5 times that UFC lightweight champ Charles Oliveira was destroyed inside the octagon

#4. Charles Oliveira vs. Donald Cerrone – UFC on Versus 5

Donald Cerrone became the first man to knock out Charles Oliveira in 2011

This fight could easily headline a UFC card these days. Charles Oliveira and Donald Cerrone were only considered prospects when they squared off on the main card of the UFC’s fifth event on the Versus network in 2011.

At the time, ‘Cowboy’ was bringing more momentum into the octagon than his Brazilian opponent. He was coming off a pair of excellent wins while Oliveira’s previous win had been turned into a No Contest due to an illegal knee.

Unfortunately for ‘Do Bronx’, it didn’t take long for Cerrone to impose his will in this fight, which lasted just over three minutes.

‘Cowboy’ looked far more comfortable on the feet than Oliveira in the early going. When he landed a straight left hand and followed with an uppercut to the body, ‘Do Bronx’ simply wilted.

He fell to the ground and began to cover up, and that was all the invitation Cerrone needed. He quickly dropped a series of unanswered punches down onto his opponent – forcing referee Mario Yamasaki to step in.

Oliveira had lost in the UFC before, but that defeat had come by submission. This was the first time he’d been stopped with strikes, and it was pretty brutal to witness.

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#3. Charles Oliveira vs. Ricardo Lamas – UFC Fight Night 98

Charles Oliveira was too confident on the ground for his own good in his fight with Ricardo Lamas

UFC Fight Night 98 saw Charles Oliveira face off against former UFC title challenger Ricardo Lamas in what sounded like an intriguing featherweight bout. Unfortunately for the future UFC lightweight king, it didn’t end too well for him.

This fight was simply a case of Oliveira – the most decorated submission artist in UFC history – getting too comfortable on the ground with an extremely dangerous foe.

Like a number of Oliveira’s losses, things didn’t start too badly for him. ‘Do Bronx’ was able to ground Lamas in the first round. While he took some heavy shots from ‘The Bully’, he also performed a number of dangerous submission attempts.

The second round appeared to be going the same way. Oliveira attempted an anaconda choke in the early going, only for Lamas to slip free and sweep his way into top position.

When ‘Do Bronx’ continued to hunt for a submission – leaving his neck open in the process – Lamas showed off his own grappling skills by snatching it up into a guillotine choke.

‘The Bully’ dropped backwards and pulled guard. Within seconds, Oliveira was forced to tap out.

‘Do Bronx’ has not lost another fight via submission since. This was a particularly devastating loss for him as it felt very much like he snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.