Charles Oliveira has been left searching for a replacement opponent for UFC Rio on October 11th, 2025 but he isn’t interested in letting Mateusz Gamrot step in. It’s obviously an important fight for Oliveira, as he was supposed to be headlining an event in his own country and it would have been the first time in 5 years that he’s been able to fight on home soil. That would be a special moment for any fighter but it was made even bigger by the fact that it was also his chance to right the ship by beating a top-ten opponent in Rafael Fiziev.
Fiziev was unfortunately forced to withdraw due to an undisclosed injury but with a little under a month left to go before UFC Rio, there should have been plenty of time to find another opponent. Things haven’t been going smoothly though and although some fighters have been calling Oliveira out, but according to him they’ve been turning down the fight when it comes time to sign:
“So far, every time the UFC calls, they say it’s not possible. Pathetic. You want to be famous? Go do something else. Don’t keep saying you want to fight me when that’s a lie.”
There is one man who’s more than up for the challenge though, as rising star Mateusz Gamrot has been campaigning for a fight with Charles Oliveira for over a year now and he thinks UFC Rio would be the ideal place to do it:
“Respect Charles (Oliveira) but I told UFC straight – I want to face you in your own house. This will be a true masterclass on the ground, and I’m ready to prove it.”
Oliveira actually addressed Gamrot as a potential opponent in a recent interview though, and he doesn’t want to have to change up his fight camp at the last minute. Oliveira’s been preparing for a striker all this time, whereas Gamrot is more of a grappler:
“Completely different from the style I’ve been preparing for. It’s a good style for me because of the wrestling and grappling part of it. But a completely different style from what I prepared for over a month, two months, you know?”
The full interview with Charles Oliveira where he turns down a short-notice fight with Mateusz Gamrot was uploaded to the official YouTube channel of Laerte Viana:
