Charles Oliveira makes astonishing admission about Ilia Topuria fight at UFC 317: "There's no denying it"

Charles Oliveira made a confession following his UFC 317 showdown against Ilia Topuria. He acknowledged Topuria as the hardest hitter he has ever faced in his career.

'El Matador' defeated Oliveira with an opening-round knockout to become the new lightweight champion at UFC 317. Although Oliveira has previously secured statement victories against notable punchers like Justin Gaethje and Dustin Poirier, he remarked that being hit by Topuria was a new experience for him.

In a recent interview with Ag. Fight, 'do Bronx' lauded the Georgian-Spaniard, saying:

"Ilia is definitely the hardest hitter [I've ever faced]. He's the one who hit me the hardest. There's no denying it. I've taken really hard hits from guys like Justin Gaethje, Dustin Poirier, and Michael Chandler that only ended in a knockdown."

He added:

"I've never been knocked out before. I've been knocked down by punches, but this time I got knocked out. It was something new for me. I didn't know what had happened." [H/t: MMA Junkie]

Check out the full interview below:

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Charles Oliveira eyes Max Holloway fight next

Charles Oliveira is currently 3-3 in his last six UFC fights. After his defeat to Ilia Topuria, he is looking to return to the octagon at the end of the year.

In the aforementioned interview, Oliveira expressed his desire to face the reigning BMF champion, Max Holloway, in his next fight. Suggesting that November would be ideal for their potential matchup, he said:

"[Holloway] will fight in July, I fought in June – I think November would be the time. It would be a great fight. He said he would fight too, so why not?"

Check out Charles Oliveira's comments below (via @ChampRDS on X):

Holloway last suffered a defeat against 'El Matador' at UFC 308. He is currently scheduled to defend his BMF belt against Dustin Poirier at UFC 318 on July 19 in what will be 'The Diamond's' retirement fight.