My wife said that guy is going to be a champion - Former opponent Jared Gordon revisits his loss to Charles Oliveira, heaps praise on 'do Bronx' for his rise to championship (Exclusive)

Jared Gordon has nothing but love and respect for his former opponent Charles Oliveira.

The 33-year-old recently recounted his 2019 loss to 'do Bronx' during an exclusive interview with Andrew Whitelaw of Sportskeeda MMA. Although Gordon suffered a brutal knockout loss to Oliveira, he has nothing negative to say about the former titleholder.

Gordon also revealed that his wife saw Oliveira's potential to become a world champion after their fight:

"That night after I fought him, my wife was there with me in Brazil," Gordon recalled. "She was like, 'That guy is gonna be a champion.' And you know, it was still five or six fights away from him winning the belt or whatever it was. He went through a gauntlet of guys before me and then after me. Super inspirational. He's amazing!"

Watch our exclusive interview with Jared Gordon:

Three fights later, Gordon's wife was proven right when Oliveira defeated Michael Chandler to become the new UFC lightweight champion. The Brazilian has since defeated fellow top 155-pounders Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje.

As far as Gordon is concerned, Oliveira's transformation from journeyman to champion is inspirational. 'Flash' will get the opportunity to follow in Oliveira's footsteps when he meets Leonardo Santos on the preliminary card of Saturday's UFC 278 pay-per-view.

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Charles Oliveira explains his comments about Islam Makhachev

Charles Oliveira and Islam Makhachev have traded fighting words ahead of their UFC 280 title clash in October.

A clip of the Brazilian calling Makhachev and his whole team arrogant went viral on social media. The former champion recently provided context to his comments during an interview with Flow Podcast:

"When I said their arrogance would get in their way. Of course, we have learned a lot in this sport. Many people talk a lot of nonsense to be able to sell, trying to reach the high level. But, I think [Makhachev's] riding a wave, that's not his wave. That's the truth. He's a guy who takes everyone down. I think his team need to strategize very well."

Watch the interview below:

Makhachev didn't take too kindly to Oliveira's comments, and responded to them during an episode of The DC & RC show. The Dagestani also vowed to make quick work of Oliveira, insisting that he isn't worried about his opponent's vaunted ground game.