Islam Makhachev says Charles Oliveira has yet to be tested on the ground. Ex-champion Oliveira (33-8 MMA, 21-8 UFC) has finished Michael Chandler, Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje in title fights and will face Makhachev for the vacant lightweight belt in the UFC 280 main event on Oct. 22 in Abu Dhabi. While Makhachev (22-1 MMA, 11-1 UFC) knows Oliveira is a skilled fighter, he thinks past opponents weren’t competent enough on the ground to challenge him. “Everybody who says Dustin Poirier or Justin Gaethje or other guys – they’re old. They have money, these guys – they don’t want to challenge,” Makhachev said on ESPN’s “DC & RC.” “We have new blood – me, (Mateusz) Gamrot, Beneil Dariush
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