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Rafael dos Anjos says dropping back down to 155 pounds would be a major “sacrifice,” but one he would be willing to take for a lucrative bout with fellow ex-UFC lightweight champ Conor McGregor.

Rafael dos Anjos is focused on his run at welterweight, but said he would consider a return to lightweight if given the right opportunity.

Dos Anjos, a former UFC lightweight champion, meets Kevin Lee in the UFC Rochester main event on Saturday night. The Brazilian moved up to 170 pounds in 2017 after two straight losses, including a title loss to Eddie Alvarez in 2016. The weight cut was getting to be too much for dos Anjos.

He found success early on at welterweight, recording three straight wins, but now finds himself on another two-fight skid heading into the Lee matchup — and thinking about 155 pounds.

Dos Anjos said he would return to lightweight for a fight against fellow ex-champ Conor McGregor, but not much else than that.

“Me and Conor, we’ve been scheduled to fight I think twice,” dos Anjos said Thursday at media day (via MMAjunkie.com). “But we almost — I broke my foot two weeks before that fight. And I didn’t know, but we were about to fight in Brazil for the interim welterweight title, that’s what I heard. I think that fight, if I get several weeks’ notice, like three to four months’ notice, I think I could make that sacrifice.”

Dos Anjos was scheduled to fight McGregor in a superfight at UFC 196 in 2016. At the time, dos Anjos held the 155-pound belt and McGregor was the featherweight champion. McGregor was moving up to lightweight for the first time in his UFC career. But dos Anjos fell out of the bout just weeks before and was replaced by Nate Diaz, who went on to submit McGregor in a welterweight bout at the event.

Dos Anjos vs. McGregor was also discussed as a potential interim welterweight title fight at UFC 224 last year, but it did not come to fruition following McGregor’s bus attack in Brooklyn at UFC 223.

For now, Dos Anjos has his eyes set on only Lee, who is also coming off a loss. If McGregor does feel up to a fight down the road, however, the 34-year-old said dropping back down to lightweight would be difficult, but probably worth it.

“If I would, I would probably have to have at least three months’ notice that I could do the right transition, and I got to change my whole schedule, my whole diet, it’s going to be hard, and it’s got to be the fight that is worth it for the sacrifice,” dos Anjos said. “But as of now, I’m just thinking to be on welterweight.”

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is just a few hours away from its UFC Fight Night 152: “Dos Anjos vs. Lee” mixed martial arts (MMA) event on ESPN+, scheduled for TONIGHT (Sat., May 18, 2019) inside Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, New York.

UFC Fight Night 152 will be headlined by the 170-pound showdown pitting former lightweight champion, Rafael dos Anjos, against fellow 155-pound import, Kevin Lee, two fighters who carved out pretty successful careers at lightweight but could no longer tolerate the rigors of extreme weight cutting.

Dos Anjos (28-11) jumped out to an impressive three straight wins at 170 pounds, but then ran into the division’s elite wrestlers and has since dropped back-to-back fights. As for Lee (17-4), this marks his welterweight debut after recently going down on points to Al Iaquinta.

Check out their fight video preview, embedded above.

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Fight Night 152 fight card TONIGHT (click here), starting with the ESPN+ “Prelims” undercard bouts at 5 p.m. ET, followed by the ESPN+ main card start time of 8 p.m. ET.

For much more on UFC Rochester click here.

Tyron Woodley details why he was forced to pull out of his scheduled rematch against Robbie Lawler at UFC Minneapolis.

Former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley was dead-set on reclaiming the 170-pound title after his scheduled rematch against Robbie Lawler at UFC Minneapolis this June. Those plans are now unfortunately scrapped when “The Chosen One” was forced to pull out due to injury on Friday.

Woodley went on to explain in detail his reasons behind this difficult decision through an Instagram live broadcast after the announcement was made.

“A lot of questions about my hand and me not fighting June 29,” Woodley said (transcript via MMA Junkie). “I don’t know if they’re going to reschedule me and Robbie for a different date or if they’re going to actually get him a new opponent, but I got to make sure I protect my hand. That’s where I make the money with. I have to be confident throwing my moneymaker, my right hand.”

Woodley has apparently been dealing with the same injury since his title defense against Kamaru Usman at UFC 235 in March, where he lost via unanimous decision.

“I toughed it through the last fight, guys, a lot of (expletive) tape. This time around I’ve got to be honest with myself,” he said. “The gripping, the grabbing, the posting, the pushing off, the strength, the snapping – all of the above was a little bit more difficult.

“I’m going to make sure I put myself in position to be successful. At the end of the day, I got to get that belt back. I’ve got to put myself in the best position.”

After Woodley pulled out, welterweight contenders like Leon Edwards and Darren Till immediately expressed their intentions to step in as replacement.