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Rafael dos Anjos has asserted that Charles Oliveira will finish Dustin Poirier in their upcoming UFC lightweight title fight at UFC 269.
Speaking to RT Sport MMA, the former UFC lightweight champion opened up on a wide range of topics.The interviewer notably indicated that many believe Dustin Poirier will defeat Charles Oliveira.
He asked Rafael dos Anjos about this consensus in the MMA community and why Oliveira isn’t getting the deserved respect as a champion. RDA responded by stating:
“I don’t see this. I see Charles Oliveira finishing Dustin Poirier. If Charles is trying to exchange with him, he has a chance of losing that fight; a little chance cause he can get caught. But Poirier is not very hard to take down. It’s not very hard to take Poirier down. And I think Charles is going to manage to take him down. They’re gonna scramble, and Charles is gonna finish him. Because we see in the past, his submission, his ground game skills are not on the high level. He’s a good fighter, good stand-up fighter, but he’s not very good on the ground.”
The interviewer proceeded to point out that Charles Oliveira’s stand-up skills are underestimated and that the champion’s boxing is crisp. RDA replied by saying:
“And he’s in a good moment. And fighters is about the mindset. He got a good mindset right now. He’s coming back-to-back with a lot of wins, and it builds up your confidence. So, it’s good. I think Charles – with all due respect to Dustin – but he’s gonna go through him. I think Charles is gonna win; gonna keep the belt.”
Consequently, Rafael dos Anjos admitted that Dustin Poirier will certainly be the trickiest challenge for Charles Oliveira. He further added that he’s looking to return to the octagon in January or February 2022.
Watch RDA’s take on the Charles Oliveira vs. Dustin Poirier matchup in the video below:
Dustin Poirier has his sights set on lightweight gold, with a Conor McGregor grudge match looming on the horizon
Former interim UFC lightweight champion Dustin Poirier was unable to capture the undisputed UFC lightweight title back in 2019, losing to then-UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov in their title unification bout.
Regardless, Dustin Poirier has worked his way back into the title picture. Poirier is on a three-fight win streak and riding high on the momentum of back-to-back wins against Conor McGregor. The 32-year-old is scheduled to face reigning and undisputed UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira at UFC 269 on December 11th.
The winner of this fight is likely to defend the lightweight title against either Justin Gaethje or Islam Makhachev in 2022. Meanwhile, Dustin Poirier’s archrival – MMA megastar Conor McGregor – has consistently maintained that their rivalry is far from over.
‘The Notorious’ recently posted multiple tweets – indicating that he’ll return in mid-2022, beat Dustin Poirier and end their rivalry for good. Poirier currently leads their series of fights by a margin of 2-1.
