Yahoo Sport 
Joseph Benavidez Faces Zack Makovsky in Pivotal UFC 196 Flyweight Bout
Joseph Benavidez will attempt remain in the hunt for the flyweight title when he faces Zack Makovsky at UFC 196.
UFC officials confirmed the bout on Thursday following an initial report by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Benavidez (23-4) is the most successful flyweight in the UFC without a belt. He is 8-2 as a 125-pounder, having only lost, albeit twice, to current champion Demetrious Johnson.
RELATED > Demetrious Johnson Dominates, but UFC Working on Something Special
Having lost twice to Johnson, however, is problematic for Benavidez's hopes for a championship. He last faced Johnson in December of 2013. In the two years since, Benavidez has won four consecutive bouts, wrecking the title runs of Tim Elliott, John Moraga, Dustin Ortiz, and Ali Bagautinov.
That keeps him in the No. 1 contender's spot, but doesn't yet earn him another shot at the belt. That likely will go to former Olympian Henry Cejudo, but Benavidez, as long as he keeps winning, will remain in the title talk, hoping to eventually get another crack at the belt.
A former RFA flyweight champion, Makovsky (19-6) has also found success among the ranks of the UFC flyweights, but is coming off a disappointing run that has seen him lose two of his last three bouts, to Jussier Formiga and John Dodson. So he needs a victory desperately, but a win over the likes of Benavidez would immediately propel his stock back into the ranks of contenders.
UFC 196 features a heavyweight championship rematch between current titleholder Fabrico Werdum and Cain Velasquez. It takes place on Feb. 6 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
