UFC 274: Charles Oliveira stripped of lightweight title after failing to make weight

Charles Oliveira has been stripped of the UFC lightweight title after failing to make weight for his bout with Justin Gaethje at UFC 274.

Oliveira (32-8) came in a half-pound over the 155lb limit, meaning only Gaethje can win the title on Saturday night at the Footprint Center in Phoenix. However, if Oliveira wins, he will be the No 1 contender and get a shot at winning the title back in his next fight.

The fight against Gaethje will be the co-main event at UFC 274, along with Rose Namajunas’ strawweight title defence against former champion Carla Esparza.

Oliveira ran into trouble in his lightweight title fights against Michael Chandler and Dustin Poirier, rallying to beat both with a resolve that had been questioned earlier in his career. The Brazilian will likely need to dig deep again against Gaethje, one of the most aggressive fighters in any weight class.

“Listen, he’s a truck,” Oliveira said. “He only moves forward, I only move forward, so there’s definitely going to be collisions, definitely going to be a clash.”

Title fight or not, it promises to be a thrilling conclusion to a main card that also includes Chandler facing former champion Tony Ferguson, and Donald Cerrone squaring off against Joe Lauzon in what could potentially be the final fight in the career of “The Cowboy.”

The fight with Gaethje will be Oliveira’s second since taking the lightweight title from Chandler a year ago. Oliveira was wobbled by Chandler before knocking him out in the second round and had some similar shaky moments against Poirier in December before submitting him in the third round for his 10th straight win.

The wins seemed to allow Oliveira to shed his reputation as a frontrunner, but Gaethje (24-3) believes constant pressure can