VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Dana White would like to see Charles Oliveira rematch UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev.
Oliveira (34-9 MMA, 22-9 UFC) finished Beneil Dariush (22-5-1 MMA, 16-5-1 UFC) by Round 1 TKO in this past Saturday’s UFC 289 co-main event at Rogers Arena.
Although Makhachev (24-1 MMA, 13-1 UFC) recently scored a dominant submission of Oliveira this past October at UFC 280, Oliveira’s performance was impressive enough for White to consider him one of the frontrunners in the title race.
“He looked like a world-beater tonight, and I’m excited for him and Islam to fight again,” White told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a post-fight news conference. “It’s the thing that makes sense. I’ll tell you on Tuesday. Let’s not play games: That fight makes sense. That’s the fight that should happen, and I’m excited to see it again.”
Makhachev didn’t seem too excited at the prospect of rematching Oliveira, and took a jab at “Do Bronx” after the fight. While White would like to see Makhachev and Oliveira run things back, he didn’t definitively say it’s happening next. Makhachev is projected to make his next title defense at UFC 294 on Oct. 22 in Abu Dhabi.
“There’s a lot of things that go into consideration for the next fight,” White said. “I’m sitting here talking to you about him right now, and I don’t even know what’s wrong with him. He’s in medicals. I don’t know where he’s at, I don’t know what he’s got planned over the summer. The list goes on and on of things that factor into how fights are made. But I’m just telling you right here right now it’s a fight I’d like to see again.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 289.
