What martial arts does Charles Oliveira use in the UFC?

Brazilian UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira is known for his impressive displays inside the octagon. Here, he is best known as a submission specialist who excels in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. In fact, he’s also the holder for the record of the most ever submission wins in the UFC. However, there is more to his game than just BJJ. In this article, we shall assess what makes him tick and why he’s so successful.

Interestingly, Oliveira wasn’t as successful in his earlier UFC career. In fact, it wasn’t until an inspired switch to the lightweight class that saw him go on such a dominant run. In other words, Oliveira wasn’t always the record-breaking fighter that we know he is today. Because of this, we shall also be looking at his weaknesses too which is only fair.

Charles Oliveira is a BJJ expert

Historically, BJJ has always thrived in the UFC. In UFC, Royce Gracie won the grand prix representing BJJ and showing how effective it was on a global stage. Since then, submissions have generally lessened in MMA which may be due to a cultural shift, or to do with a change in rules and round lengths. Regardless, it’s fair to say that wrestling has also had its time in the spotlight since then.

However, in terms of BJJ, Charles Oliveira definitely bought it back and helped re-establish its dominance. Before his MMA career, Oliveira earned his black belt in BJJ and often trained and competed in the gi. This is fairly unheard of in MMA as most train without the gi. Arguably though, this helps learn how to escape better, as well as using certain grips to apply pressure. These days, he is a third-degree BJJ black belt, meaning he has been a black belt for at least 9 years.

In general, Oliveira mostly favors chokes rather than joint-lock submissions. Typically, this includes front-headlock chokes such as guillotines, anacondas, and darces which are all from the same family tree. What’s interesting about Oliveira though, is he has been submitted in the UFC. Against Jim Miller he was tapped by a kneebar and has also been guillotined twice. So, although he’s a great submission artist himself – his defense is not invincible against submissions either.

Charles Oliveira knows wrestling

Every modern MMA fighters have to learn wrestling. This is used both offensively and defensively at times by Oliveira who uses it to set up his BJJ. Put another way, he could have been the best ground fighter ever, but without having the tools to get there, then it would be useless. Over the years, Oliveira has established a reputation for having a great double leg takedown. Actually, a lot of people fascinate on his BJJ which takes the spotlight off his wrestling. However, it’s fair to say that his wrestling is still brilliant.

This means that if you fight Oliveira, there’s a good chance he’ll take you down. From there, he uses his BJJ to advance the position and end in submitting his opponent. Sound familiar? Although his style is slightly different, this is a tactic that was used for years by Khabib Nurmogmedov to great success. To beat Oliveira, you have to stand on your feet and trade punches, otherwise, you will lose. Put with his BJJ, Oliveira’s wrestling means he’s an incredibly well-versed grappler.

Charles Oliveira can use striking, but this is his main weakness

If Oliveira’s BJJ is a 10/10 in MMA terms, then you could say his striking is a 7/10. Whilst this is still solid and reliable, it’s not as good as his grappling. Because of this, most of his wins have come by getting punched. As mentioned, these days he’s far better on his feet than he used to, but he’s still more comfortable on the ground. When it comes to striking, Oliveira typically combines conventional boxing with kicks. Often, this could be described as kickboxing which is fair enough. Most of the time though, Oliveira will use his striking to set up takedowns which is where he’s at his best.

One example of his growth in striking is seen in his record. The deeper into his reign of UFC dominance the more wins Oliveira gained by using his hands. Sometimes, this would be from knockout which was unheard of in his earlier UFC career. This shows how he grew as a martial artist. At the same time, if we’re being hyper-critical – then it’s fair to say that he’s still labeled as a grappler by most.

How can you beat Charles Oliveira?

With all respect due, Oliveira’s record still isn’t perfect and he has lost a few times in his career. Typically, this is done by avoiding takedowns and avoiding his BJJ game. Whilst this is easier said than done, it’s probably the best route to victory. Imagine being about to avoid takedowns from Khabib. Suddenly, the fight would seem much easier.

In the past, some have had success by keeping Oliveira standing and out-wrestling him. As mentioned, some have also submitted Oliveira which suggests his BJJ is incredibly offensive but isn’t as good in defense as it is when attacking. What’s worth noting about Oliveira though, is that after his kill switch got flicked on, beating him became much harder than in the earlier days of his MMA career.

Summary

Undoubtedly, Oliveira’s biggest strength lies in his grappling. From here, he can easily take down greater strikers, put them in a bad spot and finish them. Having said this, one of the reasons for his success in recent times is down to learning striking. Too often in MMA, fighters neglect their weaknesses and suffer as a result. Oliveira actively worked on his weak spots and turned his career around as a result.

Still, it’s fair to say that Oliveira’s main style is grappling, and BJJ in particular. In a time when BJJ wasn’t quite as possible as it once was, Oliveira helped show that it was still effective at the top level in MMA. In short, Charles Do Bronx is arguably one of the best fighters the UFC has ever seen. More impressively, he earned this right by working tirelessly on improving his game.