Charles Oliveira reiterates his desire to fight the winner of McGregor vs. Poirier II
Charles "Do Bronx" Oliveira asked the UFC for the winner of Conor McGregor vs. Dustin Poirier following his victory over Tony Ferguson in UFC 256. He reaffirmed his wish by answering a question from a fan on one of his social media accounts.
Asked if he would prefer to fight the winner of the aforementioned bout or an eventual fight between Justin Gaethje and Michael Chandler for the top position in the UFC lightweight rankings, Charles Oliveira was transparent.
"No doubts, the winner of Conor McGregor x Dustin Poirier."
In a dominant performance against Ferguson, Charles Oliveira showed signs that he deserves to be in the title shot discussion. Coming from eight victories, he currently sits in third place in the UFC lightweight rankings. Poirier is second, and McGregor is fourth.
Charles Oliveira expressed his intentions of facing the UFC 257 main event's winner right after his victory against Ferguson. If Khabib Nurmagomedov doesn't return from retirement, the UFC could be inclined to arrange an interim UFC lightweight championship bout.
"The boss (Dana White) already said whoever wins this fight will be in a great position to fight for the belt. When Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier fight in January, I am going to be watching them. I'm just going to wait and see who will fight me," said Oliveira after beating Ferguson.
Charles Oliveira referred to a speech from UFC president Dana White, where he said that the winner between Charles Oliveira and Ferguson could be considered a serious title contender in the lightweight division.
“Either guy that wins this fight could be in a title fight. Yeah.”
Charles Oliveira is waiting for the UFC 257 main event's winner
The UFC lightweight bout that will involve McGregor and Poirier will happen in the first UFC event next year, in UFC 257 on January 23, 2021.
Following several upsets during the year when one of the fighters tested positive for COVID-19 ahead of their bout, UFC president Dana White knows that an event as big as UFC 257 needs a backup plan.
Speaking to TSN's Aaron Bronstester, White stated that Chandler versus Gaethje could be the replacement fight for the UFC 257 main event, in case anything does not go according to plan.
If Chandler and Gaethje are really going to be linked up, then there is no other fight for Charles Oliveira that would make sense if not with the UFC 257 main event's winner.
A victory over McGregor or Poirier would put the Brazilian in a comfortable place for the title shot, or the UFC could even regard the bout to determine the interim lightweight titleholder.