After a dominating win over Renato Moicano in his first bout of 2022, it sounds like Rafael dos Anjos wants to remain fairly active for the remainder of the year. Following a sixteen-month hiatus between his two most recent outings, the former lightweight champion seems eager to make up for lost time. But he’s not just looking for any old fight, he’s got his sights set on a few of MMA’s most notable talents.
In an interview with Super Lutas’ YouTube channel, Rafael called out a few well-known potential foes, suggesting he’d like to face either Conor McGregor, Colby Covington, or Jorge Masvidal next time he steps into the cage.
“At the moment, I’m recovering and going back to training. Right now, I see myself fighting in July. That’s when I want to fight. I came to Brazil to stay active. I want to fight three times this year. We have several options and like I said on my post-fight interview, I want fights that motivate me to train. No matter whether the opponent is above or below me in the rankings. I don’t want to fight any up-and-comers. I want seasoned guys, like Masvidal, Covington and Conor McGregor.”
Briefly linked to a fight against McGregor in 2016, Rafael believes a bout against the ‘Notorious’ still makes sense six years later. The way ‘RDA’ sees it, a match against Conor would be benefitial for both men at this point in their careers.
“Conor is the guy who deals the cards. He speaks to whomever he needs to and a fight happens. Now, he’s trying to get a fight against Usman, but I don’t think that makes any sense. He’s the star of the promotion, but he hasn’t won a fight in a while. The UFC needs to give him a fight which he has great chances of winning. We’re the only former undisputed lightweight champions who are still active. Poirier is a former interim champ, Oliveira won a vacant belt. The only guys to beat champions were me and Conor. I think this fight would have appeal.”
Prior to his victory over Moicano back in March, Dos Anjos (31-13) picked up a split decision over Paul Felder in November of 2020. Those wins marked a strong return to lightweight after a 4-4 welterweight run that included losses to Colby Covington, Kamaru Usman, Leon Edwards, and Michael Chiesa.
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