UFC Lightweight Champion Rafael dos Anjos may be sidelined with a leg injury, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t scouting out his next opponent on the sidelines.

Donald Cerrone was originally scheduled to face Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 187 in a title eliminator bout, but Nurmy was forced to pull out due to an injury. Now, Cerrone faces John Makdessi and puts his title shot at risk. If Cerrone walks out with his hands raised, the champion thinks he’s next in line for a shot.

“That was a key fight for the division, a number one contender fight, and I was anxious to watch it. I feel bad for Khabib because he hurt his knee again after being sidelined for a year,” Dos Anjos told MMAFighting. “I believe Cerrone will win, but if he loses, it is going to shuffle the entire division.”

Donald Cerrone is currently riding a seven-fight win streak which include wins over the likes of Benson Henderson, Eddie Alvarez and Edson Barboza. Dos Anjos thinks Cerrone could have easily jumped off the card and waited for a title shot, but he respects his decision to remain active.

“Cerrone is a veteran, is coming off seven wins. He could have just stepped aside and fought for the title already, but he wants to stay active. He has nothing to gain with this fight, he could just wait for the title fight if he wanted.”

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