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UFC 150: Top Contenders for Benson Henderson’s Lightweight Title

Benson Henderson defeated Frankie Edgar at UFC 150 to retain his lightweight belt, and now that he’s beaten the former champ twice, it’s time to start looking around for his next fight. The fight went the distance and was close with Henderson squeaking…

Benson Henderson defeated Frankie Edgar at UFC 150 to retain his lightweight belt, and now that he’s beaten the former champ twice, it’s time to start looking around for his next fight.

The fight went the distance and was close with Henderson squeaking out a victory by split decision. It was easily one of the more exciting fights this year.

So what’s next for the lightweight champ?

Here are some of the top contenders in Henderson’s weight class that could give him a run for his money in the Octagon.

Frankie Edgar

With two close fights going to decision, Edgar is clearly a worthy competitor for Henderson, but he won’t get another shot this soon.

However, Edgar is still in a special class of fighters in his division, and he has the ability to ascend to the top again.

Look for Edgar to be right back in the title hunt within a year, and as long as Henderson holds on to the belt, look for a third installment of the main event at UFC 150.

Nate Diaz

Diaz is on a hot streak, having won his last three fights all by a pretty convincing margin.

After making quick work of Takanori Gomi by submission in the first round, Diaz moved on to fight Donald Cerrone in a match that went the distance. But it wasn’t as close as a decision would dictate, and Diaz picked up the unanimous victory.

His most impressive win came against Jim Miller, as Diaz was the first fighter to stop Miller in his career.

What’s more intriguing is that Miller was able to go the distance with Henderson last year while Diaz was able to stop Miller early. From that standpoint alone, Diaz seems like a worthy competitor and most likely will get the first crack at Henderson.

Anthony Pettis

Pettis has already accomplished what no man in the UFC has yet: He beat Henderson. The fight happened in December of 2010 with Pettis grabbing the unanimous decision.

That in itself makes it absolutely necessary that these two square off once again. However, Pettis did have surgery earlier in the year, but he could be ready to go by the end of the summer.

It looks like Pettis might have a match upcoming with Donald Cerrone when he returns, but that’s just the type of fight Pettis needs to warm-up for a potential title match sometime down the road.

Regardless, keep an eye on Pettis as he makes the case for a crack at the belt.

Gray Maynard

Maynard had two cracks at the lightweight belt when Edgar was the champ—one result was a draw, the other saw Maynard get stopped in the third round.

But such close contests with the former champ makes it likely that Maynard will be considered for another title shot sometime down the road, if not now.

He recently beat Clay Guida by a split decision and has an impressive 11-1-1 career record with the loss and the draw both coming against a champion.

Maynard has already proven he can hang with the best, and if he was able to go the distance with Edgar, he could very well do the same against Henderson.

Gilbert Melendez

Also considered one of the best lightweights on the planet, Melendez is currently in Strikeforce and doesn’t appear to be leaving anytime soon.

So that leaves one option if you want to see Melendez in the Octagon: Kidnap him.

In all seriousness, Melendez and Henderson would be an epic showdown between two undisputed champs, easily making it the fight of the year in many circles.

Melendez has won his last seven fights and it’s clear he is the class of his weight division in Strikeforce. With few opponents left to fight, it’s time to make Melendez-Henderson a reality.

Wishful thinking, I know.

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UFC 150 Results: 4 Fights to Make After Henderson vs. Edgar 2

Well, that was something.This was one of those cases where a fight card that looked somewhat underwhelming on paper ended up (mostly) delivering in full on fight night. Obviously, there were a few dull spots; the Jake Shields/Ed Herman grapple-fes…

Well, that was something.

This was one of those cases where a fight card that looked somewhat underwhelming on paper ended up (mostly) delivering in full on fight night.

Obviously, there were a few dull spots; the Jake Shields/Ed Herman grapple-fest springs to mind. But by and large, UFC 150 delivered a night chock-full of action, from the preliminary card all the way to the incredibly close main-event title fight.

Let’s take a look at what’s next for some of the winners and losers from UFC 150.

BENSON HENDERSON vs. NATE DIAZ

If Frankie Edgar had defeated Henderson in the main event, I would’ve been using this space to call for a third fight between the pair. And I’m almost inclined to do it anyway, just because I’d love to see those two outstanding competitors face off in endless fights between now and the end of time.

Henderson and Edgar are incredible fighters, and both of their bouts were intriguing chess matches. And I know that a bunch of folks were up in arms that Henderson was awarded the decision. I had the fight scored 48-47 for Henderson, but I was also aware going into the decision that any of the rounds except for the first could have gone either way.

This wasn’t a robbery—it was a close fight, and any number of scorecard variations would have been fine.

So, what’s next? We already know the answer to that question. Henderson has a date in the not-so-distant future with Nate Diaz, and that should be one hell of a fight. As for Edgar?

FRANKIE EDGAR vs. CHAD MENDES

Edgar’s moving to featherweight. No question about it at this point. And since Aldo already has a booking with Erik Koch—and since Edgar is coming off two consecutive losses—it makes sense to get Edgar in there with a top-flight featherweight.

