Breaking: Islam Makhachev vs Rafael Dos Anjos added to UFC 267 for a lightweight battle

Breaking: Islam Makhachev vs Rafael Dos Anjos added to UFC 267 for a lightweight battle

Islam Makhachev vs Rafael Dos Anjos booked for UFC 267

Islam Makhachev vs Rafael Dos Anjos is finally set to happen. The key lightweight title contender bout has been added to UFC 267 fight card.

The lightweight division is never short of amazing fights and one such bout that has been due is Islam Makhachev vs Rafael Dos Anjos. The promotion has finally heard Makhachev’s plead and given him a top contender for the UFC 267 card that is expected to be held on October 30th. The promotion has revealed that they plan to host this card in Yas Islan, Abu Dhabi. The news about this matchup was first revealed by ESPN’s Brett Okamoto.

Rafel Dos Anjos and Islam Makhachev have been going back and forth for a long time now. The two were initially scheduled to fight last October and again in November but the fight was canceled due to COVID-19 complications. Islam Makhachev has a record of 20-1 in his MMA career while the former lightweight champion RDA has 30-13 as a professional record.

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Islam Makhachev vs Rafael Dos Anjos a title eliminator?

Islam Makhachev vs Rafael Dos Anjos at UFC 267
Islam Makhachev

After the bout had come to a mutual agreement from both sides, “Islam doesn’t want to fight five rounds,” dos Anjos told ESPN. “That was my request, but it didn’t work out. So, fine. Let’s do three then. He’s been talking a lot of crap — let’s see who is who now. I’m ready to go. This is a title eliminator [in] my eyes.” RDA is coming off a win against Paul Felder in November 2020. RDA is currently ranked at No.7 according to the official UFC rankings while Islam is at No. 5 after his win against Thiago Moises.

In response to RDA’s comments, Makhachev’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz told ESPN, “The UFC offered a three-round fight and Islam said yes. We don’t care about the number of rounds — it’s no problem. The UFC asked for this, and this is what the UFC got. I’m looking at this as a No. 1 contender’s match. The winner should fight for the title.”

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