Rafael dos Anjos releases statement: ‘I’m not done yet’ after UFC 308 knee injury loss

Rafael dos Anjos turned 40 this past Saturday, but a knee injury suffered during his UFC 308 welterweight bout with Geoff Neal cut his celebration short in Abu Dhabi.

On a three-fight losing skid now and winless for almost two years, the former UFC lightweight champion laments the fact he could have to go under the knife and delay his return to the cage, although he’s still unsure of what was the injury suffered at UFC 308.

“I think it was on my second kick thrown, me and Neal kicked at the same time and I felt a big snap, a big pop behind my knee,” dos Anjos said in a video posted on his social media. “Throughout my whole UFC career, it’s my second time being hospitalized after the fight and it makes me realize how blessed I am. It’s a very tough sport, and going to the hospital only twice in your whole career is a good number.”

Dos Anjos had to undergo post-fight surgery back in August of 2010, when he tapped against Clay Guida after fracturing his jaw. The Brazilian veteran, now 21-15 under the UFC banner and 7-9 since losing his title in 2016, said he’s not ending his career just yet.

“Definitely it was not how I want to celebrate my 40th birthday, it was a tough loss,” dos Anjos wrote on a separate post. “Time to heal up, enjoy the family. I’m not done yet, I’ll be back soon. God bless you all.”

Neal rebounded from back-to-back defeats to Shavkat Rakhmonov and Ian Machado Garry with his win over dos Anjos, boosting his octagon record to 8-4 with key stoppage victories over Vicente Luque, Mike Perry and Niko Price. He also owns a decision win over current champion Belal Muhammad from when the two fought in 2019.