This past Saturday, Charles Oliveira got back in the win column in a big way, submitting Mateusz Gamrot in the main event of UFC Rio. It was a reminder that while “Do Bronx” may not be the best lightweight
in the world anymore, he’s still pretty damn good. On top of that, it was another brick in Oliveira’s Hall of Fame resume, which only gets stronger as the years go on.
So in this week’s mailbag, let’s talk Oliveira historically, plus a few other random tidbits.
Charles Oliveira or B.J. Penn
Hi Jed,
Big fan, and co-worker of yours over on MMA Fighting (GREAT WEBSITE). Anyways, a question was posed on the UFC Rio post show: Whose career would you rather have, Charles Oliveira or BJ Penn? Interested to see your thoughts.
I listened to the UFC Rio post-show, and I was in love with this question. The comparison of Oliveira and Penn speaks to the nature of success in MMA, perhaps better than any two other fighters could, because both men are supremely accomplished but in almost the exact opposite ways of each other. So, who had the better career? It depends.
Let’s start with Oliveira. I was incredibly impressed with his win on Saturday, as it showed, once again, that despite clearly not being at his best anymore, “Do Bronx” still has plenty of game left. That’s incredible for a fighter who is pushing 40 and has already spent 15 years in the UFC. Father Time is catching up to Oliveira, but he’s not laying down on letting the old man grab him just yet.
And that, in many respects, is the crux of Oliveira’s greatness, his longevity. For many years, Do Bronx was a good fighter and a fun one, but not a great fighter. But he stuck around and kept improving, and eventually, everything fell into place. Suddenly, Oliveira had the counting stats that come with fighting so often for more than a decade, but then he also had real achievement in his lightweight title run. And now, in his final act, he’s still putting up great performances, which stands in stark contrast to Penn’s end, which functionally removed him from GOAT conversations that he had been a fixture of for a decade, because people remember the long string of terrible losses at the end.
On the other side, the selling points for B.J. Penn’s career are as evident as they are impressive. Penn is an icon and pioneer of MMA, only the second man to ever become a two-division champion (and light heavyweight to heavyweight is not remotely as impressive as lightweight and welterweight) in the UFC, Penn was the greatest lightweight of all time for many years (until the rise of Khabib Nurmagomedov) and, generally thought of as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world for a time.
Oliveira can’t match any of those accolades (and his lightweight title run even has a slight asterisk, given that he was probably never the actual best lightweight on Earth, and he only got to have a title reign because Khabib Nurmagomedov retired following a personal tragedy). Moreover, for as beloved as Oliviera has become in recent years, few fighters in history have meant more to the sport and to the fans, and to his fellow fighters, than Penn has.
For much of his career, Penn was your favorite fighter’s favorite fighter, both because of his ability and his mercurial nature. In many respects, Penn was the forerunner to Conor McGregor, unconcerned with the mundanity of a title reign, driven by a different conception of fighting. That’s why he left the UFC and fought the toughest guys he could, including Lyoto Machida! That sort of maverick nature undoubtedly hurt his traditional resume of wins and losses, but also made him beloved on a scale Oliveira hasn’t cracked yet.
Ultimately, the choice boils down to this: Penn had higher highs and lower lows, and is a more significant and historically important fighter; Oliveira had the better career arc, more good wins, and several records. Which of those is better? It’s a matter of taste, with no wrong answer. For me, I still favor Penn because of the highs and his historical significance, but I don’t fault anyone for picking Do Bronx.
There’s no wrong way to eat this Reese’s.
UFC White House Vortex
Hey Jed, what’s your level of concern that saving big fights for the White House card will noticeably water down the “numbered events” in the first half of 2026?
On a scale of 1-10, 10 being most concerned, put me at a solid 3.
Don’t get me wrong, I do believe the Big Events (how I will now be referring to the events formerly known as PPVs) are going to get watered down, I just don’t know that the White House card will be the culprit. Personally, I don’t believe that card will have any title fights on it (and it shouldn’t) and will instead feature a bevy of the biggest personalities — the event equivalent of the “BMF” title.
What I’d be more concerned about is the non-Big Events in the lead-up to UFC White House. Last year, the PPVs surrounding UFC 300 weren’t that bad; what was bad was everything else, because there are only so many headliners and so many were being used for the super event. I expect A LOT of bad heavyweight main events next spring as the promotion builds towards UFC White House.
Tom Aspinall, Jon Jones, and Alex Pereira
Are the UFC going to do Aspinall dirty and book Jones v Pereira and leave Tom fighting a Alexander Volkov or Jailton Almeida, if so what does it do to the title’s legitimacy and Tom’s legacy?
No, they aren’t “going to do Aspinall dirty,” because they have no control over this situation. Jon Jones is NOT going to fight Tom Aspinall. He never was. So not booking Tom a fight that cannot be booked isn’t doing him dirty. Jones vacated the title (which was paper as hell anyway), and Tom is the undisputed champion. They’ve done as well by him as can be done.
But Jones vs. Pereira can be booked, and so it will. It’s a fight both men want, and one that the fan base and broader public will gravitate toward. Because Jones isn’t the champion, it does nothing to diminish Aspinall. In fact, it really just boosts him, proving the point that Jones never wanted the Tom smoke. Aspinall gets over without having to throw a punch. Meanwhile, Jones and Pereira can fight their battle that means nothing and everything. Everybody wins.
And as for Tom having to fight the winner of Volkov vs. Almeida, that’s his job. He’s the heavyweight champion of the world; he’s there to defend the title. Jon Jones never cared about that, and so he was bad at his job. Tom is the champion we deserve.
Thanks for reading, and thank you to everyone who sent in tweets (Xs?)! Do you have any burning questions about things at least somewhat related to combat sports? Then you’re in luck, because you can send your tweets to me, @JedKMeshew, and I will answer my favorite ones! Doesn’t matter if they’re topical or insane, just so long as they are good. Thanks again, and see y’all next week.
