Following his seventh win in a row, Charles Oliveira now has to be considered a legitimate contender in the UFC’s lightweight division.
Despite not having a crowd in attendance, Oliveira put on a performance worthy of a standing ovation after he snatched a nasty guillotine choke in the third round of his main event fight against Kevin Lee to wrap up his 14th career submission in the UFC. The end came at 28 seconds into the third round.
The finish not only moved Oliveira to 7-0 in his past seven fights but every one of those wins came by either knockout or submission, which makes his current streak that much more impressive.
With a lightweight title fight scheduled in April, Oliveira is hoping this latest win will catch the attention of both Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov.
“Tony Ferguson and Khabib, I’ll be sitting there first row,” Oliveira said following his win. “There’s no way to deny it, I’m one of the best in the world. I’m ready. The belt’s going to be mine.”
With the most submissions in UFC history already on his resume, Oliveira was quick to utilize a ground attack to try and catch Lee with a vast grappling arsenal. Oliveira made quick transitions from heel hooks to ankle locks and even a triangle choke but Lee found a way to escape each and every time.
In return, Lee did his best to make Oliveira pay with punches as he showed his superior wrestling and power. Unfortunately for Lee, he was struggling to keep up with the pace that Oliveira was setting and it served as a gut-check moment for his conditioning.
After eating some shots on the feet, Lee decided to turn back to his grappling as he took Oliveira to the ground where he began peppering away with punches from the top. While he showed good control, Lee still couldn’t do a lot of damage and that allowed Oliveira to get a second win before coming out for the finish in round three.
As Lee pressed forward once again, Oliveira saw an opening for a guillotine choke and he quickly wrapped his arm around the neck before falling to the ground to secure the submission. The flex in Oliveira’s arms told the story as Lee’s head was completely trapped with no chance of slipping free.
A few seconds later, Lee was furiously tapping the shoulder to signify the end of the fight.
JUST THAT QUICKLY! 👀
🇧🇷 Oliveira ends the night from #UFCBrasilia. pic.twitter.com/m8uJShU4kc
— UFC (@ufc) March 15, 2020
Once considered a top prospect at featherweight, Oliveira has now made serious waves at 155 pounds, especially with this win over a former interim title contender. While it’s doubtful he’s going to get the winner of Nurmagomedov vs. Ferguson, Oliveira definitely seems like he’s in line for a top five ranked opponent when he books his next fight in 2020.
