RDA speculates that he is in for one final shot at UFC gold with a win in his upcoming fight.
After losing the lightweight title following his TKO loss to Eddie Alvarez back in 2016, RDA has been on an unflattering run of five wins and five losses in his last ten fights, but he will be hoping to kick on from his split decision victory over Paul Felder with an impressive performance in his upcoming bout.
The former titleholder meets Islam Makhachev at UFC 267 on October 30, with the 36-year-old believing this to be his last push towards the lightweight throne, despite retirement not being on his mind.
During a recent interview with AG Fight, RDA labeled his meeting with Makhachev, and the subsequent fights that follow, his last shot at a UFC title.
“This is my last shot,” dos Anjos said. “I have to be realist. I’m not close to retiring. I feel fine, training goes well and I have no joint injuries. I have 43 fights and I only lost one by knockout. I don’t get knocked out during training, I have good defense, my chin is good. I still have a lot of time left in my career. But I know that this change (moving to Brazil to train at Nova Uniao) is all about fighting for the title. I’m betting my chips that it’s going to work. My focus is to be the champion. This Makhachev fight, because of his hype and me being a former champion who’s coming off a win in his return to the divison, it has title eliminator written all over it.”
Dos Anjos then went on to talk about lightweight champion, Charles Oliveira, where he went on to claim to be “Do Bronx’s” toughest test in the division.
“Charles is in a good moment of his career,” Rafael continued. “The cool thing about his career is all the ups and downs he went through. That’s how champions are made. This is his moment, he’s the champion. But when I look at the rankings, I’m the trickiest guy for him to face. Because of my striking level, my jiu-jitsu, and my pace. My focus is on Makhachev, but if I have a good win, which I know I will because this fight is not going the distance, I’ll be ready to see who’s the best Brazilian lightweight of all time.”
Could we see Rafael dos Anjos make one final run for UFC gold before he hangs up his gloves?
