MMA fans were stunned this week as UFC announced the cancellation of the highly anticipated fight between Brazilian Charles Oliveira and Azerbaijani Rafael Fiziev, originally scheduled as the main event of UFC Rio on October 11.
The cancellation comes after Fiziev was forced to withdraw due to injury, leaving “do Bronx” searching for a new opponent to represent his colors at home in Brazil in the coming weeks.
This news comes after Oliveira’s crushing KO loss to Ilia Topuria, as the Brazilian, ranked fourth in the lightweight division, looks to bounce back and reclaim his momentum.
Meanwhile, French fighter Benoît Saint Denis, ranked 13th in the lightweight category, expressed interest in stepping in on short notice after securing his second consecutive victory via submission against Mauricio Ruffy at UFC Paris. BSD stated in a recent interview:
“I’m ready to step up. I’m even looking at Fiziev and Oliveira. If someone gets injured, I truly believe I can come back at my best: I want to fight as much as possible and win as much as possible.”
No official replacement has been announced yet by UFC, but fans eagerly await the next announcement to see who will face Oliveira in Rio, keeping the excitement alive until the event.
