Surprises and Disappointments is a column featured on MMAOddsbreaker.com after every UFC event, highlighting three fighters who had surprising performances and three fighters who disappointed. Here are the three surprises and the three disappointments from UFC Fight Night 42. Surprises Benson Henderson — He was favored to defeat Rustam Khabilov, but I don’t think anyone thought he would look so good. Having never finished an opponent in the Octagon in three years of being in it, Henderson managed to get a sweet submission on Khabilov in round four after being down 29-28 heading into it. It was a terrific finish by Henderson, and it reaffirms him as one of the top contenders at 155lbs. Bryan Caraway — He’s one of the most hated fighters by the fans, but Bryan Caraway continues to find ways to win. Despite being at a striking and wrestling disadvantage to Erik Perez, Caraway still found a way to get his opponent’s back and earn yet another victory via rear-naked choke. It was a nice win for Caraway, and it puts him near the top 10 of the UFC bantamweight division. Lance Benoist — Despite missing nearly two years of action, Lance Benoist returned to the Octagon with a nice decision victory over Bobby Voelker. Sure, it wasn’t the most exciting fight ever, but Benoist got the job done and anytime someone can win a fight after nearly two years off it’s impressive. Only 25 years of age, Benoist still has some potential to make a run at 170lbs in the UFC. Disappointments Erik Perez — While his opponent surprised as an underdog, Erik Perez disappointed as a favorite. The young Mexican fighter was beating Bryan Caraway in the standup but for some reason kept going for takedowns and it cost him dearly as he was submitted in the second round with a rear-naked choke. Perez is only 24, but he has major issues to work on if he ever wants to be a contender at 135lbs. Sergio Pettis — He won his fight, but there’s no doubt Sergio Pettis disappointed in his decision win over Yaotzin Meza. He just wasn’t active at all and in the third round was taken down by an inferior opponent and he had to sweat the decision on the judges’ cards. He’s only 20 so he has a lot of time left to improve, but he needs to start doing more if he wants people to jump back on his bandwagon. Jake Lindsey — There were some smart minds picking Jake Lindsey to defeat Jon Tuck, but instead Lindsey laid an egg and put on one of them worst performances of the year by any UFC fighter. He was completely beaten down for nearly 15 minutes and in the third round tapped out to a very strange strike on the ground by Tuck. He took the fight on short notice so he should be given some slack, but Lindsey did not look good at all and doesn’t seem like a fighter with much of a future in the UFC.