Chad Mendes fits that bill. He’s a contender, and he’s coming off a big win over the hapless Cody McKenzie. Mendes deserves a contender, and Edgar is an instant contender by virtue of being the biggest name in the entire division despite not having actually fought there yet.

Better yet, it sets up a big fight for Aldo in early 2012.

DONALD CERRONE vs. ANTHONY PETTIS

That was one of the best one-minute fights I’ve ever seen in my life.

Seriously. It’s not even arguable, really. Cerrone vs. Guillard was as full of action and drama as anything I’ve seen out of a short fight in the history of the UFC. From Guillard nearly becoming the first person to knock out Cerrone, to “Cowboy” rebounding and becoming the first person to knock out Guillard, everything about this fight was awesome, and in every way possible.

And now? It’s time for the fight that’s been brewing in the media and on Twitter over the past two weeks: Cerrone vs. Anthony Pettis. Two top-flight lightweights with a serious grudge and a whole lot of skill. Put them in the cage in November or December—perhaps on FOX?—and then give the winner a crack at the Henderson/Diaz victor.

I’m getting chills just thinking about it.

JAKE SHIELDS vs. YUSHIN OKAMI

I know what you’re thinking: Putting these two grappling-heavy fighters in the cage against one another is a recipe for pay-per-view disaster. And you might be right.

But there’s also a different scenario that could play out. When you put two grapplers in the cage against one another, a different story of fight sometimes plays out. With the grappling and clinching negated, each fighter is often forced to rely on a different facet of his game. It makes for a markedly more entertaining fight than what you’d expect.

Neither Shields or Okami had the best performance of their careers at UFC 150, but both are still forces to be reckoned with at middleweight. They may not be the kind of forces you actually enjoy watching, but they’re still forces all the same. Pairing them up might not make for an exciting fight, but it would help create another 185-pound contender.

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UFC 150 Results: Questions Heading into UFC 151 Jon Jones vs Dan Henderson Card

UFC 150 is in the books and Benson Henderson has retained his title in what will be a highly debated decision.Now that the lightweight picture has been decided and we know that Henderson will face Nate Diaz in his next title defense, we can begin to lo…

UFC 150 is in the books and Benson Henderson has retained his title in what will be a highly debated decision.

Now that the lightweight picture has been decided and we know that Henderson will face Nate Diaz in his next title defense, we can begin to look toward the next UFC event, UFC 151, which will take place on September 1 from the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas.

First, the full results from UFC 150:

Benson Henderson defeats Frankie Edgar via split decision (46-49, 48-47, 48-47)

Donald Cerrone defeats Melvin Guillard via knockout at 1:16 of Round 1

Jake Shields defeats Ed Herman via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)

Yushin Okami defeats Buddy Roberts via TKO at 3:05 of Round 2

Max Holloway defeats Justin Lawrence via TKO at 4:49 of Round 2

Dennis Bermudez defeats Tommy Hayden via submission at 4:43 of Round 1

Michael Kuiper defeats Jared Hamman via TKO at 2:16 of Round 2

Erik Perez defeats Ken Stone via TKO at 0:17 of Round 1

Chico Camus defeats Dustin Pague via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 29-28)

Nik Lentz defeats Eiji Mitsuoka via TKO at 3:45 of Round 1

Now, on to the questions we have heading into UFC 151.

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UFC 150 Interview: Benson Henderson ‘We Know Each Others Dance Moves’

Benson Henderson made waves in the WEC when he captured their lightweight title. All signs were pointing to him becoming the next great lightweight. Then he suffered a defeat at the hands of Anthony Pettis at WEC 53 and some in the MMA community though…

Joke was on them as Henderson reeled off some truly impressive wins in the octagon before getting a shot at Frankie Edgar’s lightweight title. His victories over Jim Miller and Clay Guida were some of the best scraps of 2011 and truly showed that he was the number one contender.

He faced Frankie Edgar at UFC 144 in Japan earlier this year and took a unanimous decision over the former champ. It was a decision that firmly cemented Henderson at the top of the lightweight mountain. But it wasn’t always like that for him.

“I didn’t know that I would be the UFC champion. Did I intend on being the UFC champ? Yeah, absolutely. I didn’t exactly see myself doing this as a full time job or career but I certainly intended for it when I started down this path.”

Henderson not only trains at the MMA Lab, he also is a part owner. He’s one of the few fighters that truly doesn’t allow himself to get distracted with the party lifestyle that so many have fallen victim to in the past. In fact, he’s one of the most notorious gym rats in the entire sport.

He doesn’t just show up to the gym when he has a fight. He is in there every single day working to improve himself and all aspects of his game. This also allows him to stay within the boundaries of fight shape which so many others lose in-between bookings.

“I’m always in the gym, six hours a day. I’m in the gym all the time, six days a week. It’s one of the reason why my training camps are a little bit shorter. My training camp is five weeks long because I only need four weeks to get into fighting shape,” Henderson told Bleacher Report. “A lot of guys need to get back in shape, I’m in the gym all the time so I don’t really lose my conditioning as much as other people.”

