Charles Oliveira The “Do Bronx” - One of the Best Fighters in UFC History

Charles Oliveira, born on October 17, 1989, is a professional Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and mixed martial artist. He has earned multiple UFC records with the highest submission wins and finishes. He is the current UFC Lightweight Champion and #5 in the UFC Men’s Pound for Pound rankings.

A Dream of Becoming a Professional Fighter and Setbacks

Charles Oliviera was born in a poor family in the tourist town of Guaruja, São Paulo, Brazil.

He began playing football at the age of seven, with aspirations of becoming a professional player. However, when he was seven, he started feeling ill, experiencing constant aches in his body as well as difficulty walking. In some cases, he was unable to use his legs.

He was diagnosed with rheumatic fever and a heart murmur, both of which had a serious impact on his ankle. The doctor warned his family that he may become paraplegic if the condition continued.

Although Charles was faced with many obstacles, he was initiated into Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu by a neighbor named Paulo. Despite the fact that his family was on a tight budget, the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu gym instructor provided sessions for free as a part of a social initiative.

Oliveira’s family contributed to his training by selling roadside snacks and discarded cardboard to get money to pay for lessons .

Unfortunately, Paulo was killed when he was unlucky enough to be in the crossfire of a gunfight when Charles was 14 years old.

Charles Oliveria started training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under the tutelage of Roger Coehlo when he was 12 years old. He won his first major title as a white belt the following year.

In 2019, Charles received his black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under the instruction of Ericson Cardoso and Jorge “Macaco” Patino.

In 2007, Charles began his career, achieving a record of 12-0, which included five submissions and six knockouts. He also won multiple achievements in three separate tournaments on the same night.

Circuito Nacional de Vale-Tudo Amador

In the amateur MMA event, Circuito Nacional de Vale-Tudo Amador, Charles fought his first match with Rui Machado. Charles was successful in beating him with an armbar within 15 seconds of the first round.

Predator FC 9 - Welterweight Grand Prix

Charles made his first professional appearance in March 2008, at the Predator Fight Championship. It was a one-night tournament named “Predator FC 9 - Welterweight Grand Prix,” where the competitors had to fight three times.

In the first fight , Charles won against Jackson Pontes by applying a read-naked choke.

In the second bout , Charles fought against Viscardi Andrade and won via TKO punches.

In the final match , Charles faced Diego Braga and defeated him as well by a TKO in Round 1 of the bout.

In December 2008, at the first event of “Kawai Arena,” Charles debuted in the Lightweight Division by winning against Mehdi Baghdad, a future UFC fighter.

After competing in the Kawai Arena promotion, Charles joined another event, “Korea Fight,” where he won against Eien Silva and Daniel Fernandes.

Charles won against three competitors in a row, including Alexandre Bezerra, a Bellator veteran, and won another fight via split decision against Eduardo Pachu.

In 2010, Charles won twice in a single night once again by defeating Diego Battaglia via KO and Rosenildo Rocha via a rear-naked choke.

Charles Oliveira signed with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and made his first debut against Darren Elkins. Due to visa complications, this fight was originally set for The Ultimate Fighter:
Team Ritz vs. Team Liddell, but it was rescheduled for the UFC Live: Jones vs. Matyushenko.

About 42 seconds into Round 1, Charles subdued Elkins with an armbar. Charles was put down by Elkins early in the fight but he quickly recovered and attempted a triangle choke before moving to an armbar, forcing his opponent to tap out.

He was awarded the Submission of the Night award for his constant hard work.

The following night at UFC Fight Night 22, Charles fought against Efrain Escudero. Charles applied a standing rear-naked choke in Round 3 and defeated Efrain Escudero, taking the title.

Charles had won the Submission of the Night award two times in a row in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

In December 2010, at UFC 124, Charles went down against Jim Miller. Charles was swiftly brought down via kneebar in Round 1. It was Charle’s first loss of his professional wrestling career.

In June 2011, Charles competed against Nik Lentz at UFC Live: Kongi vs. Bary. The fight came to an end in Round 2 when Charles hit Nik with an illegal knee that went unnoticed by the referee and the dazed Nik Lentz was subdued by a rear-naked choke.

The Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission overturned the decision and declared the match a no-contest after investigating the incident.

Both fighters were awarded Fight of the Night awards for their back and forth action.

