Charles Oliveira uninterested in Arman Tsarukyan rematch fight next: ‘I want the title’
Charles Oliveira has admitted he is less than interested in a potential rematch with number one contender, Arman Tsarukyan — as he banks on a targeted title rematch with Islam Makhachev as soon as UFC 317 this summer.
Oliveira, who met with Armenian contender, Tsarukyan at UFC 300 last year, suffered a controversial split decision loss to the surging contender over the course of three rounds, in a pairing many pundits and fans scored for the Sao Paulo finisher.
And in the time since, however, Oliveira managed to return to winning-ways — fighting over the course of five rounds at UFC 309 last November at Madison Square Garden.
In the process, the Brazilian fan-favorite landed a unanimous decision win over Michael Chandler — adding to a prior knockout of the Missouri native in their first vacant title pairing at the beginning of 2021.
Charles Oliveira turns down Arman Tsarukyan rematch
However, hoping to prevent being looked past for the title shot next, amid the expected divisional move of soon-to-be former featherweight champion, Ilia Topuria, Oliveira has claimed he is laser-focused on a title rematch with Makhachev — rather than another title eliminator bout with Tsarukyan.
Not at this time,” Charles Oliveira said of his interest in a re-run with Arman Tsarukyan during an interview with Ariel Helwani for Uncrowned. “Like I said, I respect him. I respect his style, his fighting, but right now, I’m seeking the title. That’s the fight that I want. I want to fight for the title. That’s it.”
First fighting Makhachev back in 2022, Oliveira would suffer a second round arm-triangle submission loss to the Russian in the pair’s vacant title grudge match in Abu Dhabi. With the defeat, Oliveira saw his record-setting 11-fight winning run halted to boot.
