouble. Chandler tries to finish, but he lands in the guard of Oliveira.

Oliveira is trying to attack off his back, but Chandler is too strong early. Big elbows from Michael Chandler. More big shots from Michael Chandler land with seconds left in the round. The bell sounds and a huge opening round at UFC 262 for Michael Chandler.

Round 2

Entering the second round at UFC 262 and all the momentum is with Michael Chandler. Big jab lands for Michael Chandler but Charles Oliveira lands a massive hook and Chandler is hurt badly.

Oliveira follows up and Chandler is out. Charles Oliveira turns it around in an instance and he’s the new UFC lightweight champion.

Charles Oliveira def. Michael Chandler by TKO – Round 2

UFC 262 Preview: Michael Chandler – Charles Oliveira

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Tomorrow night in the headliner of UFC 262, the vacant lightweight title is on the line. Former Bellator lightweight champion Michael Chandler (22-5) is seeking to add a second world title to his resume against Charles “Do Bronx” Oliveira (30-8, 1 NC).

In 2020, the biggest free agent in MMA was Michael Chandler. Chandler finished out his Bellator career with a first round knockout over former UFC lightweight champion Benson Henderson. After the win, the bidding war started.

Ultimately, Chandler signed with the UFC because he wanted to show he’s the best in the world. At UFC 257, Chandler made his debut against Dan Hooker. After closing as a betting underdog, Chandler knocked out Dan Hooker in the first round.

The performance earned him a spot in the main event tomorrow night. Standing across the cage from him is the hottest lightweight in the UFC. Charles Oliveira will walk into the fight tomorrow night carrying an eight-fight win streak.

For Oliveira, his issue was never his talent. Oliveira always had the talent to be a UFC champion, but he just never put everything together. In December of 2017, Paul Felder stopped Oliveira at UFC 218.

After that fight, something changed in Oliveira. He turned into a different fighter and the winning streak started. The highlights of the win streak include victories over Kevin Lee and Tony Ferguson. Do Bronx is looking to add Michael Chandler and a UFC title to that winning streak tomorrow night.

UFC 262 Prediction

This is such a fascinating matchup and I can really see both guys winning at UFC 262. When it comes to the totality of striking, I would have to give the technical advantage on the feet to Charles Oliveira.

However, when it comes to explosion and power on the feet, the advantage goes to Michael Chandler. Obviously, Michael Chandler is one of the best wrestlers in the lightweight division. However, Oliveira is the best jiu jitsu practitioner in the lightweight division.

Both of these men cancel each other out in ways which is why the fight at UFC 262 is so hard to predict. If this fight ends up being a war, I really like the championship experience and grit that Michael Chandler will bring.

If this fight goes to really deep waters, I like Michael Chandler. If this fight ends in a first round knockout, I also like Michael Chandler. However, my gut just tells me that Do Bronx gets it done at UFC 262. Chandler’s never been submitted, but I think that might change tomorrow night.

Prediction: Charles Oliveira by Submission (Guillotine Choke) – Round 3

UFC: Conor McGregor wants at least two more fights in 2021

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Conor McGregor, UFC

The biggest star in the UFC is wanting to make the walk at least a couple more times before the calendar turns over to 2022. Conor McGregor (22-5) is currently scheduled to face Dustin Poirier (27-6, 1 NC) in July at UFC 264.

That matchup will be the third installment of the rivalry between the two men. McGregor won the first matchup back at UFC 178 and then Poirier evened the score with a TKO victory in January at UFC 257.

Both men wanted to do the trilogy and that’s what were getting next. However, McGregor has made it known that he has bigger plans beyond the Poirier trilogy. McGregor had a fun question and answer on Twitter yesterday with his fans.

One of the questions that was asked was around his fighting plans for the rest of the year. When asked how many times he wanted to compete, the former two-division UFC champion said, “2 at least.”

Another question came in regarding his plans for those fights. To that, McGregor said, “I’ll have a few Proper Parties! It’s my birthday that week. Then the World title.” Make no mistake about it, Conor McGregor has his eyes on the UFC lightweight title.

Can McGregor regain the UFC lightweight title?

If you would have asked me a year ago about McGregor’s chances to recapture the UFC title, I wouldn’t be very confident. I’m in the group that believes Conor McGregor is sensational, however, I’m not sure he’s taking the belt of Khabib Nurmagomedov (29-0).

However, with Nurmagomedov out of the picture, it’s a different story. At UFC 262 this weekend, Michael Chandler (22-5) and Charles Oliveira (30-8, 1 NC) will battle for the vacant UFC lightweight title.

The winner of that matchup will likely face the winner of McGregor – Poirier 3 in the fall. With that, the path is quite clear for Conor McGregor to once again become the lightweight champion.

