Rafael dos Anjos News

Adam D Martin - July 22, 2021

Rafael dos Anjos says he wants to beat Islam Makhachev at UFC 267 and then get the rematch with his teammate Khabib Nurmagomedov. Dos Anjos and Nurmagomedov fought back in 2014, with Nurmagomedov winning the fight via unanimous decision. However, in a twist of fate, Nurmagomedov suffered an injury following that fight, and dos Anjos actually got the chance to fight for the UFC lightweight belt before him, defeating Anthony Pettis to take home the title in 2015. Dos Anjos would lose the belt in 2016 to Eddie Alvarez, and Nurmagomedov finally claimed it himself in 2018 when he defeated Al Iaquinta. Although Nurmagomedov is now retired from MMA, dos Anjos still wants this rematch one day in order to avenge his earlier career defeat.

Adam D Martin - July 13, 2021

UFC lightweight contender Rafael dos Anjos targeted “little boy” Conor McGregor following UFC 264, saying that “I would smash that guy.” Dos Anjos was the backup fighter at UFC 264, being brought in by the promotion in case of a withdrawal by either McGregor or his rival Dustin Poirier. RDA weighed in successfully on Friday for the backup spot, but he was not needed on Saturday as both Poirier and McGregor successfully made it to the fight unscathed. Ironically, the fight ended when McGregor broke his leg in the first round, leading to Poirier winning via first-round TKO.

Adam D Martin - July 11, 2021

Former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos was happy to see Conor McGregor get a taste of his own medicine with his injury at UFC 264. McGregor broke his ankle and lost via TKO (doctor stoppage) at the end of the first round against rival Dustin Poirier in the main event of Saturday’s big pay-per-view card in Las Vegas. For dos Anjos, seeing the Irishman break his ankle was karma for the way that McGregor talked about RDA when he broke his foot five years ago. Remember, RDA and McGregor were supposed to fight at UFC 196 in March 2016, but the fight never ended up materializing due to RDA’s injury. Instead of dos Anjos vs. McGregor, Nate Diaz stepped up on short notice, submitted McGregor with a rear-naked choke, and the rest is history.

Adam D Martin - July 8, 2021

Former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos fired back after Conor McGregor said to put him in the cage against him at UFC 264. There are reports emerging from Las Vegas which suggest that dos Anjos is the backup fighter for the UFC 264 main event between McGregor and Dustin Poirier. The UFC hasn’t officially tabbed dos Anjos as the backup fighter, but people in Las Vegas have seen him at the fighter hotel cutting weight just in case something happens to either McGregor or Poirier ahead of Saturday’s pay-per-view card. In the event that the unthinkable happens and one of these two men falls off the card, the UFC will have dos Anjos step in and fight.

Adam D Martin - May 18, 2021

Middleweight Darren Till says he was inspired by Charles Oliveira’s win over Michael Chandler at UFC 262 after being “looked over” for years. Oliveira knocked out Chandler in the second round of their main event fight at this past Saturday’s UFC 262 to become the new UFC lightweight champion. The Brazilian has been in the UFC since 2010 but for years, he struggled to be consistent as he juggled between featherweight and lightweight and couldn’t string wins together. After committing to 155lbs again, Oliviera has been on a roll the last several years and is currently riding a nine-fight win streak. It’s been an incredible journey to the top, especially given all the question marks about Oliveira over the years, with many fans labeling him as a “quitter.”

Cole Shelton - April 13, 2021

Rafael dos Anjos is hoping he can replace Dustin Poirier and face Conor McGregor on July 10. After McGregor and Poirier had a back-and-forth on social media due to the failed payment from McGregor’s to Poirier’s charity. Following the heated exchange, the Irishman claimed the fight was off and he would be facing someone else and Rafael dos Anjos hopes he is that opponent.

Adam D Martin - April 5, 2021

UFC lightweight contender Dan Hooker is targeting a matchup against former champion Rafael dos Anjos the next time he steps into the Octagon. Hooker hasn’t fought since January when he suffered a first-round KO loss to Michael Chandler at UFC 257. It was a tough loss for Hooker, who prior to that had lost a unanimous decision to Dustin Poirier in a 2020 “Fight of the Year” candidate. Prior to those two defeats, Hooker had won three straight fights including wins over Paul Felder, Al Iaquinta, and James Vick. Despite dropping his last two bouts, the Kiwi has proven time and time again that he’s one of the best lightweights in the world, and even though he hasn’t got his hand raised in over a year, he’s still a top-10 ranked lightweight in the UFC.