In November 2011, at the UFC 138 main event, Charles was expected to face Joe Lauzon.

Charles, who was filling in for an injured Paul Taylor at UFC on Versus 5, instead faced Donald Cerrone in August 2011. He was knocked out in Round 1 by TKO within three minutes of the round.

Charles’s trainer stated that after going 0-2-1 NC in his last three fights, Charles intended to move down to the Featherweight Division to better his chances of winning.

In January 2012, Charles faced a promotional newcomer, Eric Wisely, in the Featherweight Division. Charles subdued his opponent with a reverse calf slicer submission in Round 1.

In June 2012, at the Ahead of The Ultimate Fighter 16 Finale, Charles fought with Jonathan Brookins. He used his speed to outstrike Brookins and eventually won the fight by an anaconda choke in Round 2.

In September 2012, at the UFC 152 main event, Charles fought Cub Swanson. Cub began hitting Charles with body shots early in Round 1, which appeared to be hurting the Brazilian fighter. Immediately after, Cub connected with an overhand right, knocking Charles to the ground and earning Swanson a knockout victory.

In July 2013, at UFC 162, Charles competed against Frankie Edgar and was defeated via decision. Both fighters were awarded Fight of the Night awards for their outstanding performances in the ring.

At UFC 166 in October 2013, Charles was scheduled to fight against Estevan Payan.

Estevan was forced to withdraw from the fight due to a broken foot and was replaced by Jeremy Larsen. Charles then withdrew from the Estevan fight scheduled for October due to a strained thigh muscle.

In February 2014, at UFC Fight Night 36 in LA, Charles fought against Andy Ogle. In Round 3, Charles was successful in subduing his opponent with a triangle choke submission. In addition to the victory, he received one of the first UFC “Performance of the Night” bonus awards.

In September 2014, at UFC Fight Night 50, Charles was expected to fight Nik Lentz in a rematch.

Charles weighed in at 150 pounds, which exceeded the 146-pound featherweight limit set for the competition. He was subsequently forced to share 20 percent of his cut with his opponent and the fight was changed to a catchweight contest.

Unfortunately, Charles was forced to withdraw on the day of the fight after becoming ill as a result of the effects of the weight loss process.

In December 2014, at the Ultimate Fighter 20, Charles was pitted against Jeremy Stephens. He was successful in the fight, winning via unanimous decision.

In May 2015, at UFC Fight Night 67, Charles defeated Nik Lentz. In Round 3, Charles subdued Nik with a guillotine choke submission after two rounds of back-and-forth. Charles earned his third “Performance of the Night” bonus as a result of the victory.

In August 2015, at UFC Fight Night 74, Charles fought against Max Holloway.

He was unable to continue the fight after suffering an apparent neck/shoulder injury while attempting a takedown in Round 1.

Even though Charles was released from a Saskatoon hospital the following day with no signs of major chest, neck, or throat injuries, the injury was later described as a micro-tear in his esophagus. Later, he revealed that he had suffered a minor neck injury as a result of a previous injury sustained during his training camp. He did not require any surgical intervention.

In December 2015, on Fox 17, Charles competed against Myles Jury. Charles failed to meet the weight requirement for the fight, which was subsequently contested at a catchweight due to Charles’s previous failure to cut weight in his UFC career. Charles was successful via submission in Round 1 of the fight.

In August 2016, at UFC on Fox 21, Charles's next fight was with Anthony Pettis.

In Round 3, Anthony won the match by subduing Charles with a guillotine choke after a grueling back-and-forth fight with his opponent.

In November 2016, in the Ultimate Fighter Latin America 3 Finale, Charles fought against Ricardo Lamas. The fight was contested at a catchweight of 155 lbs because Charles was nearly 10 lbs underweight when it started. Ricardo won the match via submission in Round 2.

In April 2017, at UFC 210, Charles fought Will Brooks. Charles won the bout via a rear-naked choke in Round 1.

He was given a “Performance of the Night” bonus.

In December 2017, at UFC 218, Charles faced Paul Felder. Charles lost the bout by TKO in Round 2 after Paul struck Charles’s guard with multiple elbow strikes.

At UFC 225, Charles competed against Clay Guida as a replacement for the injured Bobby Green. His guillotine choke submission victory in the first round earned him the victory.

