Beneil Dariush won't call out Islam Makhachev if he wins against Charles Oliveira - Here's why
Beneil Dariush is not one of those people to call fighters out. "Earned, not given" is how featherweight king Alexander Volkanovski put it for such fighters, who'd rather compete in a fight than sell one.
Dariush expressed his frustrations in an interview with Submission Radio, where he phrased the whole act of calling someone out as "stupid." Here's what the No.4-ranked lightweight said:
"Bro, you know I work so hard to win that fight, why am I going to give my shine to him? I'm going to to give my shine to the people who help me win my fights. It's stupid - I find callouts [to be] like, 'Oh, please fight me', or whatever. It's like I know who helped me get to where I am, why am I going to waste my energy basically putting my shine - taking the shine that's on me and giving it to someone else."
Skip to 13:20 for Beneil Dariush on whether he would call Islam Makhachev out:
Beneil Dariush made it clear that he's not "begging for a title shot":
"I could care less. I've said it before and I'll say it again - I'm not begging for a title shot. If they [UFC] want to just keep putting guys in front of me, then I'll just keep chopping heads off."
Dariush is slated to face former divisional champion Charles Oliveira at UFC 288, in a possible title-contention eliminator fight. With a win over 'do Bronx', Dariush may most likely fight Islam Makhachev for the title next.
Charles Oliveira will fight Beneil Dariush at #UFC288 on May 6th. (first rep. @TheSchmo312 & @KOlmeneroMMA) #UFC #MMA #UFCESPN #UFC2023 https://t.co/RdgtYoO6fc
Beneil Dariush vs. Charles Oliveira: What are the odds? Who is favored to win?
Beneil Dariush is the betting favorite at -120 against Charles Oliveira, the +100 underdog at UFC 288. Dariush has been on a tear in the lightweight division and is on an 8-fight win streak, having beaten the likes of Drew Dober, Tony Ferguson, and most recently, Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 280.
The No.4-ranked Iranian-American fighter had a good showing against Gamrot where he negated the Polish fighter's grappling onslaught with superior scrambles. Now that he's been booked to fight Oliveira, with Islam Makhachev showcasing the blueprint to beat 'do Bronx', Dariush can pull of the win if he plays his cards right.
Top UFC lightweights will battle it out at UFC 288 on May 6 💥
UFC has not officially announced the bout, but Charles Oliveira referred to it as official on social media and sources told @bokamotoespn Beneil Dariush's side has agreed. https://t.co/up2uPIgkxH
Justin Gaethje, who was beaten by Oliveira, favored Dariush to win the fight. Here's what 'The Highlight' said:
"Beneil is not going to be scared of the ground game [of Charles Oliveira]. I think Beneil creates and causes a lot of damage. And if Oliveira goes down, he'll be unafraid to follow him to the ground, just like Makhachev did."
Mateuz Gamrot, ranked at No.7, who lost to Beneil Dariush at UFC 280 also picked Dariush to win by saying:
"Beneil Dariush deserves 200%, a title shot for sure. He has nice win-streak. He's [a] monster. Ge [gave] me [a] big lesson in my last fight, and my prediction is [that] he will finish Charles Oliveira before the time [runs out]."