However, it’s a very steep ask. I’m not sure you can put McGregor as the favorite after his last fight with Poirier. If he is able to get passed The Diamond, then he’s got a tough matchup with Michael Chandler and Charles Oliveira.

Very different and difficult fights for McGregor. The odds are currently stacked against him, but McGregor’s proved the UFC nay-sayers wrong before. He just might do it again and walk out of 2021 the lightweight champion of the world.

UFC: Conor McGregor eyes 2021 lightweight run before going after the welterweight title

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Conor McGregor, UFC

The biggest star in the UFC wants to become a champ-champ again. However, this time, Conor McGregor (22-5) is eyeing the lightweight title and the welterweight strap. The Notorious one wants to be the first man with a title in three weight divisions.

At least, that’s what the former two-division champion posted on Twitter. McGregor was very active on social media during UFC 261. This past Saturday we saw Kamaru Usman (19-1) knock Jorge Masvidal (35-15) out to retain the welterweight title.

After the fight was over, McGregor unveiled his plans for 2021 and 2022. We all know that the next step for McGregor is the trilogy with Dustin Poirier (27-6, 1 NC). The two men are headlining UFC 264 in Las Vegas in July.

Whoever wins that matchup will likely be the next in line for the lightweight title. At UFC 262, Michael Chandler (22-5) and Charles Oliveira (30-8) are fighting for the vacant lightweight title.

If McGregor is able to defeat Poirier in July, it will likely setup his lightweight title fight for the end of the year. That is a big if, but McGregor is certainly capable of winning. If he does capture the title, it’s off to the UFC‘s welterweight division for McGregor.

UFC future for McGregor

Conor McGregor is no stranger to making bold claims that make most people roll their eyes. When he first came into the UFC, he vowed that he would become the featherweight and lightweight champion.

While most thought he would never capture even the featherweight title, McGregor did what he said and became a two-division champion. After that, he turned his attention to Floyd Mayweather. Again, most rolled their eyes at the thought of McGregor securing a boxing match with Floyd.

Yet, McGregor did just that. Back in January, McGregor suffered his first knockout loss in the UFC at the hands of Dustin Poirier. McGregor is very confident he will win the third fight between the two men.

While the odds at UFC 264 should favor Poirier, McGregor has always proved he can beat the odds. I actually like McGregor’s odds against Chandler and Oliveira more than Poirier so him capturing the lightweight title is extremely possible should he win in July.

However, the 170 talk is where I take a step back. Conor McGregor is great for the UFC and business. However, I really think he should strongly consider staying at 155 pounds if he was to ever win the title again.

Kamaru Usman is a massive welterweight and with his improved striking, I don’t know how McGregor can defeat him. There are certainly welterweight matchups where McGregor could succeed, however, Kamaru Usman is not one of them.

At the end of the day, McGregor always aims for the highest of highs and you have to admire that. Whether his UFC claims are crazy or not, he’s always proven in the past that you should never doubt him. July is a massive test, but if he can win, the sky is truly the limit again for McGregor.

UFC: Justin Gaethje is now the odd man out at lightweight

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Last week, we learned that UFC 262 will be headlined by the vacant lightweight title fight between Michael Chandler and Charles Oliveira. The pairing was a little shocking considering neither of those two are the UFC‘s top two ranked lightweights.

The two top spots currently belong to Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje (22-3). Poirier is currently negotiating with the UFC and they are looking to book him in the trilogy fight with Conor McGregor in July.

With Poirier off the table, Gaethje is the top guy. Gaethje was the interim lightweight champion when he made the walk to face Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 254. The Highlight fell short, but he still maintains his top ranking.

In an interview that was posted this morning, Gaethje expressed his confusion with the turn of events. Gaethje said, “I can’t talk about it (the lightweight picture) right now. I’m sure me talking about it is the reason I’m here. Maybe I’ve pissed someone off.”

The UFC had been working on a matchup between Gaethje and Michael Chandler. However, once Khabib said he was staying retired, the promotion shifted gears and booked Chandler against Oliveira which doesn’t make sense.

What’s next for Justin Gaethje in the UFC?

I personally think it’s a little ridiculous that the UFC is crowning a new lightweight champion and neither one of those guys are ranked at the top of the division. It seems completely backwards and Justin Gaethje should be incredibly frustrated.

As mentioned, Gaethje was the former interim champion. Charles Oliveira has won eight fights in a row, but only one of those guys is inside the UFC’s top ten. Michael Chandler has had one fight inside the UFC and it was against someone outside the top five.

Neither one of those fighters are more deserving than Gaethje in my opinion. However, the UFC saw things differently. Now, what happens from here? Well, it appears that Gaethje is going to be on the sidelines for some time.

One fight for Gaethje would be against former lightweight champion, Rafael Dos Anjos (30-13). That would be the fight I’d try to make for Gaethje. However, there’s no guarantees that gets made. At the moment, Gaethje is stuck between a rock and a hard place with the UFC.