Former UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira is targeting a December return to the Octagon in his home country of Brazil.
Oliveira spoke with MMA Fighting's Guilherme Cruz on the latest episode of his podcast Trocação Franca following his first-round submission victory over former interim UFC lightweight champ, Justin Gaethje, in the headlining bout of UFC 274 this past weekend and explained why he wants to face the winner of a potential Islam Makhachev and Beneil Dariush matchup for the promotion's lightweight title in Brazil to end the year.
“I think the reality is, Makhachev has to fight Dariush first,” Oliveira said. “They both have to fight and then we’ll see who we’re fighting or not. Makhachev is super tough and deserves all the respect in the world. Dariush is also super tough and has a great team. It will be a great fight, so let them fight first and see what will happen down the line. Like I said, my focus now is going home and getting some rest, and my team will see who we’re fighting. I’ve never ran from a fight and never will. I’ll be there and I’ll be ready [to fight] whoever they put in there with me. Everyone I beat, I’ve made it pretty clear. I never let it go the distance, I always finish them. Makhachev and Dariush are the two guys I haven’t fought yet and they both have to make this fight happen. Maybe [the next contender] comes from this fight. The thing is, it makes no difference to me. I’ll be ready. The champion’s name is Charles Oliveira. I’ve asked to fight in December [in Brazil]. I deserve this. The Brazilian people deserve this. We deserve this, for this fight to be in Brazil. If it’s Sao Paulo, that’s 100 percent. But I would really like this fight to be in Brazil.”
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