Let C.B. Dollaway serve as an example of how one can really benefit from letting some rivalries die in the octagon.

In January 2013, Dollaway traveled all the way to Brazil to meet Daniel Sarafian, then fresh off his “Ultimate Fighter: Brazil” stint, at UFC on FX 7. Dollaway came out victorious via split decision. Now, seven fights and more than a half-decade later, Dollaway is set to meet Hector Lombard at Saturday’s UFC 222.

As far as Lombard’s (34-8-1 MMA, 3-6 UFC) well known judo skills go, Dollaway (16-8 MMA, 9-8 UFC) didn’t feel the need to add style-specific training partners. Having faced an Olympic alternate for the U.S. judo team before, Dollaway thinks wrestlers, like himself, tend to find favorable matchups in judokas.

But, thinking of Lombard’s very particular physique, guess who was a key player in camp?

“He’s very short for a middleweight, built very different than most of the guys around me,” Dollaway told MMAjunkie Radio. “I’ve actually been flying Daniel Sarafian – he’s in L.A. now, I’ve been flying him back on the weekends to do my sparring with him. He trained with Hector, knows Hector’s game a little bit and was able to point some things out for me, some dos-and-don’ts.

“He makes a good Hector Lombard. He moves forward. He throws bombs. Fights out of the southpaw position really well. So he’s about the best sparring partner I could get.”

This, of course, isn’t a new partnership. Sarafian, who’s since left the UFC and is now set to have his Absolute Championship Berkut debut, has been training with Dollaway since he first started doing training camps in the U.S. not too long after their fight.

While some harbor ill-will toward their opponents, Dolloway doesn’t think there’s anything remarkable about joining forces with former competition – or almost-competition, for that matter.

That was the case with Francimar Barroso. Dollaway and Barroso were supposed to have met at UFC 203, before a back injury sustained in an elevator accident forced Dollaway to withdraw last minute. Barroso later went to train in Arizona under longtime coach and Team Kimura founder Jair Lourenco – who’s been Power MMA’s head coach for almost two years now.

It was all business as usual for “The Doberman,” who welcomes all the reinforcements he can get.

“The fight world is a small world, so you might be fighting one week and training with him the next,” Dollaway said. “It’s very common. … That’s good, having different partners in there. Everybody has their own little niche and things that they’re good at. It just helps you build your game and helps your team build.”

Saturday’s bout will mark Dollaway’s return to the middleweight division after a light heavyweight stint that lasted exactly one UFC fight: a unanimous-decision win over Ed Herman last July. And while being able to make the weight of his long-time division more easily should be good news, the reason is by no means cause for celebration.

“Originally when I went to light heavyweight, I was struggling a bit to make middleweight,” Dollaway said. “It was about a 10-pound difference. I lost about 10 pounds of muscle due to the injury and not being able to work out as much. And just feel like I can make middleweight a lot easier now, so I’m just giving it another go.”

That is only one of the things that Dollaway got from the elevator accident, which involved a 30-foot drop – three floors – and left him dealing with some permanent back damage and a lawsuit. But the middleweight tries to focus on the fact that, while not 100 percent healed, he still gets to be active.

“It’s as good as it’s going to get,” Dollaway said. “(I’m) still able to do what I do, and I’m just happy for that. (I’m) still kind of hoping to get better, but we are where we’re at. Like I said, I’m still able to compete and just go out and do my best.”

To hear more from Dollaway, check out the video above.

And for more on UFC 222, visit the UFC Rumors section of the site.

MMAjunkie Radio broadcasts Monday-Friday at 1 p.m. ET (10 a.m. PT) live from Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino’s Race & Sports Book. The show is hosted by “Gorgeous” George Garcia, Brian “Goze” Garcia and Dan Tom. For more information or to download past episodes, go to www.mmajunkie.com/radio.