Chris Taylor - April 3, 2021

Former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos had made it clear that he is interested in fighting Justin Gaethje his next time out. Dos Anjos (30-13 MMA) returned to the promotions lightweight division back in November, where he picked up a thrilling ‘fight of the night’ split-decision victory over Paul Felder.

Adam D Martin - March 23, 2021

Islam Makhachev says that divisional rival Michael Chandler doesn’t deserve to fight Charles Oliveira for the vacant UFC lightweight title. Last week, Makhachev’s good friend, former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, announced his retirement from MMA. That means the 155lbs belt is now vacated, and the promotion quickly moved to book Chandler vs. Oliveira in the main event of UFC 262 in Houston for the vacant title. It’s a great fight on paper between two of the top-five ranked lightweights in the UFC, but some believe it wasn’t the right fight to make.

Adam Martin - March 10, 2021

UFC lightweight Rafael dos Anjos says he is open to fighting Islam Makhachev but there is a special condition that needs to be met first. Dos Anjos and Makhachev were supposed to meet back at UFC 254 in October and then at a UFC Fight Night card in November, but the fight was postponed and eventually scratched. Dos Anjos instead fought Paul Felder and beat him by split decision, while Makhachev returned to the Octagon this past Saturday at UFC 259, defeating Drew Dober via third-round submission.

Tom Taylor - March 9, 2021

Former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos isn’t buying the hype surrounding rising contender Islam Makhachev. Makhachev, a long-time friend and training partner of Khabib Nurmagomedov, returned to the cage on the UFC 259 main card last Saturday in Las Vegas, where he picked up an impressive submission victory over Drew Dober.

Tom Taylor - February 4, 2021

Former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos is once again calling for a fight with former two-division champ Conor McGregor. Dos Anjos and McGregor were briefly scheduled to fight in 2016. Dos Anjos, then the lightweight champion, was slated to defend his belt against McGregor, the featherweight champion, who sought to become the sport’s first concurrent two-division titleholder. Unfortunately, the fight fell through when dos Anjos sustained an injury. McGregor then accepted a short-notice fight with Nate Diaz, which he ended up losing via submission.

Tom Taylor - January 15, 2021

Former UFC lightweight champ Rafael dos Anjos wants a rematch with Nate Diaz, and he’s willing to offer his rival a handicap to make the fight happen. Generally speaking, fighters don’t angle for rematches with opponents they’ve already beaten, but that’s the case this time around.

Tom Taylor - December 23, 2020

Former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos did not appreciate a recent comment from MMA superstar Conor McGregor. Earlier this week, McGregor took to Twitter to congratulate the UFC on a successful year. In his Tweet, McGregor claimed that his January fight with Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone was the UFC’s biggest pay-per-view of the year. He also gave Cerrone props for tapping Rafael dos Anjos at last Sunday’s Submission Underground 19 card.

Harry Kettle - December 21, 2020

Ryan Bader and Donald Cerrone picked up big wins in what proved to be an entertaining night of action at Submission Underground 19. Chael Sonnen’s SUG promotion has been able to draw in some of the biggest names in mixed martial arts over the years, and that trend continued last night as several current and former UFC & Bellator stars hit the ground for some fun grappling exchanges.

Tom Taylor - December 3, 2020

Former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos claims that he briefly put Khabib Nurmagomedov to sleep in their 2014 fight. Nurmagomedov, the reigning UFC lightweight champion, retired after a submission defeat of Justin Gaethje in the UFC 254 main event last month. Despite that retirement announcement, UFC President Dana White is optimistic the champion will fight again.

Adam Martin - November 15, 2020

UFC lightweight contender Rafael dos Anjos was rewarded with a cool USADA jacket after he recently completed 50 clean drug tests all-time. Dos Anjos returned to the UFC lightweight division on Saturday night with a split decision win over Paul Felder in a spectacular fight between two incredible athletes. RDA is now 36 years old but he looked to be in amazing shape moving down to 155lbs for the first time in four years. And he did so clean. 30 fights into his UFC career and RDA has never tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs. He is a former UFC champion and a great ambassador of this sport as one of the cleanest athletes in the game today.

Adam Martin - November 15, 2020

UFC lightweight Rafael dos Anjos released a statement following his “roller coaster” split decision win over Paul Felder at UFC Vegas 14. RDA was originally set to fight Islam Makhachev at UFC 254 on Fight Island but he was forced off the card due to COVID-19. The UFC then re-booked the fight for two weeks later at UFC Vegas 14. Unfortunately, the fight fell apart when Makhachev pulled out due to an infection. Fortunately, the UFC called upon Paul Felder to save the day. The No. 7 ranked lightweight/UFC color commentator stepped up to the plate on just five days’ notice, stepping in there with dos Anjos after having had no real training camp for it.