UFC lightweight Beneil Dariush has threatened to riot if he is not given a title shot with a win over Charles Oliveira at the upcoming pay-per-view.
Riding an eight-fight winning streak, Dariush is gearing up for the biggest fight of his career against the former UFC lightweight champion Oliveira. The two are set to lock horns at UFC 289 in Vancouver, Canada, this Saturday, in a bout with huge title implications.
Beneil Dariush recently revealed that the UFC has given him their word that the winner will indeed become the No.1 contender and fight for the title next. If the UFC fails to honor their word, he is threatening to "riot."
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Dariush had this to say in an interview with MMA Fighting:
“UFC is not the type to often give their word, Before I fought Mateusz [Gamrot], I had a feeling they weren’t going to give me the title shot, so I said, ‘Hey, if I beat this guy, I get a title shot right?’ They said, ‘We don’t know,’ basically.
He added:
“This time when I was talking to them, they said if I beat Charles Oliveira, I am the No. 1 contender. It’s not often they give me their word. This time they did. I’m going to take them at their word if it’s not so, I’m going to take Justin Gaethje’s advice and possibly riot.”
Lightweight champion Islam Makhachev is expected to return to action at UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi later this year, slated for October. While the Charles Oliveira vs. Beneil Dariush bout appears to be a title eliminator, UFC 291's BMF title fight between Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje is a massive fight in the lightweight division as well.
Beneil Dariush foresees "domination" against Charles Oliveira
Beneil Dariush has given a bold prediction for his upcoming fight against Charles Oliveira. Oliveira was last seen in action back in October last year against Islam Makhachev. Going into the fight, the Brazilian was undefeated in his last ten outings, however, he ended up losing to Makhachev via submission.
While Oliveira would be hoping to return to title contention this weekend, Dariush is looking to stake his claim to his maiden championship opportunity. Speaking about his UFC 289 clash against 'do Bronx', Dariush had this to say in a recent interview with MMA Junkie:
“Personally, the way I see it is domination. I plan on dominating this fight. I want to remind people. because I think my last fight was kind of close. The fight will be an absolute domination, is what it’s going to be. I will do what I plan to do, and there’s nothing he can do to stop it. That’s what I hope for.”
Catch Beneil Dariush's comments below (19:27):