Brazilian youngster Charles Oliveira (14-2 MMA, 2-2 UFC) is dropping to 145 pounds.

MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) today learned from Oliveira's manager, Wade Hampel, that Oliveira has informed UFC brass he would like for his next fight to take place in the company's featherweight division.

"Charles hopes to return to action before the end of the year, if possible," Hampel said. "We're extremely excited to see what he can achieve at 145 pounds."

Hampel said Oliveira, who was 5-foot-10 when he made his octagon debut back in August 2010, has since grown to 6-foot-2. Nevertheless, at just 22 years old, Oliveira is still lean enough to make the drop, according to his camp.

Hampel said Oliveira recently went through a test cut and had no problem hitting 145 pounds. Hampel said his client also recovered well from the test run and felt strong quickly after rehydrating.

Hampel, who stands 6-foot-6, said Oliveira's shoulders and wingspan are similar to his own and believes "Do Bronx" could someday compete as high as 185 pounds. But in the meantime, Oliveira looks to take advantage of his current build.

Oliveira burst onto the UFC scene with back-to-back submission wins over Efrain Escudero and Darren Elkins. However, he's since sandwiched losses to Donald Cerrone and Jim Miller around an unfortunate no-contest result with Nik Lentz.


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