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Charles Oliveira has officially announced his upcoming championship fight against Dustin Poirier, which is scheduled for December 11. Oliveira appears set to make his first lightweight title defense against 'The Diamond' at the UFC 269 pay-per-view.
Announcing the fight on his Instagram, Charles Oliveira wrote in the caption:
"Family now and for real let's defend what is ours on December 11th we will go to war and with faith in God the victory will be ours."
Charles Oliveira scored a spectacular second-round knockout win over Michael Chandler in the main event of UFC 262. The victory saw him capture the vacant UFC lightweight strap. 'Do Bronx' will be riding a nine-fight win streak into his first lightweight title defense, which is the longest active streak in the division.
Dustin Poirier has also confirmed the fight against Charles Oliveira
Dustin Poirier also recently confirmed that the bout against Charles Oliveira is now official. The 32-year-old Louisianan took to Twitter to announce the much-anticipated matchup.
ESPN later confirmed with Poirier's representatives that the bout was indeed scheduled for the end of the year. Poirier had previously passed a title shot against Charles Oliveira in favor of a trilogy fight against Conor McGregor. The former interim champ won the rubber matchup via TKO after the Irishman suffered a broken leg at the end of the first round.
Poirier harbors a lot of respect for his upcoming opponent. According to 'The Diamond', Charles Oliveira is similar to him in the fact that they both had a tough journey to the top. Poirier told media at the UFC Hall of Fame induction red carpet in Las Vegas:
“Charles Oliveira had a tough road, like me. He put in his work, he cut his teeth, he’s bled and clawed his way to being the world champion and he is the undisputed world champion, no doubt about it. I see a lot of hate and shade being thrown online. That’s never going to stop for anybody. But the guy has earned it. It’s inspiring to see guys like that, a guy like (Michael) Bisping, Charles Oliveira. If I can do it, I’ll put myself in the same category – guys who have been knocked down and climbed back up, never say die. Respect. I don’t know the guy personally, but I respect his journey to be world champion.”
