Charles Oliveira: ‘Legacy and History Have a New Name at Lightweight’ After UFC 269

Even in retirement, Khabib Nurmagomedov looms large over the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s lightweight division.

While Charles Oliveira has respect for the undefeated Dagestani, he believes his accomplishments have allowed him to escape the shadow of the former 155-pound title holder. Oliveira earned his 10th consecutive triumph in the UFC 269 headliner on Saturday, submitting Dustin Poirier with a rear-naked choke 62 seconds into the third round of their championship encounter at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

“[Khabib Nurmagomedov] was a great fighter, a great champion,” Oliveira said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “He had his history and his legacy, but he retired and now legacy and history have a new name at lightweight, and it’s Charles Oliveira.”

Despite entering UFC 269 as the defending champion, Oliveira was an underdog against Poirier, who turned down a title shot earlier this year in favor of a lucrative trilogy against Conor McGregor. That allowed Oliveira to claim the crown vacated by Nurmagomedov with a stoppage of Michael Chandler at UFC 262 in May.

At this point, “Do Bronx” isn’t concerned if he’ll receive the respect that he truly deserves. In back-to-back bouts against heavy-handed punchers, the Brazilian has absorbed some serious damage and recovered to earn victories.

“I don’t care,” Oliveira said. I don’t care what people think. I don’t care what they say. I mean, look at what they’ve been saying about me. So they say I can’t take hits. Look at what I’ve been doing. They say I quit. Look at what I’ve been doing. So I’m just going to continue to do what I do.”

Going forward, however, it appears that Oliveira will still have to earn some more respect as he heads into what will likely be his next title defense against Justin Gaethje.

“I saw a competitor tonight,” Gaethje said of Oliveira on the ESPN post-fight show. “I saw a dog and I can’t wait to break his face. He gets hit a lot.

“He better pray and hope for the next however many days until our fight that he takes me down, gets his choke. Because if not, we see what happens.”

It’s not the first time Gaethje has been somewhat dismissive of Oliveira’s heart. “Do Bronx” believes the results speak for themselves.

“I don’t care,” Oliveira said. “I come here and I do it. I’m not on the Internet. I’m not on Twitter. I’m not on Facebook trying to show people what’s going on. I’m here. I’m the champion.

“I have this belt. I’m going to keep defending it. I don’t care what people say. I’m going to do me.”