Rafael dos Anjos is eyeing a fight with Conor McGregor when he returns to the UFC.
It has been a long road for former champion Rafael dos Anjos since losing his title to Eddie Alvarez back in 2016. He has been on a mission to get back to his winning ways but has found himself stuck in an up-and-down pattern for a while now. Dos Anjos has shifted back and forth from the UFC lightweight division to the welterweight division in search of a path to a title. Now at 38 years old and with 45 professional fights under his belt, dos Anjos is looking for meaningful fights.
As a former champion dos Anjos’ name holds weight in the UFC. He was a dominant force in his earlier days and still has the skills to win at the highest level. He knows that a title shot is not in his immediate future but wants to say relevant.
Rafael dos Anjos has his sights set on the biggest fight available
Dos Anjos wants to continue fighting at both 155 and 170 pounds. He has his next assignment right ahead of him as he is set to take on Bryan Barberena at UFC Orlando this weekend. With a tough opponent right in front of him, dos Anjos is not overlooking this fight but has an idea for a really big opportunity.
“I think I’ve reached this stage of my career that I can be very relevant and two divisions,” he said during media day for UFC Orlando. “If I fight at lightweight I’m relevant people want to watch it, if I fight at welterweight I’m a big name of welterweight as well. But of course, you know, I fight to win. But I have a challenge, you know, tough guy ahead of me on Saturday. We’ll see what comes next, Conor’s fighting at 170 I think I don’t say he’s fighting at 155 anymore. But we’ll see, that’s the fight that makes sense.”
McGregor is currently unable to compete due to his USADA testing pool absence. However, he has mentioned his desire to return and has been eyeing the welterweight division as a landing spot. Already many fighters have expressed interest in facing him upon his return, and dos Anjo is now throwing his name in the hat.
“That’s the fight that makes sense for sure. We’ll see what happens,” he said. “Guys that have a lot to bring to the table, guys that been there before. I think being a former champion, being you know, so long in the company looking for guys that make sense to me, like guys with a lot of fights and legends of the sport and I think that’s what I’m looking for.”
Dos Anjos and McGregor were linked to a bout briefly back in 2016, but dos Anjos was forced out with an injury. That is when Nate Diaz stepped in and famously submitted McGregor and the rest was history. It seems dos Anjos has been trying to get that one back ever since.
