No. 1 flyweight contender Benavidez offended by place on UFC 225 card

Joseph Benavidez will be treading on new territory at UFC 225, but it's not the type of groundbreaking experience he hoped to be a part of.

Despite sitting in the No. 1 spot of the UFC's flyweight contender rankings, Benavidez (25-4) and his opponent Sergio Pettis (16-3), the fifth-ranked 125-pounder, have been relegated to the Fight Pass early prelims, which won't be televised.

While the card is stacked and might be the best yet in 2018, Benavidez doesn't believe his low placement is warranted as he returns from an 18-month injury layoff on a six-fight winning streak.

"No other person, in any division, with a No. 1 ranking and six wins in a row, would be buried on Fight Pass," Benavidez told ESPN's Brett Okamoto. "What other theory is there to have besides they are snubbing (the flyweight division) or it's something personal toward me?

"You want to be respected by your bosses and peers. I've gone through a lot to get here. I'm doing my job. And that No. 1 ranking next to my name says I'm doing my job better than a good percentage of everyone else. It just doesn't make sense."

One reason for Benavidez's fight getting "buried" could be his pair of losses to flyweight champ Demetrious Johnson, who convincingly beat the 33-year-old in 2013 and has been even better since. The UFC has always been reluctant to book a third matchup between two fighters when one has a 2-0 record over the other, especially in title fights.

Benavidez had hoped that his year-and-a-half away with a torn ACL would allow a new champ to take over so he could get another crack at the belt, but those plans didn't work out at all. Instead, Johnson reeled off two more wins, breaking the record for the most consecutive title defenses (11). Still, Benavidez would like another shot.

"I've always thought that as far as skill goes, it's no question. If you want to have the two best people fight, we're (me and Johnson) gonna have amazing fights," Benavidez said. "I think a sixth fight (with Johnson) would be more marketable than some of the fights he's had to fill a card and defend his title."

The early prelims at UFC 225 will also include former UFC light heavyweight champ Rashad Evans fighting Anthony Smith and former Strikeforce lightweight titleholder Clay Guida squaring off with Charles Oliveira.