Charles Oliveira’s long-held wish of fighting either Conor McGregor or Michael Chandler is finally coming true as he is set to fight ‘Iron’ in the co-main event at UFC 309. ‘Do Bronx’ had offered himself as a backup for the UFC 303 fight between ‘The Notorious’ and Chandler but ultimately that fight fell through. However, now it’s finally time for Oliveira to fight his desired opponent. 

Interestingly, a new contender has stepped up as a potential backup, creating a sense of déjà vu reminiscent of UFC 303. The flamboyant Brazilian lightweight star Renato Moicano has declared his readiness to serve as the backup if either Oliveira or Chandler has to withdraw at the last minute.

Moicano took to X, stating, “Chandler or Charles out? Call me I fight in 10 days! Time is money.” This co-main event between the former lightweight champion Oliveira and former title challenger Chandler holds high stakes, as both fighters aim to rebound after recent setbacks in their careers.

Meanwhile, the American Top Team fighter offered himself again to help out Dana White with a replacement and the boss might consider this because Moicano has already impressed him. How? The fighter with a 20-5 record beat Benoit Saint-Denis at UFC Fight Night: Moicano vs. Saint-Denis with an amazing performance despite suffering an injury before the event.

He had a shoulder fracture with which he had competed and this stunt was even spoken about by the boss. He revealed his thoughts on this and why Moicano was lucky that nothing major had happened.

Dana White revealed Renato Moicano’s incredible luck

Dana White, during a Contender Series post-fight press conference, the UFC CEO spoke about the injury. He said that it was unbelievable to see the Brazilian win despite the injury. However, he was lucky to be unscathed more or less.

According to Dana White, if the doctor had gone to Moicano’s corner and saw his shoulder injury, the fighter might’ve lost his bout to Benoit Saint-Denis. He said, “Yeah, I mean, it was incredible. What he was able to do with that injury, yeah. And sitting in the corner was never even a concern. It’s not even like they were, you know… Yeah. And they’re lucky. Because if Saint-Denis looked like that and the doctor went to the other side, fight’s off.”

Moicano’s four consecutive wins have propelled him into the top 10 lightweight rankings under the UFC’s updated ranking system, adding weight to his case as a worthy backup fighter. So do you think if Moicano requested enough, Dana White would listen to him and take him as the backup at UFC 309?

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