“Well, maybe BMF title. I want the real title, but I don't want to wait until then. Ilia, he fights once a year... If Charles Oliveira wins, it's going to be good. We've got a story.”

– via The Ariel Helwani Show (January 13, 2026), pivoting his strategy toward the BMF belt to avoid a long layoff in the lightweight division

“It's a good fight and to be honest, I don't know who is going to win because Oliveira got knocked out a few months ago like 3 to 4 months ago and his chin is not there for sure. And Gamrot he's going from the like a 3 weeks notice and maybe he's not in good shape as well. So it's like 50/50”

– answered for "Charles Oliveira and Mateusz Gamrot are fighting this weekend. Who do you like in that fight?"