When Dos Anjos and Donald Cerrone clash at UFC on Fox, it won’t be just for the UFC lightweight title.
The significance of their fight is huge, and will impact not just the lightweight division, but the entire UFC. Donald Cerrone has been on a roll, and is currently riding on an 8 fight win streak, and the last person to beat Cowboy was none other than the current champion.
Although their rematch is significant in its own right, the fight can change the entire landscape of the UFC. The winner of the fight might get to face UFC’s current megastar, and one of the most exciting fighters in recent memory – Conor McGregor.
Conor’s thrashing of Aldo leaves the Irishman with a couple of choices; Conor can either face Aldo in a rematch or could face Frankie Edgar for the featherweight title. Conor also has the option to move up to the lightweight division and fight the winner of Dos Anjos – Cerrone for the lightweight title.
The implications of Dos Anjos – Cerrone fight
Rafael Dos Anjos defeated the former lightweight champion – Anthony Pettis, which shocked the MMA fraternity. Dos Anjos dominated Pettis, who was then considered to be one of the best pound for pound fighters in the world.
On the other hand, Cowboy has been successful in taking out every fighter put in front of him, including the former Bellator lightweight champion, Eddie Alvarez. But the implications of their title fight aren’t just confined to the lightweight division.
With Conor McGregor eyeing a lightweight title fight, it is possible that the winner of Dos Anjos – Cerrone will fight Conor McGregor next in a super fight. With Conor refusing to drop his featherweight title, a win for Conor would make him the only fighter in UFC history to hold the titles of two separate weight classes at the same time.
Conor has already expressed his interest in defending the titles regularly, and if history has shown us anything, it is that Conor gets what he wants.
The last fighter standing of the old guard
After Conor McGregor defeated Jose Aldo, everyone talked about the old guard now being replaced by the new breed. With Weidman dethroning Anderson Silva in the middleweight division and Lawler ruling the roost in the welterweight division, most of the divisions have benefitted with the change.
But there are two divisions which are still “stuck in the mud”, and would greatly benefit from a super fight, similar to McGregor – Dos Anjos/Cerrone.
In the bantamweight division, TJ Dillashaw defeated Renan Barao last year to turn the division on its head. While most people believed that Barao, who was undefeated for over 9 years going into the fight with Dillashaw, would walk out as the bantamweight champion, Dillashaw dominated the fight.
Barao faced Dillashaw in a rematch earlier this year, but the bantamweight champion stopped him once again, silencing his critics.
While one would believe that Dominick Cruz is the only remaining legitimate contender who could beat Dillashaw, if Dillashaw manages to beat Cruz this January, Dillashaw would’ve run through the entire division.
The same situation applies to Demetrious Johnson in the flyweight division, as the champ has been undefeated in his previous 10 fights. Mighty Mouse is currently the number one ranked pound for pound fighter in the UFC, and has only one viable opponent left in Henry Cejudo.
A win for DJ over Cejudo would see him go through the entire division, similar to Dillashaw.
While most of the UFC fans have been asking for a Dillashaw – Faber showdown, given their history with Team Alpha Male, it would make more sense for UFC to go ahead with a super fight.
If UFC does promote a super fight between Conor McGregor and the winner of Dos Anjos and Cerrone, it would then open the gate for a super fight between Dillashaw and Demetrious Johnson.
It has been evident for quite a while that DJ needs a new challenge, and a super fight between the bantamweight champion and the flyweight champion can be the perfect recipe for revamping both the divisions.
The only real question is, will Dana white and UFC let Conor McGregor fight the winner of Dos Anjos – Cerrone before facing Aldo in a rematch? After being the undisputed king for over ten years, it is fair to say that Aldo deserves his rematch.
Also, a fight between Conor and Cerrone has money written all over it, with both the trash talkers already going at each other’s throats. We will likely get our answers tomorrow after the main event; one thing is for sure – the consequences of their fight will resonate throughout the company, and can lead to some exciting fights in the future.
