With UFC 288 Looming, Charles Oliveira Coach Hopes to Earn Makhachev Rematch

After relinquishing the lightweight crown to Islam Makhachev at UFC 280, Charles Oliveira is scheduled to return to the Octagon against Beneil Dariush at UFC 288.

Oliveira’s coach, Diego Lima, likes the matchup.

"That was the fight that made sense for us,” Lima said. “Dariush is coming from an impressive sequence and is a complete fighter. Good everywhere, just like Charles. I have no doubt it's going to be a great war that will not last three rounds.

While the fight with Dariush will be tough, the Chute Boxe leader still dreams about a rematch with Makhachev for Oliveira.

"Sooner or later that fight must happen,” he said. “Unfortunately that was not our night. Everything we planned didn’t work out, but Charles is training harder than ever and evolving everywhere. If that rematch happens, you can bet it will be a different fight. But the level in the UFC is really high. Let´s have one [battle at a time]. Our focus now is to beat Beneil.”

According to Lima, the title loss did not impact Oliveira’s standing with the fans.

"Charles was the second most-searched Brazilian athlete on Google in 2022,” Lima said. “If you imagine a year of the soccer World Cup and how popular soccer is in Brazil, that's just unbelievable. And the most impressive is that recognition is worldwide. We were expelled from a shopping mall in Abu Dhabi because Charles was ‘attacked’ by fans. Something similar happened in a shopping mall in Rio [de Janeiro] in the fight week of UFC [284].”

Even with Oliveira losing his belt, Lima has plenty of reason to celebrate the accomplishments of his athletes competing in the world’s largest MMA promotion.

"We are proving that a Brazilian fighter doesn't need to leave the country to be a top contender. Today I have 45 professional athletes, nine in the UFC. In our last six fights in the UFC we got four bonuses … That means we are on the right path and I’m sure 2023 will be an even better year.”