UFC on FOX: Ben Henderson is the Next UFC Lightweight Champion

Ben Henderson looked unstoppable at last night's UFC on FOX event, outworking Clay Guida and roughing up “The Carpenter” in all areas of the fight.

After three straight wins over Mark Bocek, Jim Miller and Guida, Henderson as earned his shot at Frankie Edgar and the UFC lightweight title at UFC 144 in Japan.

On paper, this looks like another fight where Edgar’s heart and determination could push him over the top, but Henderson is such a grimy fighter that Edgar might not be able to gut this one out.

On the feet, Edgar has a huge advantage over “Bendo” and could easily out-box the former WEC champion and walk away with an unanimous decision win.

But the second that Edgar gets within clinching distance of Henderson, it turns into a completely different fight.

Henderson showed off an incredible ability to control and rough up Guida against the cage, and while Guida isn’t a very big lightweight, Edgar is probably the only person in the weight class smaller than Guida.

If Henderson is able to get the smaller Edgar against the cage, it will be incredibly hard for “The Answer” to escape, and that will ultimately lead to Henderson dragging Edgar to the mat.

Once again, Edgar’s disadvantage will be his lack of size, and the pressure that Henderson will put on him will be unlike anything he has ever encountered.

Neither fighter has proved that they can finish on a consistent basis against top competition, so this fight is unlikely to end before the judges render their decision, which puts the fight in Henderson’s favor once again.

Henderson has the ability to control where the fight takes place and after a few rounds of grinding out Edgar, Frankie will have no choice but to look for the finish.

Unfortunately, Edgar doesn’t have the heaviest hands and Henderson is pretty close to unsubmittable, leaving Edgar on the wrong side of a unanimous decision.

Edgar is one of the best fighters in the world, and there is no one else at 155 lbs that I can see beating him, but styles make fights, and Henderson has the perfect style to take out “The Answer” and become the new UFC lightweight champion.

Be sure to stay tuned to Bleacher Report for all things UFC on FOX. B/R is your home for post-fight analysis of the Cain Velasquez vs. Junior dos Santos fight card. Also, be sure to check out our fight card hub page for news and opinion on the entire UFC on FOX fight card.