Dana White says the UFC is ‘working on’ Charles Oliveira’s next fight
What is next for Charles Oliveira?
According to UFC President Dana White, the promotion is working on a fight for surging lightweight contender Charles “Do Bronx” Oliveira.
“We’re working on it right now,” White told Complex (H/T MMAFighting). “We’re working on it.”
The 31-year-old Brazilian scored a dominant victory over former interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson this past December. He was then offered a short notice bout against former Bellator titleholder Michael Chandler, which would’ve taken place this past weekend at UFC 258 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas had Oliveira accepted.
Obviously, that fight did not occur, as the offer came on too short of notice for “Do Bronx”. Recently speaking on that topic, White had no problem with the decision made by Oliveira.
“Was there an offer for Chandler to fight Oliveira?” White said. “Yeah, but to be fair to Oliveira, it was soon. We were just checking to see if those guys wanted a quick turnaround. Oliveira said I want a full camp, and there’s nothing wrong with that.”
Chandler would make a lot of sense as a potential next opponent for Oliveira. After spending the last decade in Bellator, the former Mizzou wrestling product made his long-awaited UFC debut at UFC 257 last month in Abu Dhabi, scoring a triumphant first-round stoppage victory over Dan Hooker.
In the stacked 155-pound division, it would seem as if a bout between Oliveira and Chandler remains a possibility. And White wants to be clear that the Brazilian didn’t turn down Chandler specifically. He simply couldn’t make the date the UFC was hoping for at the time of the offer.
“I don’t want to make it sound like, ‘Oliveira turned down Michael Chandler,’ because that’s not true,” White said. “What Oliveira turned down was a short-notice fight. If we could make it and pull it off, wanted to do it. If he wants a full camp, absolutely fair.”
Regardless of what’s next, Oliveira finds himself in a good spot. Since returning to lightweight in 2017, he’s gone 9-1 and has won eight consecutive bouts. Many argue that he’s deserving of a title shot right now. Fights against Chandler or Justin Gaethje are possible. Nate Diaz even called him out recently.
Whatever White and the UFC are working on for “Do Bronx”, it’s likely to be a big fight.
