Before he ultimately accepted a de facto title eliminator bout at UFC 158, Johny Hendricks had his sights set on a pair of the welterweight division’s top dogs in Georges St-Pierre and Jake Ellenberger.
But after St-Pierre snubbed “Bigg Rigg” for Nick Diaz, and Rory MacDonald pulled out of his rematch with Carlos Condit, the UFC had to implement its makeshift welterweight tournament.
UFC matchmaker Joe Silva pitted Hendricks with “The Natural Born Killer” in the night’s co-main event, and Ellenberger with former middleweight title challenger Nate Marquardt.
Condit has posed alarming problems in certain areas for every welterweight he’s faced in the UFC, including “GSP.” The Natural Born Killer probably won’t stray from his typical approach of nonstop offense, regardless of where Hendricks tries to take the fight.
The oddsmakers unquestionably had to ponder long and hard to generate a line for a bout between Hendricks and Condit, ranked No. 1 and 2, respectively, by the UFC. In the end, Bovada.com deemed Hendricks a slight 1.45-to-1 favorite (-145).
Here’s a look at three keys to victory for Bigg Rigg.