Gilbert Melendez
There had always been some level of intrigue about what would happen if highly regarded champions from other prominent organizations were to fight each other, and one such bout came to fruition in 2013 when Strikeforce lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez signed for the UFC and immediately headed into a title encounter with former WEC and current UFC lightweight champion Ben Henderson.
Unfortunately it didn’t prove to be a thriller, with Henderson in particular setting out with a cautious approach that largely consisted of just scoring points with leg kicks, while Melendez tried to make a fight of it, but found it difficult against such an elusive target.
Nevertheless, when it came down to the judges scorecards, many fans believed that Melendez had done enough to edge out a victory, including the FOX commentators that night, Brian Stann and Chael Sonnen, but the judges ultimately handed Henderson a split decision victory (48-47 x2, 47-48).
“Sometimes it actually makes it a little bit harder knowing that everyone thinks I did win,” Melendez said after the dust had settled on the show.
