Rafael dos Anjos and Michael Chiesa stay respectful after UFC Raleigh announcement

UFC welterweight contenders Rafael dos Anjos and Michael Chiesa have exchanged pleasantries ahead of their clash at UFC Raleigh next year.

The UFC has confirmed that the two will square off at the show on January 25, which is already looking like one of the most stacked Fight Night cards in quite some time. Curtis Blaydes vs Junior dos Santos is set to main event the card in North Carolina with Cory Sandhagen vs Frankie Edgar having also been confirmed.

Prior to the fight taking place, the two stars lived up to their own reputations by being incredibly respectful of one another on social media.

https://twitter.com/rdosanjosmma/status/1197691576106938368

You have a great camp as well @RdosAnjosMMA. Nothing but respect for you and your team. See you in January! Oss 🤘🏼 https://t.co/Kq2Ptf3czn

— Michael Chiesa (@MikeMav22) November 22, 2019

Both men are former members of the lightweight division, with dos Anjos actually being a former champion at 155. Chiesa, on the other hand, struggled with the weight cut, but has enjoyed a nice run of success ever since making the move up.

“Maverick” made his debut at the weight class by going head to head with the legend that is Carlos Condit, finishing him via a kimura submission. He went on to beat Diego Sanchez via unanimous decision, but now, he’ll be faced with going up against a genuine contender.

While dos Anjos may have lost three of his last four fights, all of them came against world class fighters in the form of Leon Edwards, Colby Covington and Kamaru Usman. He did manage to see off the challenge of Kevin Lee, though, who actually beat Chiesa back in June 2017.

It certainly seems as if dos Anjos is going to be heading into this one as the favorite but even with that being the case, Chiesa isn’t the sort of guy you can count out.

One thing is for sure: fans who are heading to Raleigh early next year for the card are certainly in for a treat.

Who do you think will when Rafael dos Anjos and Michael Chiesa collide in Raleigh? 

This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 11/22/2019.