Donald Cerrone
With a staph infection sideline former WEC champ Anthony Pettis in the short term, top lightweight competitor Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone (19-4, 1NC) is losing his patience waiting for a bout between him and ‘Showtime’ to happen.
The two are expected to meet this coming January but this latest injury to Pettis could delay this fight.
Speaking to ESPN.com, Cerrone, who is getting the itch to step back into the cage after fighting five times last year, is unsure of his next move whether it’s to take on a lesser opponent or to wait for Pettis in a No. 1 contender match.
“Joe (Silva’s) attitude is, ‘Why would you want to go from the top of the division to fight somebody in the middle and potentially risk everything,’” Cerrone said. “My management team says the same thing, ‘You should want the belt.’ I do want that belt.
“(The Pettis fight) is the No. 1 contendership. Of course it means something to me. That’s the ultimate goal is to get that title. That makes sense. Does waiting on him make sense? I don’t know.”
“At this point, if they call me tomorrow and say, ‘We need you next week,’ I’ll be game,” he said. “I don’t know what the next step is.”
Cerrone is 6-1 in the UFC with since joining the promotion in January 2011. The ‘Cowboy’ hasn’t been inaction since last August when he squared off with friend Melvin Guillard at UFC 150 finishing ‘The Young Assassin’ via first round knockout.