When UFC LW contender Charles Oliveira defeated three men in one night
Former UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira seems to have been around for a long time now, but remarkably, the Brazilian is still only 33 years old.
By the time this summer rolls around, Oliveira will have spent 13 years with the UFC, making him one of the promotion’s most long-tenured fighters. However, his MMA career actually began two years before that.
At the age of just 18, Do Bronx fought in Brazil’s Predador FC promotion on March 15 2008, and came out on top in an eight-man welterweight tournament.
Footage of Oliveira’s victories, which stand as his first three professional MMA wins, has been posted to Twitter by user @Ocelot_MMA.
Charles Oliveira made his MMA debut at 18 years old
Won the Predador FC Welterweight Grand Prix
Defeating three men in one night https://t.co/Nilw1hebmh
While two of his opponents that night have largely stuck to the Brazilian regional scene, Viscardi Andrade, who Oliveira overcame via second round TKO, made his way to the UFC in 2013.
After starring on the second season of TUF: Brazil, Andrade went 3-1 in the octagon, defeating Bristol Marunde, Gasan Umalatov and Richard Walsh before departing in 2016.
As for Oliveira, after his three debut wins, he continued to claim victories, largely in Brazil, bringing his record to 12-0 before his UFC debut in 2010.
That debut saw him submit Darren Elkins, while he claimed his first bonus award for Submission of the Night in his second UFC fight against Efrain Escudero.
Charles Oliveira vs Efrain Escudero (Submission, rear-naked choke) https://t.co/0raERw5BKH
In the years that have followed, ‘Do Bronx’ has collected a further 19 wins in the octagon, taking his record there to 21-9 with one No Contest. His career arguably peaked with his lightweight title win over Michael Chandler in 2021.
@CharlesDoBronxs #UFC262OH MY GOODNESS!!!!!!!!
🇧🇷@CharlesDoBronxs #UFC262 https://t.co/g0lLQSi1lC
As of the time of writing, Charles Oliveira holds multiple UFC records, including the most submission wins (16), the most finishes (19) and the most Performance of the Night awards (12).
Who is Charles Oliveira fighting next?
The last time fans saw Charles Oliveira in action, he was defeated for the lightweight title by Islam Makhachev at UFC 280 last October.
‘Do Bronx’ was booked to fight Beneil Dariush in what would’ve been considered a #1 contender’s bout at UFC 288 next month. However, it was announced last week that the bout had been canceled due to Oliveira suffering an injury.
Thankfully, the promotion’s matchmakers seem determined to make this fight happen, as it has recently been reported that the bout is now set for UFC 289 in June.