Ben Henderson calls for Rafael Dos Anjos fight to get him closer to UFC lightweight title shot

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Lightweight Champion Ben Henderson is starting to get the itch to fight again after losing his strap to Anthony Pettis in the main event of UFC 164 back on Aug. 31, 2013.

After suffering his first loss in two years at the hands of "Showtime," ending his seven-fight win streak, "Smooth" wants a bout that will get him closer to another title fight, sooner rather than later.

And the former champ already has a name in mind as he asked for a bout against the red-hot Rafael dos Anjos during his recent appearance on "The MMA Hour."

While Rafael may not have the biggest "name" value in the sport of MMA, he is the owner of a five-fight win streak and a win over a streaking fighter -- who also owns the No. 6 spot on the official UFC rankings -- is the perfect way to sneak your way back to the top, according to Henderson.

His words:

"Were not quite sure who it makes sense to match-up against. Who we want to ask to fight next, we are kind of leaning towards Rafael dos Anjos. We think it would be a good fight with him. It will be entertaining, good fight and the match-up works well for us. I don't know if he has anyone scheduled in (to fight) or not. I think it might work. I agree with Chael Sonnen, you need to have a name in mind. I'm not going to go so low as to say, ‘Oh, I want to beat somebody up because they are so ugly.' I think Rafael would be a good match-up, he's a tough fighter, he's on a five-fight win streak, I think it will be a good match-up."

Indeed, Dos Anjos has been doing well for himself, earning victories over the likes of Evan Dunham and Donald Cerrone during his current run.

When Henderson was asked if he would accept a rematch against former Strikeforce champion Gilbert Melendez -- the man he defated at UFC on FOX 7 -- "Smooth" wasn't too thrilled, saying he isn't interested in rematches unless it absolutely gets him to the title shot.

But, at the end of the day, the brain trust that is Joe Silva, Dana White and Sean Shelby are the ones who make the final call.

Any of you interested in a Henderson vs. Dos Anjos scrap? If not that one, which bout makes more sense for "Bendo's" return to the Octagon?