The UFC 326 main event didn’t play out in the violent fashion fight fans hoped, but Charles Oliveira did put on a dominant grappling performance to claimed the promotion’s symbolic “BMF” title.
Fans have come to expect barn-burners in BMF fights, with the belt originally created for Jorge Masvidal and Nate Diaz. When it was resurrected for Dustin Poirier vs. Justin Gaethje 2, the title found new life, and passed on to Max Holloway at UFC 300. Holloway became the first to successfully defend it, in Poirier’s retirement fight last year.
Now it belongs to Oliveira, who barely seemed to be in any danger in the UFC 326 main event, as he fought to a unanimous decision win.
What comes next for “Do Bronxs” gets interesting, as he’s ranked #3 at lightweight to Max Holloway’s #4. Ahead sits Arman Tsarukyan and Justin Gaethje; Gaethje, it was announced during Saturday’s broadcast, will challenge lightweight champ Ilia Topuria next.
With Arman Tsarukyan getting the cold shoulder from the UFC since pulling out of a title fight last year (and head butting Dan Hooker at weigh-ins, and getting into a brawl at RAF), there’s a good chance Oliveira can skip the line. What to do with the BMF belt, then? Retire it? Let Conor McGregor have a go at it, should he ever return?
Following UFC 326, tune in for the night’s post-fight press conference above!
