Lightweight kingpin Rafael dos Anjos boasts he would crush 'small,' 'fake' champion Conor McGregor

Conor McGregor has already declared war on the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Lightweight division, vowing to claim the 155-pound strap as soon as he clears out the Featherweight class.

While some Lightweight standouts would welcomed his move up, current division kingpin, Rafael dos Anjos, isn't taking the Irishman's threats serious. That's because he doesn't take "Notorious" all that serious.

Why?

Because as "RDA" recently told FOX Sports, McGregor is simply a "small man" who he would easily crush.

"I don't care about (Conor) McGregor. He's a small guy, I would crush him. If he wants to take my title I would love to crush him, but right now I don't think he's a big challenge. There are bigger names to beat."

Hmmm ... sound familiar? Nonetheless, McGregor isn't shy about flaunting the cash he's earned knocking heads inside the Octagon.

It's something you won't see the Brazilian champion doing -- he's more concerned with fighting top competition and earning his stripes rather than cashing big checks and taking an easy road.

"I have honor on my belt. Not a fake belt. I have a real belt because I fought against the best. That's why I think for me it's most important. Right now my focus is on this Cerrone fight, but then I want Khabib (Nurmagomedov) because I want to clean that loss off my record. More important is to fight against the best. You do it the hard way, you can't do it the easy way. That's what's most important for me. I go back home, before I go to sleep, I put my head on my pillow, I know I fought against the best, that's the most important thing to me."

One of the big names dos Anjos does have in his sights is Donald Cerrone, a striking specialist who he will battle in the main event of UFC on FOX 17 on Dec. 19, 2015, in Orlando, Florida. As for McGregor, he has a big fish to fry himself, as he is booked to take on 145-pound champion Jose Aldo in the headlining bout of UFC 194 on Dec. 12, 2015 ,in Las Vegas, Nevada.

And who knows, if the stars align, "RDA" and "Notorious" could find themselves staring each other down inside the Octagon down the road.

First things first though ...