Sergio Pettis will drop to flyweight to meet Ryan Benoit at UFC 185

After flirting with the idea last month, Sergio Pettis will officially be dropping to flyweight to kick of 2015. And on Tuesday, the UFC announced his first fight in the lighter weight class will come against Ryan Benoit.
The two will meet a…

After flirting with the idea last month, Sergio Pettis will officially be dropping to flyweight to kick of 2015. And on Tuesday, the UFC announced his first fight in the lighter weight class will come against Ryan Benoit.

The two will meet at UFC 185, which takes place on March 14 at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.

Once again, Sergio will fight on the same card as his older brother, Anthony Pettis, who is headlining UFC 185 against Rafael dos Anjos.

Sergio Pettis is coming off a unanimous decision victory over Matt Hobar at UFC 181 in December. After the fight the 21-year old Roufusport fighter mentioned he might explore the possibility of moving to 125 pounds. At a lithe 5-foot-6, Pettis could certainly make waves at flyweight, which has a relative dearth of challengers for current champion Demetrious Johnson.

Benoit (7-3) came up short in his UFC debut against Josh Sampo at “The Ultimate Fighter 18” Finale in November. He succumbed to a rear naked choke in the second round. That fight was contested at a catchweight, as Sampo was unable to make the 126-pound flyweight maximum (he came in at 127.5 pounds).
UFC 185 will also showcase a heavyweight bout between Roy Nelson and Alistair Overeem, as well as a flyweight fight between Henry Cejudo and Chris Cariaso.