Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone, lightweight champion? It’s a real possibility, ladies and gentlemen.
According to ESPN.com’s Brett Okamoto, UFC President Dana White believes a Cerrone title fight opposite 155-pound champ Rafael dos Anjos is on the horizon:
Dana White tells me he’s not going to press conference tonight, but DID say Donald Cerrone is the next lightweight title contender.
— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) May 24, 2015
The news comes as little surprise, frankly. Cerrone effortlessly defeated John Makdessi at UFC 187, picking him apart at range before breaking his jaw with a kick in the second round.
The win over Makdessi extends his already impressive winning streak to eight. Cerrone is on an absolutely stellar run at the moment, with wins over Edson Barboza, Eddie Alvarez, Myles Jury and Benson Henderson.
That run alone is good enough for a shot at the title, but things have lined up for him perfectly outside the cage as well. His original UFC 187 opponent, Khabib Nurmagomedov, is out for the foreseeable future due to a knee injury. Former champ Anthony Pettis, similarly, is shelved for the time being. Nate Diaz, who defeated Cerrone in 2011, is coming off an ugly loss to dos Anjos at UFC on Fox 13.
Cerrone faced dos Anjos once before, back in 2013 at UFC Fight Night 27. At that point, Cerrone was a notoriously slow starter, which allowed the Brazilian to gain an early lead on the judges’ scorecards. Cerrone would come on strong in the final frame but was unable to overcome the early deficit, resulting in a unanimous 29-28 decision loss.
While dos Anjos vs. Cerrone 2 is likely to go down, there is no word on when or where it could take place. The UFC is currently booked up for UFC 188 and 189, meaning the bout would most likely come in August at the very earliest. Keep an eye on Bleacher Report for more news on the fight as it becomes available.
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