Charles Oliveira hails Rani Yahya as a "wizard" after UFC Fight Night win against Kyung-Ho Kang

After Rani Yahya earned a unanimous decision victory against Kyung-Ho Kang at UFC Vegas 43, Charles Oliveira took to social media to laud his compatriot's grappling skills.

"Yahya is a wizard grappler," wrote Charles Oliveira on Twitter.

Although Kang outshined Yahya when it came to striking, the 37-year-old's efforts on the mats helped him get a win against the Korean.

While Kang managed to avoid Yahya's submission attempts, the Brazilian's superior grappling skills left a deep impact on the judges' minds, as was clear from the final result.

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Charles Oliveira is keeping his head down and training for a title defense

Ever since Dustin Poirier positioned himself as the next top contender for the lightweight gold, fans and pundits have focused on his future as champion and his potential title challengers.

The MMA faithful are seemingly underestimating 'Da Bronx' as he inches closer to his defense against Dustin Poirier at UFC 269. Poirier, on the other hand, has admitted that he is rather unwilling to dismiss Charles Oliveira as a legitimate threat in their upcoming bout.

Charles Oliveira, however, has remained relatively quiet throughout this time of tumult in the UFC lightweight division. In a post on social media, Oliveira declared that he was focused on getting his hand raised upon his return to the Octagon and tuning out the words of his detractors.

"let's work in silence while parrots are talking and screaming nonsense," wrote Charles Oliveira on Instagram.

Regardless of what anyone has to say, the lightweight scrap between Charles Oliveira and Dustin Poirier promises to be an absolute barnburner that will set the tone for the division's future. UFC 269 is slated to go down at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, on December 11th.

The card will also feature a fight between Amanda Nunes and Julianna Pena, with the women's bantamweight title hanging in the balance. The card is also set to host a fight between Sean O'Malley and Raulian Paiva as 'Sugar' looks to further bolster his record.