A little over a month removed from his knockout loss at UFC 317, Charles Oliveira already has his next fight lined up. The former UFC champion will return to the cage on October 11 to face Rafael Fiziev in the main event of a UFC Fight Night in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the promotion announced on Thursday.
The 35-year-old Oliveira suffered a devastating knockout loss at the hands of UFC lightweight champ Ilia Topuria at the end of June, but soon after expressed his desire to return to action before the end of the year.
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This will mark the first time in over five years that Oliveira has competed on a UFC card that’s not a pay-per-view event. That outing — a submission win over Kevin Lee at a UFC Fight Night in March of 2020 — also marked the last time Oliveira fought in his home nation of Brazil.
Fiziev is coming off a unanimous decision win over Ignacio Bahamondes at a UFC on ABC event in June. That victory snapped a three-fight losing streak for Fiziev, who prior to that had won six straight fights in the UFC.
Despite the string of losses, Fiziev has been a fixture in the UFC lightweight rankings, thanks largely to his adept striking game. Two of the three defeats during his skid came against perennial contender Justin Gaethje, both in close fights. The other came against Mateusz Gamrot in a fight that saw Fiziev suffer a knee injury that kept him out of action for almost 18 months.
This pairing marks a notable step up in competition for Fiziev, who’s currently ranked no. 10 in the UFC’s own 155-pound rankings. It also gives him a chance against arguably the biggest name he’s ever faced in his career, as Oliveira still retains widespread popularity with fans even after losing three of his last five.
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The fight is also something of a risk for Oliveira, who’s currently ranked fourth at lightweight. He noted that the KO loss to Topuria was the first time in his career he felt he’d been truly knocked unconscious, leaving him with no memory of the ending of the fight. By the time he fights Fiziev in this headlining bout, he will be just slightly over three months removed from that knockout.
The UFC Rio event lineup is still being finalized, but it is also expected to feature heavyweight bouts including Vitor Petrino vs. Thomas Petersen, as well as Jhonata Diniz vs. Mario Pinto.
