A. Pettis x R. dos Anjos in the main fight of UFC 185. Photo: Josh Hedges/UFC
Anthony Pettis is still trying to figure out why it was largely dominated by Rafael dos Anjos in a fight that cost him the UFC lightweight belt, in the middle of this month, in Dallas (USA). In the main fight of UFC 185, Pettis, favorite for the fight, ended up being outclassed by the Brazilian during the five rounds of the fight.
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Even though he is still searching for answers, Pettis already knows what will change for his next fight. The now former champion stated that he will no longer perform in the same event as his younger brother, Sergio Pettis, which happened in his last two fights.
The first experience, in December last year, was successful for the family. Sergio defeated Matt Hobar shortly before Anthony submitted Gilbert Melendez to retain the belt. However, at UFC 185, the night was one to forget: the youngest was knocked out by Ryan Benoit and Anthony was dominated by Dos Anjos.
Precisely for this reason, the older brother wants to avoid fighting in the same event as Sergio in the future. “The biggest change I'm going to make concerns the fact that my brother and I will fight in the same event. The first time was amazing, but the second time wasn't so good. He was knocked out and I had to watch that and then recover mentally for my fight. I'm not making excuses, but these little things could have hindered my performance. Next time, when I have a big fight, I will only focus on myself”, he explained, in an interview with the podcast “The MMA Hour”.
However, Pettis is still looking for other explanations for his performance that night. “I'm upset with myself. I was dejected about losing the belt, but that wasn't the best Anthony Pettis. It's not like he went there and demolished me at my best. So I need to figure out why I did so badly. It wasn’t my night,” he said.
The former champion, however, made a point of praising the powerful left blow given by Dos Anjos to his face, which caused him a fracture in the first round. “He hit me with that left. It was the first punch he hit me, and I couldn't see straight. My vision was tripled. It was a great punch, it hit me straight in the eye”, he detailed.
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