Zuffa LLC

Rafael dos Anjos never got a chance to fulfill an initially scheduled bout with Conor McGregor, but he’s still open to it years later.

When dos Anjos was the UFC lightweight champion, he was set to put his gold at stake against McGregor back in 2016. The bout was nixed after the “Notorious” one suffered a broken foot. Ultimately, dos Anjos lost the championship to Eddie Alvarez via first-round TKO. McGregor returned from injury later in the year to finish Alvarez in the second round to win the 155-pound title.

While a decade has passed since the fight was canceled, dos Anjos told Jose Youngs of MMAFighting.com that he’d still welcome a clash with McGregor. If dos Anjos is to be believed, then money isn’t the motivating factor for wanting the fight after all these years.

“That would be awesome,” dos Anjos said. “It’s not about money, my life went on, I’m not going to do like Michael Chandler and sit on the sidelines for two years waiting for a fight that never happens. That might never happen, maybe he could get the fight, who knows? But I think in my time, if I wanted to wait back in the day and not want to fight Eddie Alvarez, waiting for Conor, it maybe could happen, but I just wanted to defend my title and keep the ball rolling. “Who knows? God has a plan and whatever he decides, if the stars line up, and God says it’s your time, that would be great. I would love that.”

For now, dos Anjos will have keep his focus solely on Saturday’s UFC 332 event. The Brazilian veteran is set to face Alexander Hernandez during the early portion of the prelims. Having gone 1-4 in his last five outings, with three straight defeats to boot, dos Anjos’ back is against the wall entering fight night.

As for McGregor, he’s recovering after his failed UFC 329 comeback against Max Holloway. The popular Irishman is expected to be out of action until at least the summer of 2027 after undergoing surgery on his right knee.

What do you make of Rafael dos Anjos still showing interest in the lost fight against Conor McGregor? Join in on the conversation in the comments below.

This article appeared first on BJPENN.COM