Rafael dos Anjos thinks Conor McGregor should stay put, but glad to fight him at 155

ORLANDO, Fla. – Rafael dos Anjos was planning on needing a 25-minute work night on Saturday in his first title defense.

He need a minute and some change. Dos Anjos (25-7 MMA, 14-5 UFC) stopped Donald Cerrone (28-7 MMA, 15-4 UFC) with a TKO in 66 seconds in the UFC on FOX 17 main event at Amway Center in Orland, Fla. A win, dos Anjos was expecting. But even he may have been surprised at his efficiency.

The lightweight champion told MMAjunkie he was prepared to go the distance, the way he did against Anthony Pettis in March when he won the title. But he also knew if he had a chance to make his night a little easier, he certainly would take it.

“On the way to the octagon, I was talking to my coaches and they said I had 25 minutes to win the fight, but don’t miss an opportunity,” dos Anjos told MMAjunkie. “‘If you feel you connect some hands or some other thing, take advantage of it.’ I felt when I threw a knee to the body on him, it was the beginning of the end.”

The knee to the body hurt “Cowboy,” and from there, dos Anjos went to work with a massive flurry of punches that didn’t seem to let up.

“The knee is what started it,” Cerrone said. “Then he put a great onslaught of punches on me. He did a great job overwhelming me, and he did what he had to do to remain champ. Sometimes you just don’t show up, and in our profession, that’s a bad day.”

But it was a great day for dos Anjos, who defended the title in his first defense after a layoff of around nine months that included surgery on a bum MCL in his knee.

Now the question will be just how soon the champ wants to come back. He appears to have taken virtually no damage against Cerrone. Another UFC champ also got out of a recent title fight in a hurry: Conor McGregor.

After McGregor’s 13-second win over Jose Aldo at UFC 194, he teased a move to lightweight to go after simultaneous titles. With his dominant win on Saturday, that means McGregor, if he makes the move, is gunning for dos Anjos.

And that’s just fine with the champ – though he thinks it’s a mistake for McGregor.

“Since I won the title against Pettis, I had my MCL injury and it took me four months to get better. Here I am defending my belt, and I didn’t have any injuries and I want to come back as soon as possible,” dos Anjos said. “Conor McGregor said he wants to come to my division, and I think it wouldn’t be a smart decision. But if he wants to come, I’d be happy to welcome him.”

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