This weekend at UFC 289, former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira will face off with Beneil Dariush in the event’s co-headliner.
A victory for ‘Do Bronx’ could move him into line for a shot at the title that he lost to current champion Islam Makhachev last October.
However, if the Brazilian is feeling any pressure, his demeanour on the fourth episode of UFC 289 Embedded suggested otherwise.
After claiming to be “exceptionally ready” for the fight, Oliveira was asked about adjusting to a three-round fight rather than a five-round one. ‘Do Bronx’ had the following to say:
“There won’t be a third round. I’ll relentlessly hunt him. I’m only moving forward.”
Oliveira was then asked about why he hadn’t brought a boom box with him to the interview, and responded with the following:
“We’re a little quieter today. Sometimes the UFC gets mad at us. But rest assured, it will be back.”
Watch Charles Oliveira on UFC 289 embedded below.
While it’s hard to recall when ‘Do Bronx’ bought a boom box with him to a press conference or interview, it appears that his reference to being quieter may stem from his noisy nature before his fight with Makhachev at UFC 280.
Prior to the bout, Oliveira appeared at a media day with a huge entourage of teammates alongside him – all sporting bleached hair – apparently poking fun at Makhachev’s mention of his large team.
Watch footage of this below.
Charles Oliveira vs. Beneil Dariush: Will the winner definitely receive a lightweight title shot?
Given that former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira is ranked at No.1 in the UFC’s current rankings, and his opponent at UFC 289, Beneil Dariush is ranked at No.4, it would appear to make sense that the winner would receive a title shot.
However, as a fight between No.2. ranked Dustin Poirier and No.3 ranked Justin Gaethje has been announced for later this year, some fans have suggested that this may not be the case.
Despite this, Dariush seems confident that a win over ‘Do Bronx’ will definitely earn him a shot at champion Islam Makhachev.
After threatening to “possibly riot” if he were not given the shot with a win over Oliveira, the Iranian-born lightweight confirmed in a recent interview that the Gaethje-Poirier winner will not leapfrog him if he wins this weekend.
Watch Beneil Dariush talk about this below.
Interestingly, when Google AI was asked who would win the fight between Charles Oliveira and Beneil Dariush, it suggested that if the Iranian could take the fight to the ground, he would have a good chance of winning via decision.