Charles Oliveira had the perfect chance to land a lavish Conor McGregor payday at UFC 326. However, ‘Do Bronx’ may have shot himself in the foot by missing that opportunity at the T-Mobile Arena. The reason? An insider believes that the former lightweight champion’s own performance against Max Holloway might have cost him that break.

Although the Brazilian put on one of the best performances of his career against ‘Blessed’ at UFC 326, criticism still swirled as many felt Oliveira’s outing wasn’t very BMF-like, as he relied heavily on wrestling to win the belt. For that reason, prominent journalist and insider Ariel Helwani assumes the former 155-lb kingpin might not get the chance to clash with Conor McGregor in the future.

“They wanted to put Conor in a title fight and this is why John Kavanagh was talking about open weight classes, and this is why Conor was talking about the BMF very recently,” Helwani said in Uncrowned’s post-fight show. “I don’t know if they want to risk having him in there against someone who’s going to do that fight. And you know who I’m talking to, it’s Charles Oliveira, one of the most beloved fighters of all time,” he added.

After ‘The Notorious’ grand return at the UFC White House fell through, his comeback at International Fight Week picked up massive steam. Meanwhile, the BMF conversation also came into play after McGregor publicly called out the winner of UFC 326 for a future showdown. Well, everything seemed to be part of the plan, as many thought he might face Holloway at the event. But Oliveira’s victory, and how it happened, completely changed the script.

Honestly, McGregor facing Oliveira in a high-stakes matchup could sell an entire arena even without an undercard. If you can remember, the Irishman used a Brazilian mouthguard in the Dustin Poirier trilogy fight so he could call out ‘Do Bronxs’, who was champion at that time. So there’s history behind a potential fight between them as well. But now, the matchup could be a nightmare for the Irishman because of Oliveira’s wrestling-based approach.

As we know, ‘The Notorious’ isn’t known for having the best wrestling or takedown defense. So the Brazilian legend could use the same approach against McGregor to make it a one-sided affair once again, even at 170 lbs. In that case, ‘Do Bronxs’ using too many takedowns in his last fight may have ended up sabotaging a potential clash with the Irish star, as the UFC might not want to see the ‘Mac’ getting dominated like Holloway.

Now, as Helwani looks at this matchup with a bit of skepticism, there’s still a chance the fight could happen. And Charles Oliveira has already shared his thoughts not only on McGregor, but also on another stellar matchup.

Charles Oliveira fires back at Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz after UFC 326 victory

Following Charles Oliveira’s wrestling-heavy performance, Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz were very vocal about how the fight turned into a snoozefest. But immediately after his win, the Brazilian maestro reacted to the criticism, calling them out with even more firepower.

Without even flinching, Oliveira showed openness toward a possible clash with both superstars and apparently doesn’t care about the weight, place, or opponent. In fact, the BMF champ showed even more daringness by being open to a grand prix-style matchup where he could face each of them in a single night.

“If you want to put them at 170, if you want to put them up there, I don’t care,” Oliveira told the media at the post-fight presser. “If you want to put them at middleweight, we do it. It doesn’t matter. I’ll tell you what, if you want, make it a Grand Prix. Put two fights on the same day, see what happens.”

Although ‘Do Bronxs’ fight against Max Holloway might not have been very BMF-like, his callout definitely carried that bravado. But as he’s eyeing two top-of-the-line superstars, would the UFC actually make him face Nate Diaz if the Conor McGregor fight doesn’t happen? If so, then who would ‘The Notorious’ fight?

There seems to be some confusing matchmaking around the BMF belt. What do you think should be the next fight for Charles Oliveira? Let us know in the comments section below.