The UFC’s annual Super Bowl weekend card has just gotten bigger, pitting Dan Henderson against former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida, according to none other than “Hendo” himself.
Henderson, a former Strikeforce and PRIDE champion, made the announcement on Spike TV’s MMA Uncensored Live (via MMA Junkie) on Thursday night.
The former Olympic-level wrestler was originally scheduled to face current UFC 205-pound title holder Jon Jones at UFC 151, but Henderson withdrew from the event on eight days notice due to a knee injury.
“Bones” was offered a last-minute replacement fight with Hendo‘s long-time friend and training partner, Chael Sonnen, but he declined the bout and the card was ultimately cancelled.
At that point, UFC president Dana White made it clear that he planned on having Machida rematch Jones at UFC 152. Jones choked out “The Dragon” with a standing guillotine choke in the second round of their UFC 140 encounter.
However, Machida declined the opportunity and the title shot at UFC 152 went to Vitor Belfort. Jones won via a keylock submission in Round 4, though “The Phenom” gave him an early scare with an armbar.
After the smoke settled, Sonnen ended up the biggest winner. He earned a coaching slot opposite Jones for the next season of “The Ultimate Fighter,” culminating in a title shot on April 27.
If Henderson vs. Machida does materialize, it will be Hendo‘s first fight in about 14 months, last winning a unanimous decision over Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at UFC 139. The back and forth battle earned 2011 “Fight of the Year” honors from multiple MMA outlets.
Machida last competed at UFC on FOX 4 in August, earning “Knockout of the Night” honors against Ryan Bader.
UFC 156 is scheduled for Feb. 2 at the Mandalay Bay Event Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, with a featherweight title match between Frankie Edgar and Jose Aldo confirmed as the headlining bout.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com