His fight with Edgar is a rematch from an absolute classic at UFC 144. Henderson came out victorious and captured the UFC lightweight title in the process. After spending so much time in the cage with Edgar, it’s apparent that they know a lot about each other’s nuances. But Henderson isn’t anticipating the same fight.

“Obviously it was a little bit different preparing for this fight. Pretty much every fight is the same. It’s a fight so you just have to go in there and be prepared and have fun,” Henderson said. “Having spent 25 minutes with him already, he’s going to know some of my dance steps and I’m going to know some of his. So it’s about who got better at what they do and who improved those dance steps.”

The UFC 144 bout saw Henderson have a bit of a hometown advantage with much of his mother’s side of the family in attendance. Henderson anticipates that he’ll have a similar showing against Edgar in Denver. After all, he is a Colorado native and cut his teeth in the Denver MMA scene.

“I never really thought about that. I was born in Colorado Springs and I spent a lot of time there. I moved to Denver when I first started training in MMA full time. So I have a lot of roots up there in the MMA community. I also have buddies from college up there so yeah I’ll feel just fine in Denver.”

Benson Henderson looks to defend his UFC lightweight title against Frankie Edgar at UFC 150 tonight on Pay Per View.

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Henderson vs. Edgar 2: Most Likely Outcomes of Lightweight Title Rematch

Frankie “The Answer” Edgar and Benson “Smooth” Henderson’s headlining rematch at UFC 150 is one of the most difficult fights to predict in recent memory. Anything can and will happen under the lights of the Pepsi Center in…

The air will be thin at the mile-high arena, but you’ll be able to taste the tension in the air as the fight begins.

At UFC 144, back in February, Henderson edged off the relentless and determined Edgar in order to steal his prized lightweight championship. The smaller Edgar was seemingly outmatched physically and could not do enough to turn the tide against the imposing attack of his opponent.

Since then, Edgar has had plenty of time to study and make adjustments from where he went wrong just six months ago. This added time to reflect and game-plan, coupled with his never-ending desire and passion, will make things different this time around in Denver.

That is for sure.

But what is the outcome most likely going to be? Will “The Answer” overcome the physical superiority of Henderson? Can he outlast him for five rounds and sway the judges in his favor this time? Or will he have to make an impact and take the decision out of the judge’s hands?

Let’s take a look at the three most likely outcomes of this pay-per-view grudge match.

Going the distance

Henderson has proven he has the strength, stamina and quickness to counteract the fast attack and wrestling of Edgar and gain the edge in the judges’ points system.

If he can withstand another five rounds of Edgar’s attack, he will likely be able to do enough on the scorecard to retain the lightweight championship in this one.

If this happens: Henderson will retain the title via decision.

Early-Round Winner by TKO

Edgar may not be a favorite to knock out Henderson because of the size and perceived strength gap between the two, but if someone scores an early-round, surprise TKO, it’s going to be Edgar.

The Answer is going to unleash everything at his disposal to try and avenge his title loss after a fifth-round decision.

If this happens: Edgar will be the one to do it.

Submission

Edgar has a more effective mat game and is the better of the two in taking down his opponent. If he can keep Henderson on the mat, unlike in their first bout, he may be able to secure a surprise submission and shock the world.

Henderson isn’t going to go down easily and if he does, it’s going to be even harder for Edgar to keep the stronger and bigger fighter on the mat. However, The Answer’s striking and relentless attack could set up a situation in which Henderson is jeopardized and in a position to be submitted by the former champ.

If this happens: It will be Edgar who sneaks in a surprise submission.

Follow me on Twitter @BigHoagowski.

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UFC 150 Live Blog: Results and Play-by-Play

UFC 150 hits the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado tonight for a fantastic night of fights. In the main event, Benson Henderson puts his lightweight title on the line against former champion Frankie Edgar. This is a rematch of their absolutely classic f…

In the co-main event, former teammates Donald Cerrone and Melvin Guillard square off to take one step closer to their lightweight title aspirations. It should be a great bout between two hard-hitting lightweights who have been on the cusp of a title shot. A win could put one of them back in those discussions.

Main Card on Pay-Per-View

Benson Henderson vs. Frankie Edgar

Donald Cerrone vs. Melvin Guillard

Jake Shields vs. Ed Herman

Yushin Okami vs. Buddy Roberts

Justin Lawrence vs. Max Holloway

Preliminary Bouts on FX

Dennis Bermudez vs. Tommy Hayden

Jared Hamman vs. Michael Kuiper

Ken Stone vs. Erik Perez

Dustin Pague vs. Chico Camus

Preliminary Bouts on Facebook

Nik Lentz vs. Eiji Mitsuoka

UFC 150 Start Times

Preliminary bout on Facebook: 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT

Preliminary bouts on FX: 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT

Main card on pay-per-view: 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m PT

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com