UFC 317 headliner Charles Oliveira proved many wrong with his incredible winning streak between 2018 and 2022.
Oliveira mounted one of the best career resurgences ever seen in the UFC when he followed a 10-8 stint in the Octagon with a remarkable run of victories that spanned 11 fights over four years.
The culmination of his once-unlikely success came at UFC 262, where Oliveira knocked out Michael Chandler in a memorable come-from-behind win to claim the then-vacant lightweight gold.
But while ‘Do Bronx’ followed that with a successful title defense against Dustin Poirier and first-round submission win over Justin Gaethje, there were surprisingly still some not on board the Oliveira train.
Chael Sonnen didn’t ‘believe’ in Charles Oliveira until UFC 300
Among the most publicly vocal critics of Oliveira across recent years has been former two-division UFC title challenger Chael Sonnen, who simply did not understand ‘Do Bronx’.
But as Oliveira gears up to face Ilia Topuria at UFC 317 this Saturday, Sonnen admitted in a YouTube video that he is finally a “believer” in the former lightweight king.
Rather than that being down to one of the Brazilian’s many impressive victories, though, ‘The Bad Guy’ revealed that a defeat surprisingly did the trick.
“You guys love Charles Oliveira,” Sonnen said. “I’ve gotta tell you, I’m onboard. I love Charles Oliveira.
“I used to have fights. I used to have these knockdown drag-outs over text message with Gabriel Checco…he would not let up, he’s like, ‘You’re not understanding this, you’ve gotta give this another look!’ I was giving Charles a hard time.
“I couldn’t understand Charles. He showed up sometimes with glasses on like he’s Clark Kent, he’s changing his hair; sometimes he’s blonde, sometimes he’s not,” Sonnen added. “I remember these things and critiques I would give on Charles.
“I saw Charles fight and I was right up close…but it changed everything. Seeing Charles that close — by the way, it was a fight that Charles lost — I came out of that and I got it. I totally got it. It was against (Arman) Tsarukyan and Charles was trying to win the whole time…he never quit.
“I left there a Charles fan, but I also left there a Charles believer.”
Oliveira suffered a close decision loss to Tsarukyan at UFC 300 in April 2024. To this day, the Brazilian believes he should have been awarded the victory.
Charles Oliveira has more doubters to prove wrong at UFC 317
Sonnen is far from the only doubter whose mind Oliveira has been able to turn with his performances. And the Brazilian now has the chance to add a few more to the list on June 28.
Oliveira will enter his second chance at regaining the UFC lightweight title as a significant underdog against Topuria, despite his credentials and advantage in both size and experience at 155 pounds.
But ‘Do Bronx’ has never let odds get in the way of having high confidence in his abilities, a mental fortitude that paved the way for his incredible 11-fight winning run.
After exchanging wins and losses across his last four fights, Oliveira will look to get back to the kind of consistent form that saw him break records, starting against ‘El Matador’ at UFC 317.