Jun 28, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Ilia Topuria (red gloves) fights Charles Oliveira (blue gloves) during UFC 317 at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

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Charles Oliveira Praises Ilia Topuria’s Power, Admits He Abandoned His Gameplan At UFC 317

Charles Oliveira gives his take on Ilia Topuria's power; reveals he ley go of his original gameplan at UFC 317!

Jun 28, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Ilia Topuria (red gloves) fights Charles Oliveira (blue gloves) during UFC 317 at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Charles Oliveira has seen it all in his long UFC career. The Brazilian submission specialist has faced some of the most dangerous strikers in two different weight classes. He has been dropped by heavy hitters like Justin Gaethje and Dustin Poirier. But somehow, he always found a way to bounce back and turn the fight around. That’s what made him such a fan favorite and eventually led him to the lightweight championship.

But at UFC 317, something different happened. Ilia Topuria didn’t just drop Oliveira; he completely shut his lights out. For the first time in his professional career, ‘Do Bronx’ was knocked out cold. The Georgian-Spanish fighter needed less than three minutes to claim the vacant lightweight title and hand Oliveira one of the most brutal defeats of his career. Now, as the dust settles from that shocking knockout, Oliveira is being brutally honest about what went wrong that night.

Charles Oliveira Reveals Ilia Topuria’s Massive Power

Oliveira didn’t mince words when talking about Topuria’s power. He has faced killers before, but this was something else entirely. Oliveira admitted in a recent interview with Ag.Fight that Topuria was the hardest hitter he had ever faced.

“Ilia is definitely the hardest hitter (I’ve ever faced).He’s the one who hit me the hardest. There’s no denying it. I’ve taken really hard hits from guys like Justin Gaethje, Dustin Poirier and Michael Chandler that only ended in a knockdown.”

Charles Oliveira says Ilia Topuria is the hardest hitter he's ever faced 😳

"Ilia is definitely the hardest hitter [I've ever faced]. He's the one who hit me the hardest. There's no denying it. I've taken really hard hits from guys like Justin Gaethje, Dustin Poirier, and… pic.twitter.com/IfK5YaJZdX
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) July 9, 2025

The Brazilian veteran knows what he’s talking about. He’s been in wars with some of the most feared strikers in the sport. Gaethje’s leg kicks have crumpled many fighters. Poirier’s boxing has ended careers. Michael Chandler’s explosive power has created highlight reels. All of these men have dropped Oliveira before, but none of them could finish the job completely.

Charles Oliveira Laments Abandoning Gameplan

What makes Oliveira’s loss even more frustrating is that he feels he never got to show what he trained for. The veteran fighter admits he completely abandoned his strategy once the fight started.

“I would change everything. Not in my training camp, but in the fight. Everything I trained, I didn’t put into practice. I didn’t do anything I trained…In reality, (the strategy) was to hit and get out, step on his knees, use hand sequences to be able to kick high to the head, maintain distance with my front kicks. I had trained a lot of calf kicks, a lot of knee stomps, not standing still. And then the fight started, I stood still, taking blows.”

Charles Oliveira on his performance against Ilia Topuria:

"I would change everything about my performance… Everything I trained, I didn't put it into practice. I didn't do anything I trained for…

The gameplan was to hit and get out, knee stomps, maintaining distance with my… pic.twitter.com/ewHZT0f7Qs
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) July 9, 2025

The Brazilian had spent months preparing a specific approach to deal with Topuria’s striking. But when the cage door closed, all of that preparation went out the window. Oliveira knows he had the tools to make the fight more competitive. He just couldn’t execute them when it mattered most. It’s the kind of mental mistake that can haunt a fighter for a long time.

(Image Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie – Imagn Images)

Charles Oliveira

Ilia Topuria

Zaid Quraishi

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I am a dedicated MMA and Boxing content writer at The Playoffs. I was instantly hooked on MMA after watching the fight between Lyoto Machida vs. Gegard Mousasi back in 2014, and since then, i have been an avid writer with a deep love for the sport and its techniques, providing readers with a thorough understanding of the sport. My favorite aspect of working at The Playoffs is the creative freedom it provides. The diverse range of topics, from listicles and SEO to news articles, keeps me engaged and motivates me to continuously improve my skills! I aim to capture the excitement of the combat sports world in my writing, acting as the middleman between fighters and their die-hard fans. It is kind of like a referee, but with words!