Rafael dos Anjos is a BJJ black belt, but more recently has been known as a contender in the lightweight division of the UFC. His name had not always been thrown around like that, because after losing his first two fights in the Octagon some people doubted his ability. Now, he sits at a streak of 8-2 with his only losses being questionable. He was beating Clay Guida until a broken jaw forced him out of the fight, and then a split decision loss to Gleison Tibau was viewed by many as the wrong decision. In his current run though, he has beaten the likes of Terry Etim, George Sotiropolous, Anthony Njokuani, Mark Bocek, and Evan Dunham. Who are all decent fighters, but his biggest test comes in the form of Donald Cerrone this weekend.
Cerrone seems to be the unofficial gatekeeper of the lightweight division, because he only losses to fighters that challenge for the title. SInce he entered the UFC back in 2010, he has beaten seven fighters all of which have never challenged for a UFC title. The two people that did beat him in that span where Nate Diaz and Anthony Pettis who went on the challenge Benson Henderson for the lightweight title. So, with a win over Cerrone it is sure to prove that Anjos is cut from the championship cloth. The question remains if he can win?
Cerrone has a great standup game, but that does not mean he cannot be knocked out. Anthony Pettis just did that not too long ago, and we have all seen the type of power Anjos holds in his hands. Plus, Anjos always has the ability to use his BJJ skills which not very many people can match at 155. Can he put it all together in the ring remains the big questions, but he has in eight of his last ten matches so what’s one more?