The last time newly crowned UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos was stopped in the Octagon was in 2010 against Clay Guida. 'The Carpenter' broke dos Anjos's jaw in a wild striking exchange which forced the Brazilian to submit in the third round. Since seizing the 155 lbs. title from Anthony Pettis earlier in March at UFC 185, the champ will stop at nothing to retain his golden belt. It'll take more than a broken jaw to stop dos Anjos from giving up his title in the future, as The Kings MMA standout explained to MMAJunkie when he touched down in Mexico City to attend the upcoming UFC 188 pay-per-view:

"Man, it wasn't easy to get my belt, and it will not be easy to take it away from me," dos Anjos said. "People are going to have to kill me in the octagon to take this belt away."

Two weeks prior to his championship showdown with 'Showtime', dos Anjos tore his medial collateral ligament (MCL) in training and is expected to return to combat by the end of the year. When the champ returns, he's scheduled to lock horns with Donald Cerrone. Dos Anjos shutout 'Cowboy' to earn a unanimous decision victory back in 2013 at UFC Fight Night 27 and despite being 1-0 up against Cerrone, the Rio de Janeiro native is not underestimating his former opponent:

"Cerrone is a great, great opponent," dos Anjos said. "Tough guy. We've both been improving a lot since the last fight. I think it's going to be an interesting, great matchup for the fans, but I will make sure I will keep my belt. I'm going to make sure I do a perfect fight camp."

The newly minted champ welcomes Cerrone's tenacious Muay Thai attacks and believes they'll entertain the fans when they clash for the lightweight strap in the future:

"His strategy has not changed that much," dos Anjos said. "But I'm going to fight. He's coming to fight, too. I know that. I like to fight against guys like that. I don't want to fight anybody that just wants to hold you and try and eat the time.

"I like to fight, and I think the fans want to see a good fight, too. I'll be ready. I'm just going to make sure my cardio is on point, my boxing is on point, my muay Thai, ground game, everything. Let's go. Keep this belt."

Although Donald Cerrone is expected to contend for the title in a rematch with Rafael dos Anjos, the Jackson's Submission fighter is eager for a tune-up fight while the Brazilian recovers from injury.