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What hasn’t Charles Oliveira done in the UFC? He holds the all time submissions record in the UFC with 13. He’s also the all time leader in Performance of the Night bonuses with 9. When you sprinkle in his last 2 victories by KO & TKO he moved up to 2nd all time in finishes with 15. On top of all that he’s currently riding a 6 fight winning streak in arguably the toughest division in the UFC. Even with that impressive resume he’s the betting underdog when he faces Kevin Lee in the main event of UFC on ESPN+ 28 this Saturday in Brasilia, Brazil.
Charles “Do Bronx” Oliveira #13 (28-8) has a history of coming up short when facing highly ranked competition. He has losses to former UFC Champions Anthony Pettis, Max Holloway, and Frankie Edgar. He’s also lost to ranked fighters such as Paul Felder, Ricardo Llamas, and Cub Swanson. During his current 6 fight win streak none of the fighters he’s beaten was ranked in the top 15. He’ll get another opportunity at beating a ranked fighter this Saturday.
Kevin “The Motown Phenom” Lee (18-5) is currently ranked #8 in the UFC lightweight division. He’s coming off an impressive 1st round head kick KO over previously undefeated Gregor Gillespie back in November 2019. Prior to his win over Gillespie, Lee had lost 3 of his last 4 fights. A Lee victory over Oliveira would help him regain his previous status as a lightweight contender.
Charles Oliveira has been fighting in the UFC since 2010. With 25 UFC fights under his belt it’s amazing to think that he’s still only 30 years old. This is a make or break fight for him. With a victory over Lee he’d be on a 7 fight win streak and would be finally looked at as a contender in the crowded lightweight division. A loss to Lee however and he’d most likely drop out of the rankings. He’d still be known as an exciting fighter who couldn’t get over the hump with a top 10 ranked victory. Career paths will be decided this Saturday night in Brazil.
Anthony Sotelo for MMAInformed
