Oliveira explains UFC 294 withdrawal: 'We had to be 120% ready'

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Charles Oliveira was forced out of his UFC 294 title fight against Islam Makhachev after suffering a "deep" cut in his final training session in Brazil, he said Wednesday in a video on social media.

Oliveira, the former lightweight champion who was set to challenge Makhachev in a rematch Oct. 21 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, said a clash of heads led to the injury. He added that the cut needed eight or nine stitches.

"It's a cut too deep to be able to fight, to recover in such a short time and be able to put on a great fight," Oliveira said in Portuguese, as translated by MMA Fighting's Guilherme Cruz.

"Do Bronx" said his team, along with the UFC brass, made the decision to withdraw.

"Everybody knows about the importance of this fight," Oliveira said. "It's not just a fight, it's a title fight, so there were great things involved. We didn't want to go there unprepared.

"I know many people will judge, many people will talk, but it's an important fight for us, and we couldn't be there at our 80%, we had to be 120% ready for it."

In Oliveira's absence, UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski will move up in weight for the second time this year and face Makhachev in a rematch on 11 days' notice.