Rafael dos Anjos claims Ali Abdelaziz prevented him from rematching 'friend' Khabib Nurmagomedov when he was his manager

Former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos has claimed that Ali Abdelaziz had hindered his chances of a potential rematch with Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Abdelaziz is a manager to some of the biggest fighters in the UFC, including Nurmagomedov. He also managed dos Anjos till late 2017 before the duo parted ways.

The Brazilian fighter recently took to Twitter to reveal that Abdelaziz prevented a rematch between him and Nurmagomedov back when he was the lightweight champion in 2015.

"When I had the belt I asked Ali who was my manager at the time for a rematch with Khabib but Ali always protected his friend and kept him away from me. I have no problem to fight Islam Makhachev, but if his team believes in him so much I need Khabib Nurmagomedov's word he will fight me next," dos Anjos wrote.

When I had the belt I asked Ali who was my manager at the time for a rematch with Khabib but Ali always protected his friend and kept him alway from me. I have no problem to fight @MAKHACHEVMMA but if his team believes in him so much I need @TeamKhabib word he will fight me next.

— Rafael dos Anjos (@RdosAnjosMMA) March 14, 2021

Rafael dos Anjos won the lightweight championship after he defeated the then-champion, Anthony Pettis in March 2015. He also defended the title against Donald Cerrone in his next outing. During his time as a champion, dos Anjos was one of Abdelaziz's clients. Both men agreed to put an end to their professional relationship in late 2017.

Ali is not my manager anymore, this is my account, I control my social media. I'm. It trash talking just talking the truth.

— Rafael dos Anjos (@RdosAnjosMMA) February 7, 2018

What happened when Rafael dos Anjos and Khabib Nurmagomedov fought each other?

Khabib Nurmagomedov and Rafael dos Anjos locked horns in 2014 at UFC on Fox: Werdum vs. Browne. 'The Eagle' put on a dominating performance as he cruised past his Brazilian opponent via unanimous decision (30–27, 30–27, 30–27).

Nurmagomedov was also the first fighter to snap Dos Anjos' five-fight win streak. The Dagestani fighter extended his undefeated streak to 22 fights with that win.

In April of 2014,Khabib defeated the current UFC Lightweight Champion Rafael dos AnjosHe shut RDA down pic.twitter.com/lLTsvFMkdc

— MMA History Today (@MMAHistoryToday) September 14, 2015

After a lengthy stint in the UFC lightweight division, Rafael dos Anjos moved a weight class up to welterweight. However, the Brazilian has recently switched back down to the 155-pound division.

Dos Anjos last fought Paul Felder in November last year where he secured a split decision win over 'The Irish Dragon'. The former champion was expected to fight Nurmagomedov's friend and teammate, Islam Makhachev, but the Dagestani was forced to pull out of the fight.