Charles Oliveira has a tough test for his latest homecoming.
The UFC announced Thursday that the former lightweight champion is set to fight Rafael Fiziev (13-4) in the main event of UFC Rio, which takes place at Farmasi Arena in Rio de Janeiro on Oct. 11. The matchup was first reported by Laerte Viana.
Oliveira (35-11, 1 NC) competes in his home country for the first time since March 2020, when he submitted Kevin Lee in a Fight Night headlining bout in Brasilia, Brazil. “Do Bronx” had a chance to regain the lightweight title this past June at UFC 317 when he battled Ilia Topuria for a vacant belt, but was knocked out in the opening round by the undefeated Topuria. The 35-year-old has alternated wins and losses in his past six bouts.
Standing opposite Oliveira on Oct. 11 is Fiziev, who recently snapped a three-fight skid with a unanimous decision win over Ignacio Bahamondes in his home country of Azerbaijan in June. Fiziev was on a six-fight win streak when he dropped a majority decision to Justin Gaethje at UFC 286, then suffered a costly knee injury in his next fight against Mateusz Gamrot. That injury sidelined Fiziev for almost 18 months and he returned at UFC 313, where he was again defeated by Gaethje.
Three other bouts have been confirmed for UFC Rio, a bantamweight bout featuring the debut of 10-time jiu-jitsu world champion and ADCC gold medalist Bia Mesquita as she faces Irina Alekseeva, and a pair of heavyweight bouts between Vitor Petrino and Thomas Petersen, and Jhonata Diniz and Mario Pinto.
