WEC's Joseph Benavidez: “I'm Definitely the No. 1 Contender”

Joseph Benavidez has been the hottest name in MMA since trouncing former bantamweight champ Miguel Torres at WEC 47 two weeks ago. 5thRound.com caught up with JoeB135 over the weekend and the stud didn’t pull any punches when asked where he stood on the 135-pound totem pole.

“I think there’s no one out there more deserving of a title shot than me,” Benavidez told us in an exclusive interview. “I’ve fought the champion already, that’s the only reason they wouldn’t do the title shot. I think I’m definitely the number one contender. I just don’t know if they want to see a rematch.”

Benavidez holds an impressive12-1 professional record. However his only blemish came in a unanimous decision loss at WEC 42 to newly-minted bantamweight champ Dominick Cruz.

Although their initial meeting didn’t go as planned, the Alpha Male-trained athlete claims he’s a completely different fighter than when they squared-off last August and for that reason, the 25-year-old believes the outcome will be entirely different if he was granted a rematch.

“Well for one, I’d win,” Benavidez said of a potential mulligan against the reigning title holder. “Dominick Cruz is a great opponent, he has an amazing style. I think it’d be a great fight, it’d be one of the best fights. We’d get to go 5Rounds with our pace. I think it would be one of the best fights that you could ask for.

“I just know I could go out there and beat him.”

Watch Benavidez’ exclusive interview with 5thRound.com as he addresses his utter destruction of Torres, the future of the bantamweight division, as well as a potential rematch with Cruz:

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