Benson "Smooth" Henderson continued to roll over anyone not named "Anthony Pettis" at UFC Fight Night 42 Saturday. In the main event of last night's UFC Fight Night 42: Henderson vs. Khabilov, former lightweight champ Benson "Smooth" Henderson faced off against Russian born sambo fighter Rustan Khabilov in a fight that showed the smooth one deserves to stay in the title mix at 155, while original Ultimate Fighter Diego The Dream Sanchez attempted to bring back his Nightmare persona for a home town brawl against Ross Pearson, earning a controversial split decision in the co-headling fight. UFC Fight Night 42 saw the main card open with a Bantamweight scrap between Bryan Caraway and rik Pérez. Caraway controlled in the opening stanza, while Pérez came out with an energetic takedown early in the second only to see it reversed by his opponent. Caraway then managed to control from his opponent's back, sinking in a choke to win the fight at the 1:52 minute mark of the second round. Caraway seems to finally be shrugging off the moniker of "Miesha Tate's boyfriend" and making his own mark. He's now won two straight, and four of five in the octagon. In the second fight of the night, lightweights Yves Edwards and Pitor Hallmann met. Early in the first, Edwards had his eye gouged, bringing about a time out for him to recover. When the action resumed, Hallmann controlled via wrestling, while Edwards outstruck him in a very close first round. Between rounds, Edwards' corner advised him to avoid knees which were allowing Hallman to set up takedowns. However the second started with a second eye gouge from Hallmann, stopping the fight again and resulting in a warning from referee Mario Yamasaki. A third eye gouge followed, this time with Edwards the perpretrator. I can't recall when the last time eye pokes were that bad, but it's time for the UFC to really take another look at the issue, as Bellator MMA has in providing fighters with modified gloves. In the end, after all the breaks for recovery, Hallman managed to sink a rear naked choke in thanks to solid wrestling control in the third round and take home the victory. Next up was a second lightweight clash, between Rafael dos Anjos and Jason High. dos Anjos kept a steady pace and eventually rocked High in the second with a 1-2 combo before moving in for the ground and pound TKO victory. Former Flyweight title contender and Ultimate Fighter winner Jon Dodson was up next, taking on former title challenger John Moraga in a bout with potential title impact. Dodson, a hometown favourtie in Albuquerque, started out strong, bouyed no doubt by the loud crowd, but was met with a low blow in something of a comical sequence, as Dodson was ready to continue fighting before both his opponent, and referee Mario Yamasaki. Dodson actually wound up hugging Moraga before the action continued. In the second, Dodson looked to be sitting back a little. However, with lightening speed, he turned the fight on its head, and eventually connected with a solid knee to the face of his opponent. Between rounds, as the doctor's judged the nose broken, the fight was called, putting an end to an exciting encounter. It was Moraga's first stoppage loss, in his 17th fight. After the fight, Dodson called for a shot at the winner of UFC 174's Johnson vs. Bagautinov. His ability to finish in a division known for decisions, and his entertainment value on the mic and outside of the ring, likely gets him another crack at the champ, perhaps with one more win. The co-headliner was up next, featuring Diego "The Dream" Sanchez, formerly "The Nightmare" against Ultimate Fighter Season 9 winner Ross Pearson. Sanchez, the original Ultimate Fighter winner, and always a fan favourite, was fighting in his home town, and had promised the Sanchez of old would turn up for the fight. In other words. he was bringing back the Nightmare. That didn't actually come to fruition, however Sanchez stole a split decision thanks to some seriously questionable judging, with one judge giving the bout to Pearson, 30-27, and another giving it to Sanchez, 30-27. There's a serious argument to be made that Pearson won that fight. More than serious. As a Sanchez fan, I fully believe Pearson won that bout. Benson "Smooth" Henderson would continue righting the ship in the evening's main event. Fighting Russian sambo specialist Rustam Khabilov, a fighter with three straight wins in the UFC and powerful takedowns, there was a serious challenge in front of "Bendo" - but one he was favoured to overcome. Still questions arose about how seriously he was taking his opponent (highlighted, perhaps, by Henderson taking "selfies" on his phone at the weigh-ins Friday). The fight played out as expected. Khabilov managed to land a takedown and control the body midway through the first, but struggled landing his trademark suplex. In the second, Henderson took the back and attempted a rear naked choke but couldn't get the finish. Khabilov would escape and return to the feet, and the fight would move up against the cage. By mid-third, both fighters had attempted chokes to no avail. Khabilov continued to take down Bendo, but not control, conversely, Benson managed to consistantly reverse, and make something of it. Round three ended with Benson on top. If the fight had been leaning towards Henderson just slightly, however, early in the fourth, the tide changed to put things fully in his control. The former champ caught Khabilov with strikes to set up a submission, a lead uppercut followed by a left, dropping the Russian and exposing his back. Henderson had sunk in a choke before Rustam knew what hit him, and was choked out, the ref stepping in as Khabilov went to sleep. With this victory, Henderson ensures his name stays in the mix at 155, and another win or two could potentially set up a trilogy fight with Anthony Pettis, the man who has beat him twice. Pettis, however, has been plagued by injury, and has a matchup with Gilbert Melendez to attend to first later this year. Full main card results: LW Benson Henderson defeated Rustam Khabilov via rear naked choke (Round 4 - 1:16) LW Diego Sanchez defeated Ross Pearson via a split decision (27-30, 30-27, 29-28) FW John Dodson defeated John Moraga via TKO (doctor stoppage) (Round 2 - 5:00) LW Rafael dos Anjos defeated Jason High via TKO (Round 2 - 3:36) LW Piotr Hallmann defeated Yves Edwards via rear-naked choke (Round 3 - 2:32) BW Bryan Caraway defeated rik Pérez via rear-naked choke (Round 2 - 1:52)