Charles Oliveira knows what went wrong against Ilia Topuria earlier this summer.
Topuria and Oliveira headlined this year’s International Fight Week when they collided for the vacant lightweight title in the main event of UFC 317 back in June.
The former featherweight champion Ilia Topuria predicted a first-round knockout of Oliveira, and that’s exactly what happened on fight night as Topuria cracked the Brazilian’s chin early to win a second world title.
Post-fight, Oliveira said he’s never been hit harder in his career.
More than a month removed from the result, Oliveira has been booked to return in the headliner of UFC Rio against top-10 contender Rafael Fiziev.
Ahead of his next fight, Oliveira has reflected on his KO loss to Topuria.
Charles Oliveira wanted to ‘show off’ his power against Ilia Topuria
Prior to UFC 317, Oliveira had claimed he possessed more power than the heavy-handed Topuria.
Oliveira quickly found that not to be the case when standing and trading with ‘El Matador’, who ultimately beat him to the punch.
“My reflection is simple: sometimes we try to prove something we don’t need to prove,” Oliveira told Thunderpick.
“I had trained a lot of movement, calf kicks, one-twos, takedown entries, combos leading to high kicks — all that.
“But when the fight started, I just wanted to show off,” Oliveira revealed.
“I believed too much in my hands, in my knockout power. I kept waiting for the perfect moment to land, but he was way faster than me because I was standing there waiting for one shot. He was way quicker…
“His game plan worked better than mine. It was his night. His timing was better. His punch landed before mine. He deserves all the respect in the world—it was his moment.
“Meanwhile, I was waiting for something I shouldn’t have waited for,” Oliveira said.
The former champ continued.
“What should I have done? Moved. But I didn’t. I didn’t do anything I trained for. I just stood in front of him and paid the price. That’s why I went home, stayed close to my family, and went back to training. Because there’s still so much to prove, so much to do.
“I’ve been in the UFC for 15 years. I’d never been knocked out before — this was the first time. But I don’t need anyone to pick me up. It’s up to me. So, I’ve already gotten back up, and I’m moving forward. Like I said, that night is over. Now, it’s about the next one.”
Charles Oliveira’s quick turnaround at UFC Rio leaves room for concern
Oliveira was left unconscious in the main event of UFC 317 on June 28th.
‘Do Bronxs’ gets a pretty quick turnaround against Rafael Fiziev on Oct. 11, which is 105 days since the KO loss to Topuria.
We’ve seen other UFC stars try to bounce back from knockouts before, but it does not always bode well.
For example, UFC Featherweight Champion Alexander Volkanovski returned against Ilia Topuria four months after he lost via head kick to Islam Makhachev and was knocked out in the second round by Topuria.