With the victory, he earned his fifth “Performance of the Night” award.

In September 2018, at UFC Fight Night 137, Charles took on returning veteran Christos Giagos in a rematch.

During Round 2, Charles subdued Christos to win the fight. With this victory, Charles surpassed Royce Gracie in terms of the number of submission victories in the history of the UFC. This victory also earned him his sixth “Performance of the Night” award.

In December 2018, at UFC on Fox 31, Charles fought Jim Miller in a rematch for the second time.

Early in Round 1, Charles subdued Jim with a rear-naked choke submission to win the fight. With his constant successful matches, Charles earned his seventh “Performance of the Night” reward. He set a new UFC record and also extended his record for most submissions in UFC history to 12 submissions.

In February 2019, at UFC Fight Night 144, Charles fought David Teymur. In Round 2, Charles won the bout after landing several punches on David, an upward elbow, and an anaconda choke. This win earned him another “Performance of the Night” award. With this win, Charles Oliveira’s UFC record went up to 13 submission wins.

In May 2019, at UFC Fight Night 152, Charles fought against Nik Lentz. Charles won the bout via TKO in Round 2.

In November 2019, at UFC Fight Night 164, Charles fought with Jared Gordon. Charles dominated the bout via KO in Round 1 which earned him another Performance of the Night.

In March 2020, at the main event of UFC Fight Night 170, Charles fought Kevin Lee. Kevin over-weighed at 158.5 lbs, exceeding the lightweight non-title limit of 156 pounds. Kevin was fined 20% of his share from the fight with Charles. The fight was scheduled to be a catchweight match.

Charles was successful in the fight against Kevin via submission with a guillotine choke in Round 3.

This fight won him the “Performance of the Night” award again for the eighth time.

Charles now extended his UFC record for the 14th time, the most submissions that earned him a second place in bonuses. He extended his streak by seven , which marks the highest active finishing streak.

In December 2020, at UFC 256, Charles fought Tony Ferguson. Charles applied an armbar where Tony almost got his arm broken by Charles until he was saved by round ending. After three rounds, Charles won the bout by unanimous decision. It was his first success by decision against Jeremey Stephens in 2014 and earned him his 11th Performance of the Night award.

In May 2021, at UFC 262, Charles fought Micheal Chandler, former three-time Bellator Lightweight Champion. Round 1 of the match was dominated by Micheal Chandler.

In Round 2, Chandler won the fight via TKO and claimed the UFC Lightweight Championship. From this knockout success, Charles made another record in UFC history by securing the most finishes. This fight earned him one more “Performance of the Night” bonus award.

In December 2021, at UFC 269, Charles fought Dustin Poirier and won by applying a choke. He retained his UFC lightweight title with a submission win over Dustin in Round 3.

In May 2022, at UFC 274, Charles is well-set to make his second title defense against his opponent Justin Gaethje, UFC Interim Lightweight Champion.

Charles Oliveira’s Championships and Accomplishments 

Mixed Martial Arts

Predator FC

• Welterweight Grand Prix Champion

Ultimate Fighting Championship

• UFC Lightweight Championship (One time, current)
• One successful title defense
• 18 Finishes in UFC history
• 15 Submission wins in UFC history
• 9 Submission wins in the UFC Lightweight division history
• 6 Submission wins in the UFC Featherweight division history
• 18 Post Fight bonuses in UFC history
• 12x Performance of the Night awards in UFC history
• 12x Performance of the Night
• 3x Submission of the Night
• 3x Fight of the Night
• Submission of the Year (2014)
• Seventh highest finishes-per-win percentage in UFC history (18 finishes / 20 wins: 90%)
• Fourth highest submissions-per-win percentage in UFC history (15 submissions / 20 wins: 75%)

• Most Submission Wins in the History of UFC
• Most Finishes in the History of UFC
• He is ranked #5 for Most UFC Wins
• He has the third longest win steak in UFC Lightweight Division
• One-time UFC Lightweight Champion

• One-time Welterweight Grand Prix Champion
  
  

• He won “Performance of the Night Award” twelve times.
• He won “Submission of the Night Award” three times.
• He won “Fight of the Night Award” three times.
• Worldwide MMA Rankings

Charles Oliveira is an active player with his next fight scheduled at UFC 274.

Photo credit: @charlesdobronxs