Any fighter in the midst of a losing streak will look for anyway to win, and in MMA it usually means a drop in weight. Former Lightweight UFC Champion Anthony Pettis has been winless since he dropped the belt to Rafael dos Anjos back inMarch of las year. Since that time he has come up short to current number one contender Eddie Alvarez and top Brazilian striker Edson Barbosa. Pets will make his debut at his new weight at UFC on Fox 21 in August. his first fight will come over another tough Brazilian, but this time it will be grappling ace Charles Oliveira.
At the age of 26, Oliveira has been in the UFC for six year and 15 fights already. He first came into the UFC as a Lightweight and after dropping some bouts came down to Featherweight as well. Now, he has had more wins than losses, but has also had some weight cutting issues. In fact in his last fight, a win, he could barely make 150 let alone 145. Still, the promotion lets him forge ahead. He has been on a hot streak as of late going 5-1 with submission victories in four of those five wins. His only loss has come to Max holloway who is currently riding a nine fight win streak.
These two will face off to see who can be a true contender in the division. Is Oliveira meant to be a gatekeeper only beating everyone who is truly unable to fight for the title? Has Pettis multiple injuries stunted the career of a once promising phenom? Only time will tell but this main event at UFC on Fox 21 will do a lot to show us who still has it and who amy be on a downslide despite both being relatively young for this sport.