Benavidez and Figueiredo (right) (photo via YouTube)

By FCF Staff

Following their fight in February, which ended in controversial fashion, Joseph Benavidez admits he’s not a fan of Deiveson Figueiredo.

The flyweights were booked to fight on February 29th for the vacant, flyweight title. But, since Figueiredo missed weight for the bout, he was ineligible to win the belt.

That wasn’t the only issue, however, that impacted the bout. Figueiredo stopped Benavidez in the second round, but moments before, the fighters had accidentally clashed heads, and the latter took to the worst of it.

Ahead of their rematch this Saturday at UFC Fight Island 2, Benavidez reported that he has some issues with Figueiredo, and that’s not something he’s used to feeling about an opponent (quotes via MMA Fighting).

It really does,” Benavidez said. “Just the fact that he’s kind of like a villain to everybody I think. I don’t like him. That is rare for me. It’s not personal cause I don’t really know him, know him personally and everything. I definitely don’t like him.

“It definitely makes you want to go out there and hurt someone worse because when you fight, you win … you hurt him by proxy winning an MMA fight. You kind of have to. It’s one of those things where I want to put this guy away. I want to shut him up. I just don’t like him and that rarely happens in my career.”

“The only people I haven’t liked and felt like I wanted to do that, the same similar way that I could compare was Miguel Torres back in the WEC. Ruined him. Then Henry Cejudo, beat him, [that] was his last loss. It was a great fight as well.”

Prior to facing Figueiredo (18-1), the 35 year-old Benavidez (28-6) had won consecutive fights with Alex Perez, Dustin Ortiz and Jussier Formiga.

Saturday’s event is taking place on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi.