In MMA, the idea of a divisional no man’s land is pretty straightforward.
Basically, it means you can beat everyone in your division except the champion. You lose one fight to that person, you work your way back to a rematch, you come up short in that second one and then you’re stuck.
The unwritten rule is two losses disqualify you from a third chance. If the person you’ve lost to those two times is the champ, your primary recourse is to hope for a different champ.
Junior dos Santos currently finds himself in this predicament, having lost twice to UFC heavyweight champ Cain Velasquez. And on the other end of the weight spectrum, Joseph Benavidez has this issue in the flyweight division.
Though it’s good in that it means you’ve won a lot of fights and are very good at fighting, it’s bad because you’ve hit a celling. Once presumed to be the division’s inaugural champion in 2012, Benavidez (21-4) has lost twice to reigning champ Demetrious Johnson. Those also are the only two fights he’s lost as a flyweight, but that may not be of great comfort.
It’s not a good position to be in. Admirably, Benavidez reflects on the predicament with candor.
“I can’t call out the No. 6 or the No. 8 guy in the rankings,” Benavidez said in an exclusive interview with Bleacher Report. “I’m fighting twice a year, but I’m in my prime. I want to fight as much as I can. If they can’t think of anyone else, call me.”
That’s where Benavidez is as he heads into his fight with John Moraga on Saturday at UFC 187. But he realized there’s only so much he can do about it.
One of the things he can do? He can move back to 135 pounds, where he began his career.
“One person I lost to at 135 was the champion at the time, Dominick Cruz,” Benavidez said. “But I don’t want people to think I’m not 100 percent focused on what I have to do.”
He is focused, and he’s favored to win.
By a substantial margin.
Benavidez has been a well-rounded fixture for the UFC for years, first in bantamweight and now at flyweight.
I hope I do, working hard at it! I was prepared to the best of my ability last time but mma crazy. https://t.co/zGwCDzGEv9
— Joseph Benavidez (@JoeJitsu) May 20, 2015
And flyweight is a division that not only sees him in no man’s land but also has its own set of more overarching troubles. Plagued by low public interest, indicated by poor TV ratings and pay-per-view buys, people have sometimes criticized Johnson for lacking charisma.
Benavidez has some criticism for them.
“Our first job is to go out there and fight—not to do backflips or have a mustache,” Benavidez said. “That’s cool, but our job is to fight. [John] Dodson would give him an excellent rematch. No one does it better than DJ. … People should respect him, especially if you lost to him, but that’s how it goes.”
Now, he has to just go out there and take care of business against Moraga.
“He’s one of the guys in the division that always goes in there and bang,” Benavidez said.
After that, he’ll think about future moves. Where it will be is an open question, but if it gets him out of no man’s land, all the better.
“Whatever keeps me busy,” Benavidez said. “I’m just looking for matches that make sense.”
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com