Las Vegas – UFC announced that former UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira has been named the 2025 recipient of the Forrest Griffin Community Award. Named in honor of UFC Hall of Famer Forrest Griffin, the award recognizes a UFC athlete for their exceptional volunteer and charity work and the meaningful impact their efforts have on the community.
The Forrest Griffin Community Award is presented annually as part of the UFC Honors President’s Choice category, as the award recipient is personally selected by UFC President and CEO Dana White. UFC Honors is the company’s annual awards program recognizing UFC athletes, exceptional performances, and special moments throughout each year.
As the 2025 recipient of the Forrest Griffin Community Award, Oliveira will receive a $25,000 donation to the charity of his choice. All donations are courtesy of the UFC Foundation.
Oliveira will be honored for this award during the 2025 UFC Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony as part of the 13th Annual UFC International Fight WeekÔ. The event will take place on Thursday, June 26 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and will be streamed live, exclusively on UFC FIGHT PASS®.
“Charles is not only a great athlete, but he’s also an amazing role model who enjoys giving back to the community,” said UFC President and CEO Dana White. “Charles does a great job of helping local youth in Sao Paulo by providing them with free education and jiu-jitsu training at his institute, and he’s directly helping them create a better life for themselves in the process. It’s an honor to present him with his award.”
Founded in 2012 as a social project within the Charles Oliveira Gold Team Gym in the Vicente de Carvalho District of Guarujá (São Paulo), the Charles do Bronxs Institute (ICBronxs) provides hundreds of local youth with the opportunity for a better future through free arts, education, nutrition, and jiu-jitsu.
The creation of the Institute comes full circle with Oliveira’s childhood, as a similar social project introduced him to Brazilian jiu-jitsu at the age of 12. This project provided Oliveira with a safe space to train and secure an education, which helped him become a champion jiu-jitsu practitioner two months after his first lesson.Oliveira’s social project was recognized as an Institute in 2022, and he officially opened a new space dedicated entirely to training local underprivileged youth in Sao Paulo in 2023. Since its inception in 2012, more than 150 students have trained and graduated from Oliveira’s programs, with many students achieving their dreams through MMA, jiu-jitsu, sign language classes, and various social initiatives.
Outside of Brazil, Oliveira continues to give back to local communities around the world, teaching jiu-jitsu and speaking with underprivileged youth in conjunction with other MMA athletes, and in partnership with UFC youth mentoring programs.
Currently the no. 2-ranked contender in the lightweight division, Oliveira is a veteran of 46 fights and has registered a record of 35-10-1 (23-10-1 UFC) since his professional debut in 2008. A proficient Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner, Oliveira captured more than 15 medals and became a two-time CBJJE World Jiu-Jitsu Cup Champion before transitioning to MMA. To learn more, please visit CHARLESDOBRONXINSTITUTE.
