When Rafael dos Anjos welcomed Kevin Lee to the welterweight ranks with a fourth-round submission in a competitive fight, it kept the former lightweight champion on a treadmill of sorts.
Dos Anjos (29-11) came into Saturday’s fight in Rochester, N.Y., as the third-ranked welterweight contender in the UFC. The problem is that his two losses in the division have been to Kamaru Usman (15-1) and Colby Covington (14-1). Both were able to out-wrestle dos Anjos and take five-round decisions over him. The expectation is that Usman and Covington will meet for the title, but the problem for dos Anjos is both beat him in similar fashion and in a manner that wouldn’t make anyone clamor for a rematch.