Gold's nice for his grandma, but 'Cowboy' Cerrone fighting for legacy at UFC on FOX 17

ORLANDO, Fla. – Make no mistake: Donald Cerrone wants to win a UFC title on Saturday.

But he’s said it before, and he’ll say it again: Having gold wrapped around his waist isn’t the be all, end all of why “Cowboy” does what he does. If anything, he thinks the belt itself would mean more to his grandmother – who accompanied him to Thursday’s UFC on FOX 17 open workouts and handed out Budweiser cowboy hats to fans.

Instead, that he’s become known for always showing up to fight – 10 fight-night bonuses in the UFC and another five when he was in the WEC will attest to that – is a bigger feather in his cap, err, cowboy hat, than the title.

“We all want the belt,” Cerrone said. “At the end of the day, it’s cool to be the best in the world for sure. But I don’t wake up every morning and strive, ‘I’m in the UFC; I need to win the belt.’ I’m here for legacy. When people talk about ‘Cowboy’ fights, they’re watching. ‘Saturday night, we’re turning it on. That son of a (expletive) is throwing down no matter what.'”

On Saturday, Cerrone (28-6 MMA, 15-3 UFC) does, though, get his first shot at a UFC title when he meets lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos (24-7 MMA, 13-5 UFC) in the UFC on FOX 17 main event. The fight headlines the FOX-televised portion of the card from Amway Center in Orlando, Fla.

It’s a rematch for Cerrone from a fight he lost by decision to dos Anjos more than two years ago in Indianapolis. But just because it’s a title fight this time around doesn’t mean he’s doing anything differently than any of his past eight straight wins, which got him the coveted crack at the belt – a crack he had twice, and failed at, in the WEC.

“As far as preparation, this is just like any other fight,” he said, alluding to the lifestyle he keeps outside the fight game. “People always say, ‘You need to be out there training.’ People don’t understand, you can’t be out there training 20 hours a day. You cannot do it.”

A win on Saturday as nearly a 2-1 underdog against the champ could have the MMA world buzzing about a possible fight between him and new featherweight titleholder Conor McGregor, though. McGregor (19-2 MMA, 7-0 UFC) took out champ Jose Aldo in just 13 seconds this past Saturday with a stunning knockout in the UFC 194 headliner.

After McGregor’s win, he said he very well may move right on up to lightweight – though he doesn’t want to vacate his new title to do so – to challenge for gold there. He was a two-division champion for Cage Warriors before coming to the UFC, and UFC President Dana White said if McGregor wants to go to 155, an instant title shot is all his.

Cerrone said he’d love that fight with McGregor, but won’t put the cart before the proverbial horse.

“I do talk a lot (about McGregor) and people think I’m overlooking (dos Anjos),” Cerrone said. “Absolutely not. Conor did his job – awesome job – and went out there and did what he had to do. I need to go do my job on Saturday before we can even talk about him and I. It sounds good. I’d love to talk about it. But I’ve got to hold up my end of the bargain first.”

For more on UFC on FOX 17, check out the UFC Events section of the site.