Beneil Dariush claims Charles Oliveira's lack of focus and motivation could've led to UFC 288 fight cancelation

Beneil Dariush has suggested that Charles Oliveira's lack of focus and motivation are what probably caused his UFC 288 withdrawal. Dariush was scheduled to face Oliveira in the co-headlining matchup at UFC 288 on May 6th, 2023. Many viewed it as a pivotal showdown that'll determine the next No.1 contender at lightweight.

However, Oliveira reportedly suffered a minor injury and withdrew from the fight. Speaking to The Schmo, Dariush has now indicated that Oliveira was supposed to face him a few years back but pulled out of their fight on two separate occasions.

Additionally, Beneil Dariush noted that the UFC 288 withdrawal marks the third time that Charles Oliveira has withdrawn from an expected fight against him. Furthermore, Dariush alluded to former UFC lightweight champion Oliveira getting a large back tattoo and attending UFC 284 in Australia earlier this year.

He highlighted that Oliveira seems to lack the motivation to train and fight, which is why he probably trained too hard to make up for lost time ahead of UFC 288 and injured himself. Dariush stated:

"When I was looking at him throughout this whole thing, I'm seeing him in like, Australia. I'm seeing him with big back tattoos. And I don't feel like he was as focused and motivated."

He added:

"And then you jump into camp, not focused, not motivated, and you're trying to push really hard to make up for lost time. So, injuries are more likely to happen. So, that's kind of what I was thinking. And just -- motivation is a big thing for fighters. If you're not motivated, man, it's hard to make it to the fight."

Catch Beneil Dariush's comments below (1:48):

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Potential timeline for the much-awaited Beneil Dariush vs. Charles Oliveira UFC matchup

In the same interview with The Schmo, Beneil Dariush revealed that the UFC is looking to reschedule his fight against Charles Oliveira to serve as the co-headlining matchup at UFC 289 on June 10th, 2023.

Dariush notably highlighted that he has agreed to face Oliveira at UFC 289:

"I said, 'Yeah, let's do it. Let's do June 10th.' So, I agreed to June 10th, and I got some kind of insurance just in case he pulls out." [8:37]

Beneil Dariush implied that he negotiated a pay raise with the UFC for agreeing to be rebooked against 'do Bronx' at UFC 289. He's also seemingly asked the UFC to grant him a lightweight title shot if Oliveira withdraws from their fight again.

As of this writing, the UFC hasn't officially announced the Dariush-Oliveira matchup for UFC 289.