Moments after HUGE Islam Makhachev vs Charles Oliveira rematch news, Team Khabib and UFC exec add to fans’ curiosity

The MMA world awaits a potential rematch between Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira, hinted at by Ariel Helwani for UFC 297. Manager Ali Abdelaziz contradicted the news.

Moments after HUGE Islam Makhachev vs Charles Oliveira rematch news, Team Khabib and UFC exec add to fans’ curiosity

Rumors swirling of Islam Makhachev vs Charles Oliveira with Ariel Helwani and Ali Abdelaziz commenting (Image via IMAGO, X/Ali AbdelAziz, Irish Fanboy)

Fans are eagerly anticipating the matchup between Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira. Rumors of the anticipated matchup are circulating due to a tweet from Ariel Helwani. Ali Abdelaziz, the manager of Islam Makhachev, has also tweeted in response.

Ariel Helwani recently tweeted about the Makhachev vs. Oliveira scheduled for January in Vancouver AT UFC 297. This is what Ariel Helwani tweeted.

The current plan - though not finalized just yet - is to have Islam Makhachev x Charles Oliveira 2 - headline UFC 297. That event, while not officially announced yet, is currently slated to Jan. 20 in Toronto.
Ariel Helwani via X.
YouTube video

Helwani’s tweet did not go unnoticed by Ali Abdelaziz, the head of Dominance MMA and manager of many Russian fighters, including Islam Makhachev. In response to Helwani, Abdelaziz put out a tweet contradicting Helwani. This is what Abdelaziz tweeted.

FS Video
Fake news @MAKHACHEVMMA fighting Charles Oliveira in January.
Ali Abdelaziz via X.

Makhachev and Oliveira fought for the vacant lightweight title at UFC 280, with the Russian winning via submission. UFC scheduled a rematch for them at UFC 294, but injuries forced Oliveira out, and Alexander Volkanovski stepped in on short notice to replace him. Dana White confirmed that Charles Oliveira would get the next title shot following UFC 294. However, officials have not yet confirmed the date.

UFC Senior VP for International Operations and Content clarifies the UFC’s plans for Islam Makhachev

Dana White was absent at UFC Sao Paulo, and David Shaw did the post-fight press conference on behalf of the UFC. Shaw is active on the media circuit when the UFC does events outside the US. During the presser, Shaw was asked about the UFC’s plans for Islam Makhachev. Shaw did not have specific information about the presumed matchup. However, he said what he knew about it.

David Shaw on Islam Makhachev fighting at UFC 297
David Shaw on Islam Makhachev fighting at UFC 297 (Image via: X/ Jed Goodman, Spinning Back Fist)

With Ariel Helwani and Ali Abdelaziz providing contradicting news of Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira headlining UFC 297, this is what David Shaw had to say at the presser:

So in the post-fight press conference when we were in Abu Dhabi i believe Dana said that Charles is next for Islam. He had also done an interview this week where he talked about it as well. So, i think the intention from Dana and the matchmakers is to make that fight. We dont have any confirmation yet and nor do we know a date. But you know we need some fights for the first few months of 2024. So, you'd know, I wouldn't imagine it far into the year.
David Shaw via UFC Sao Paulo post-fight press conference.

There is an official confirmation that Raquel Pennington and Mayra Bueno Silva will fight for the women’s bantamweight title at UFC 297. However, there is no official confirmation about the bout between Oliveira and Makhachev for the event. The original plan for the UFC was to headline UFC 297 with a featherweight clash between Ilia Topuria and Alexander Volkanovski. However, Oliveira pulling out of UFC 294 and Volkanovski replacing him halted the plan.

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