After coming so close to another undisputed UFC lightweight title fight, Charles Oliveira will once again attempt to rebuild some momentum when he takes on Michael Chandler in a surprising rematch at UFC 309.
Back in April at UFC 300, Charles Oliveira came up ever so slightly short in a number one contender fight against the impressive Arman Tsarukyan.
With that, ‘Do Bronx’ has sat on the sidelines and heavily considered his next move, even hinting at potentially moving up to welterweight for a run at 170lbs.
Despite that, it was recently announced by UFC CEO Dana White, that the former lightweight champion will rematch the man he beat to win the vacant title in 2021, Michael Chandler.
Charles Oliveira comments on a potential fight against Conor McGregor
‘Iron’ Chandler has been sat out for two years waiting for his fight against Conor McGregor to happen, however, instead of waiting any longer, the 38-year-old decided to ask the UFC for another fight and he was afforded a rematch.
Although he has accepted another fight, Chandler is confident he will still be McGregor’s next fight and will still be the beneficiary of ‘The Notorious’ comeback.
However, with a win over Chandler at UFC 309 on November 16, Oliveira could find himself as the Irishman’s comeback opponent.
The 34-year-old is still hopeful that he can make it back to another title fight against either Islam Makhachev or the aforementioned Tsarukyan.
“Can you guarantee that if I beat Conor, I’ll be next in line? Because anyways the title fight will be between Tsarukyan and Islam, so I’ll have to wait anyways,” Oliveira told Laerte Viana.
“So why not make a lot of money with Conor, I’m the guy who sells a lot, he’s also a guy who sells so for sure we would break the PPV,” Oliveira continued.
Charles Oliveira comments on Chandler waiting for two years for Conor McGregor fight
The Brazilian fan favorite heads into UFC 309 with the activity advantage, considering Chandler hasn’t fought since 2022 when he was submitted by Dustin Poirier at UFC 281.
Commenting on ‘Iron’ Chandler’s decision to wait for the potential fight against McGregor, Oliveira claimed he couldn’t have waited that long without fighting.
“I’m not going to speak for him, I’m going to speak for myself, I don’t like to stay too long… If I stay still for too long without fighting, I feel like I don’t have a fight team.
“I don’t find myself, I like to fight, I talk a lot even to my students in the beginning when I fought in Jiu-Jitsu championships, it helped me a lot because I was on a fighting team… I feel like it’s not good for me if I don’t fight for a long time,” Oliveira added.
With Makhachev out until the first quarter of next year, with a win over Chandler at UFC 309, Oliveira could set up for a super-fight against McGregor while he waits for the champion to return and it’s a matchup UFC fans have been calling for.