Dos Anjos confirms his presence at UFC 264 and reinforces his challenge to McGregor: 'In the race for the title'

R. Dos Anjos (photo) returned to the lightweight division in UFC Las Vegas 14. Photo: Reproduction/Facebook @UFC

For many MMA fighters, facing Conor McGregor it would be more than a dream, due to the million-dollar scholarships won. For Rafael dos Anjos, however, the story with the Irish is different. The Brazilian, who was already close to sharing the octagon with the athlete, once again said that he has a score to settle with the 'Notório' and guaranteed his presence in the UFC 264, which takes place this Saturday (10).

See too

Video: UFC chooses six knockouts that have marked the season so far; remember the crashes

Fabricio Werdum wants a rematch against Fedor Emelianenko at Bellator: “He was never the greatest”

On the eve of UFC 264, Conor McGregor says he is 'ready for the show' and provokes Dustin Poirier again

Eyeing a title shot, Stephen Thompson says it's a 'terrible matchup' for Kamaru Usman

This weekend, McGregor returns to action for a historic trilogy with Dustin poirier. Keeping an eye on the fighters, RDA reinforces its interest in testing itself against one of the two, but does not hide its preference.

“I’m not going to root for either of them, I’m going to let them sort themselves out (laughs). I hope no one gets seriously hurt. I think Conor and I have a history, we came close to fighting two or three times. There were two, one I broke my foot, the other was for the welterweight belt in Brazil. It was kind of a secret. Conor would be a fight that would have a story. I have no history with Poirier, I never had to fight him. The fight against Conor would have more appeal”, said Rafael, in an interview with 'Combate'.

Back at lightweight (up to 70,3 kg.), after a few years at welterweight, Dos Anjos guarantees that his focus is on regaining the belt he owned between 2015 and 2016. Current number seven in the group led by Charles of the Bronx, Rafael made no secret of the fact that he still has plenty of motivation to lead a UFC division.

“I'm a former champion, I'm active, I'm coming off a victory. I changed my life completely. (…) I have a lot of wood to burn, I'm in the race for the belt again, to face big names. It's part of the negotiation. The UFC said they want me to be at the event, I'll be there and I hope to face one of them. I’m in this race for the title too”, he concluded.

At 36 years old, RDA currently has 33 fights as a professional in MMA. The athlete comes from a victory over Paul felder in November 2020.