UFC Fight Night 42 staff picks: Benson Henderson, John Dodson get unanimous nods

The UFC’s debut in Albuquerque, N.M., has resulted in a pair of unanimous picks from the MMAjunkie staff, plus a near-unanimous pick. But three other fights are contentious ones, the staff believes.

In the lightweight headliner, which airs on FOX Sports 1 from Tingley Coliseum in Albuquerque, former champion Benson Henderson (20-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) was a unanimous choice from all eight MMAjunkie writers and radio hosts over Rustam Khabilov (17-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC). And John Dodson (15-6 MMA, 4-1 UFC) was a unanimous pick over John Moraga (14-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) in their fight between a pair of recent flyweight title challengers.

Only one staff member sees Jason High (18-4 MMA, 2-2 UFC) pulling the upset of Rafael dos Anjos (20-7 MMA, 9-5 UFC) in their lightweight fight. Dos Anjos is a 3-to-1 favorite in the bout.

In the co-main event, Diego Sanchez (24-7 MMA, 13-7 UFC) got the nod from five of the eight pickers, while fellow “TUF” winner Ross Pearson (15-6 MMA, 7-3 UFC) got a trio of backers. And in the two fights to open the main card, Bryan Caraway (18-6 MMA, 3-1 UFC) got the call from five of eight against Erik Perez (14-5 MMA, 4-1 UFC), while Yves Edwards (42-20-1 MMA, 10-8 UFC) and Piotr Hallmann (14-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC) were split down the middle.

Check out the full picks above.

Additionally, leave your main-card picks below. As usual, MMAjunkie reader “IAMMA” is organizing the MMAjunkie Member Picks, where “Shut_The_Fitch_Up” remains our leader.

For the latest on UFC Fight Night 42, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.