Rafael Dos Anjos has made his mark in the UFC like no other athlete. The 38-year-old began his professional MMA career roughly 2 decades ago in 2004. Having flourished through the ranks, the Brazilian has fought the who’s who in the Las Vegas-based promotion.
RDA competes in both the lightweight and the welterweight divisions of the promotion. With a professional record of 32-14, Dos Anjos has garnered a promotional record of 21-12. He has secured 5 career wins by knockout and 11 wins via submission.
Dos Anjos last made his octagon appearance at UFC on ESPN 42 against a formidable opponent in Bryan Barbarena. He submitted the 33-year-old via rear naked choke in round 2 during their December 2022 bout.
Having fought most of his career at lightweight, Rafael is currently ranked no. 7 in the division. Whereas in the welterweight division of the promotion, he remains unranked.
RDA’s UFC Career and Achievements
Rafael Dos Anjos was born in Rio de Janeiro. By the age of 13, he started training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Heavily inspired by Rickson Gracie’s ‘Vale Tudo Japan,’ RDA found out about his passion at an early stage in life. RDA has put his black belt in BJJ and excellent Muay Thai skills to good use against some of the best opponents.
The Brazilian native made his UFC debut in 2008 against Jeremy Stephens in a lightweight bout at UFC 91. He lost the contest via third-round KO. However, the undesired result didn’t stop the 38-year-old from achieving his dreams. Dos Anjos went on a tear and basically fought every worthy opponent the brass put in front of him.
RDA has amassed a resume like no other, having fought the likes of Nate Diaz, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Kamaru Usman, Colby Covington, Donald Cerrone, Benson Henderson, Anthony Pettis, Kevin Lee, and more. If you carefully assess his resume, several of his opponents were champions at one point or went on to become one.
Fans cherish Dos Anjos for his willingness to face anybody, be it a young hungry lion or a rising star on his way up. In his 2010 bout with Clay Guida, RDA broke his jaw in two places. He still has a titanium implant in his jaw.
Rafael worked his way up until he earned his shot at the gold in 2015 against ‘Showtime’ Pettis. He dethroned Anthony in 2015 to win the UFC lightweight strap, before defending it against Donald Cerrone next. Later next year, Dos Anjos lost the belt to Eddie Alvarez.
The following year saw RDA move up and have 8 fights in a row at welterweight, before moving down to lightweight against Paul Felder. The Brazilian then faced Renato Moicano at catchweight, before dropping to 155 versus Rafael Fiziev.
Who is Rafael Dos Anjos looking to fight next?
Ever since his bout against Bryan Barbarena late last year, the UFC veteran hasn’t had an announcement for his next octagon outing. However, a week ago, the Brazilian native took to his Twitter to clear two things. Rafael expressed his persistence in fighting at 170 lbs, while also sharing his side of the deal for a cut down to 155.
Dos Anjos pointed to the current lightweight champion Islam Makhachev and Conor McGregor as the only two options he’d make the cut. RDA has developed a feud with the Dagestani for the last while. However, Conor and RDA go a long way back, with the duo almost facing each other at UFC 196.
I want to be very clear about possibilities of me fighting at 155. There’s only scenario that I would go back to 155.
1: fight for the title (Islam)
2:Fight Conor.Other than that don’t even waste your time calling me out or tagging me.
— Rafael dos Anjos (@RdosAnjosMMA) April 15, 2023
In another tweet, a month prior, Rafael expressed a keen interest in fighting at 170 lbs unless there was a handsome amount involved at lightweight. While fans know RDA to be the embodiment of ‘Fight anyone anywhere,’ he sure has earned his spot to eat a big chunk out of a money fight PPV.