Top UFC lightweight Charles Oliveira has been sending mixed messages over a prospective title fight with Conor McGregor.
The Irishman is currently out with a broken leg, while Oliveira is the champion in all but name after being stripped in May for missing weight. And despite McGregor coming off two losses and insisting that he will be moving up to welterweight for his octagon comeback, the Brazilian continues to offer him a world title fight for his old lightweight title.
However, he seems to have dramatically changed his tune in different interviews this week as he weighs up his options. At times he has insisted that he wants to fight McGregor for the money, but has also claimed that he wants to forget the Irishman and face the rightful top contender Islam Makhachev in his native Brazil.
Speaking at UFC 267 yesterday, he told the BT Sport social media channels: "Hey Conor, I want this fight, I know you want it so are you going to come or are you going to run? I know you're running, so I'm here. Are you going to sign the contract or not?"
But in a separate interview with Crash MMA, he painted a drastically different picture, seemingly looking to fight instead with Makhachev. He even suggested a venue, and argued that he would drag the Russian's pal Khabib Nurmagomedov out of retirement with a statement victory.
"I'm going to beat him," he said. "Listen, I will beat Islam Makhachev. The problem of this division is called Charles Oliveira. Forget Conor McGregor. Let's do it. Charles Oliveira vs. Islam Makhachev in Brazil.
"Charles Oliveira vs Islam Makhachev in Brazil. I will beat him, then who knows, maybe you [Nurmagomedov] come out of retirement to fight me. I'm going to beat Islam and call Khabib to come out."
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Oliveira has been a strong champion since taking the belt that was vacated by Nurmagomedov last year. The Russian had retired after beating Justin Gaethje at the request of his mother in October 2020, but was begged by the promotion to reconsider before the belt was finally put on the line the following May.
The Brazilian defeated Michael Chandler for the belt, and then defended twice within the following 12 months against Dustin Poirier and then Gaethje. But he missed weight by half-a-pound for the most recent defence, and despite comfortably beating his challenger he was stripped of the title.
However, there was controversy over the scale, and Oliveira is still considered the champion by almost everyone in the MMA world. His next defence has yet to be set, but he has indicated that he would like to face McGregor in a fight that would secure financial security for his family.
