The vacant UFC lightweight title will be up for grabs in UFC 262, as Charles Oliveira and Bellator legend Michael Chandler square off for the right to take home the division’s belt. In what should be a hotly contested fight, which between Oliveira and Chandler will become the newest king of the lightweight division? Check out our preview of this bout below.
The time has finally come for Oliveira to figure in a title fight. He surely deserves being in one at UFC 262 after putting together an impressive eight-fight win streak that started all the way back in 2018. He further cemented his status as among the top fighters in the lightweight division last December when he scored a unanimous decision win over former interim champion Tony Ferguson. Oliveira simply dominated Ferguson in that fight, as he landed 41 strikes to just 19 by his opponent and also recording three takedowns while avoiding takedown attempts by his opponent. Oliveira is aware of Chandler’s wrestling and jiu-jitsu skills, but he is confident that his own jiu-jitsu prowess is vastly superior. If the fight will be settled on the canvas, Oliveira should be able to handle things. After all, he has 19 submission wins against just three submission losses. He once had a four-fight span from 2018 to 2019 in which he won all bouts via submissions.
Chandler is a danger to any fighter with whom he crosses paths with. Especially now that he is on a three-fight undefeated streak. He won all those fights via knockouts in the first round, and those easily paint a picture of how dangerous Chandler is. He only has one fight in the UFC, which was a knockout win over Dan Hooker back in January, but he’s an accomplished fighter who was a legend in Bellator, where he won multiple belts. Among his victims there were Eddie Alvarez and Benson Henderson. In a recent interview, Chandler said that he will test Oliveira’s endurance, as he believed do Bronx has the tendency to slow down. He plans to use Oliveira’s aggressiveness to his advantage by picking his spots to land big shots and shoot for takedowns when the opportunity comes. Chandler has 10 wins via knockouts and seven via submissions. He has yet to be submitted in his MMA career.
