Who Should Pettis Fight Next?

[mercos]

Anthony Pettis is apparently now in the mix for a possible shot at Jose Aldo for the Featherweight le. Pettis was supposed to get a shot at the Lightweight le upon entry into the UFC, as he was the reigning WEC champion when that outfit was folded into the UFC. That never came to fruition, but after losing his first bout to Clay Guida, Pettis has been on a tear and has been promised a shot at the Lightweight le again.

Which le fight would you guys prefer? Personally, I'd rather see Pettis rematch Ben Henderson. He was the last guy to beat Bendo, and their first fight was a classic. Both fighters have improved since then, and the rematch would be thrilling. Henderson is currently set to fight Gilbert Melendez next, so the rematch for the le may not even be possible, though I believe Henderson will emerge victorious from that scrap.

A fight with Aldo would be good as well, but I think Aldo would be a heavier favorite over Pettis than Henderson would be. I don't see Pettis beating Aldo. In fact, I don't think anyone is beating Aldo in stand up battle at 145 or 155. It is going to take one of the stronger wrestlers at 155 to unseat him IMO. Pettis does not fit that criteria.

[djohn14]

I think he deserves a shot at either one honestly. At 145 Ricardo Lamas was the only other option, so I dont have a problem with it. I would have rather seen the rematch with Benson, but it is what it is, and Im not complaining.

[dbreiden83080]

Good thread and some good thoughts.. I would like to see Pettis take another fight at 55 or wait for Benson to fight Gilbert and have that rematch.. It would be an epic storyline given the action packed first fight they had and Pettis getting his hand raised. I am a little surprised the UFC is so willing to let him go down to 45 as if he loses to Aldo a lot of the juice that rematch with Benson would provide will be gone IMO. The Aldo fight appears to be a done deal and i suppose if he beats Aldo we could have a superfight champion vs champion down the line like BJ/GSP 2 was.. However i am with you in that i think Aldo will win that fight and Pettis goes back to 55 with less juice than he has now..

[txstr1986]

I tend to agree with y'all. A Henderson-Pettis rematch would be awesome (and I don't see Gilbert beating Benson so it would be for the LW belt). If Pettis instead fights Aldo, it will be a great fight but will lack the history of the Henderson-Pettis fight.

Also, I think that Lamas deserves the next shot at Aldo - I'm not such a fan of non-champions moving to a different weight class and immediately getting a le shot, no matter how good they are. And I say that being a huge Chael Sonnen fan...

[Brunodf]

Bendo vs Melendez winner