Rafael dos Anjos Details Three Knee Surgeries

Rafael dos Anjos is preparing to fight again after a recovery that became far longer and more complicated than anyone expected. The former UFC lightweight champion says the left-knee injury he suffered against Geoff Neal in October 2024 eventually required three operations, and at one point he wondered whether his career had reached its end. Now 41, dos Anjos is healthy enough to accept another assignment. He is scheduled to face Alexander Hernandez at UFC 332 on October 3 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, nearly two years after the Neal bout ended in only 90 seconds.

The length of the absence makes more sense once the medical sequence is laid out. Dos Anjos did not simply wait for one repair to heal. He says the first procedure in Brazil attempted to stitch his meniscus, but the knee failed again four or five months later. A second surgeon in Austin removed the damaged meniscus, yet stitches left in the joint caused inflammation and kept him from fully extending the leg. That problem led to a third operation at the beginning of 2026. For an athlete whose work depends on balance, level changes and absorbing impact, each setback reset the clock.

How the recovery became three surgeries

Dos Anjos traces the problem to his last appearance, a stoppage loss to Neal in October 2024. His left knee gave way early, turning what was meant to be a normal UFC contest into a 90-second ending and the start of a medical ordeal. The initial plan was to preserve the meniscus. When it tore again months later, that approach was abandoned and the tissue was removed during another operation in Texas. The second procedure did not settle matters because retained stitches irritated the knee and restricted its movement. A third surgery early this year was needed before dos Anjos could finally rebuild toward a fight camp.

That history also explains why he seriously considered retirement. Dos Anjos is coming off three consecutive defeats and has already spent years at the highest level, so another failed recovery would have given him an obvious reason to stop. His own reading of the losing streak is more measured: he does not believe those results showed that he could no longer compete, and he still has four bouts on his UFC contract. Choosing to return is therefore not a claim that the setbacks never happened. It is a decision to find out what he can do now that the knee has finally allowed him to train again.

What awaits dos Anjos at UFC 332

The comeback will not be a ceremonial appearance. Dos Anjos brings a 32-17 record into the Hernandez matchup while trying to halt the first three-fight skid of his career. Hernandez is 18-9 and also arrives after a defeat: his loss to Rafa Garcia ended a four-fight winning run. Both men have something concrete to recover, but dos Anjos has the added question of how his repaired knee responds under live pressure after almost two years away. That uncertainty is the central sporting issue of the booking, not the former champion’s name or the number of fights left on his deal.

• The original left-knee injury occurred in the 90-second loss to Geoff Neal in October 2024.
• The first meniscus repair failed after four or five months, forcing a second operation.
• Inflammation and limited extension after the second surgery led to a third procedure early in 2026.
• Dos Anjos is now scheduled to meet Alexander Hernandez at UFC 332 on October 3.

There is no need to turn the return into a promise that dos Anjos will look like the champion he once was. The honest story is already strong enough: three operations nearly persuaded him to walk away, the third finally gave him a usable knee, and he has chosen a real UFC matchup to test the result. October 3 should answer the question that rehabilitation cannot—whether the body that made it through camp can still deliver through a full fight. Until then, the meaningful development is simply that retirement is no longer the only outcome he can see.