MMA icon Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson is not a fighter known for showing his emotions, but there was one fight…
MMA icon Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson is not a fighter known for showing his emotions, but there was one fight in particular that brought him to tears.
Interestingly, it wasn’t even one of his own.
Speaking on the JAXXON Podcast, ‘Rampage’ revealed that Michael Bisping’s brutal knockout loss to Dan Henderson at UFC 100 was the first and only time that he had cried during his 20-year career in the fight game.
“I never cried, but me and Bisping, we was like brothers, especially back then,” Jackson revealed on his podcast. “We’re not as close as now because some bullsh*t happened between our managers. Me, [Cheick] Kongo, and Bisping we was all like brothers.
“I never cried when I got knocked out, but when Bisping got knocked out the one time — it was [Dan Henderson] — I cried in the locker room! He got knocked out that bad, I felt really bad. I’m almost ashamed to say it” (h/t MMA Fighting).
Dan Henderson Delivers A knockout That Stands the test of time
Bisping’s second-round knockout loss to ‘Hendo’ is still considered to be one of the UFC’s most vicious KOs of all time.
‘The Count’ earned some redemption seven years later, scoring a unanimous decision victory over Henderson at UFC 204 to retain the middleweight world title, but it did little to erase the memory of the ‘H-Bomb’ that Henderson detonated on Bisping’s chin in the late noughties.
“I felt like, at the time, maybe I didn’t help him good enough in training or something,” Jackson added. “It was something like that, and I just felt bad for him. I remember crying in the locker room like what the f*ck is wrong with me. Why am I crying? I never cry, it’s weird.”
MMA icon Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson is not the kind of fighter known for letting his emotions get the best…
MMA icon Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson is not the kind of fighter known for letting his emotions get the best of him. But looking back on his career, the former light heavyweight world champion recalls breaking down in tears following one fight in particular.
Interestingly enough, it wasn’t even one of his own.
During a recent episode of the JAXXON Podcast, ‘Rampage’ reluctantly revealed that he was overcome with emotion following Michael Bisping’s brutal knockout loss to Dan Henderson at UFC 100 in 2009.
“I never cried, but me and Bisping, we was like brothers, especially back then. We’re not as close as now because some bullshit happened between our managers,” Jackson said. “Me, [Cheick] Kongo, and Bisping we was all like brothers. I never cried when I got knocked out, but when Bisping got knocked out the one time — it was him [looks at Henderson] — I cried in the locker room! He got knocked out that bad, I felt really bad. I’m almost ashamed to say it.”
“I felt like, at the time, maybe I didn’t help him good enough in training or something. It was something like that, and I just felt bad for him. I remember crying in the locker room like what the f*ck is wrong with me. Why am I crying? I never cry, it’s weird” (h/t BJPenn.com).
Henderson’s second-round KO of ‘The Count’ is still considered to be one of the greatest knockouts in the history of the sport. However, Michael Bisping did get a bit of redemption seven years later when the pair ran it back at UFC 204. On that night, the former middleweight titleholder defended his 185-pound crown against ‘Hendo’ via unanimous decision.
Dan Henderson is confident that if he had stepped inside the Octagon with Jon Jones, he would “beat the…
Dan Henderson is confident that if he had stepped inside the Octagon with Jon Jones, he would “beat the f*ck out of him.”
In September 2012, Henderson was scheduled to square off with ‘Bones’ for the light heavyweight championship at UFC 151. Tragically, the former two-division PRIDE FC titleholder tore his MCL days before fight night, forcing him the withdraw from the contest.
Chael Sonnen offered to step in on short notice to save the event, but Jones declined the sudden change in opponent. As a result, the UFC canceled an event for the first time in promotional history.
“That’s the one fight I wish I would’ve had that I never had,” Henderson told ESPN of Jones. “I was probably the most prepared for that fight that I’ve ever been. Just kind of blew my knee out a little bit before the fight. It happened about three, three-and-a-half weeks before the fight when I hurt my knee.
“Still had the idea that I was going to be able to fight. It would’ve been tough, but I would’ve gotten it done. My team kind of talked some sense into me. It just wasn’t a smart idea. That’s the only fight I’ve ever pulled out of after a 20-year career. So I was kind of bummed” (h/t MMA Junkie).
Jones was originally supposed to fight Dan Henderson 21 days earlier at UFC 151
Henderson never received another opportunity to face Jones, but to this day, the legendary knockout artist is confident that he would have been the man to dethrone ‘Bones’ at light heavyweight.
“I was 100 percent certain I was going to beat the f*ck out of him,” Henderson said. “I absolutely would have beat him up in my mind. I was so prepared, not just physically prepared but tactically, my game plan, everything. And being used to longer guys, I just was so ready, and I think all my training partners would attest to that.”
Henderson did compete against Jon Jones four years following their fight that never. The two combat sports icons competed in a submission grappling contest under the Submission Underground banner in 2016. ‘Bones’ walked away with the victory via an arm-triangle choke.
Dan Henderson believes Jon Jones has lost a step ever since the former light heavyweight champion’s doping violation ahead of UFC 200 in 2016. Henderson, a former PRIDE and Strikeforce champion, was on hand at Bellator 290 on Saturday night for the final fight of Fedor Emelianenko’s iconic heavyweight career. Outside of the Kia Forum […]
Dan Henderson believes Jon Jones has lost a step ever since the former light heavyweight champion’s doping violation ahead of UFC 200 in 2016.
Henderson, a former PRIDE and Strikeforce champion, was on hand at Bellator 290 on Saturday night for the final fight of Fedor Emelianenko’s iconic heavyweight career. Outside of the Kia Forum in Inglewood, Inside Fighting caught up with Henderson and asked the California native his thoughts on the highly anticipated UFC heavyweight title fight between Jon Jones and Ciryl Gane at UFC 287.
“I don’t know. I just don’t think Jon Jones was the Jon Jones before he got tested positive a bunch of times. He’s never been the same since. We’ll See. I just think conditioning-wise, he hasn’t been the same since.”
Ahead of his scheduled UFC title fight with Daniel Cormier at UFC 200, Jones tested positive for two banned substances, clomiphene, an anti-estrogen substance, and letrozole, an aromatase inhibitor. As a result, Jones was removed from the bout and handed a 12-month suspension by the United States Anti-Doping Agency. Jones returned just over a year later at UFC 214 for his long-awaited showdown with Cormier. Jones scored a knockout victory, but it was later overturned as Jones once again tested positive for a banned substance. This time it was for Turinabol, an anabolic steroid.
Dan Henderson Compliments Today’s UFC Elite
Specifically asked about the new crop of middleweight stars, Dan Henderson revealed that he is a fan of “some of them” and would have relished the opportunity to share the Octagon with them.
“Some of them have some impressive qualities for sure. They’re excellent fighters. It would have been fun if I’d been able to go against somebody with their style, but not anymore.”
Dan Henderson is a true legend of the sport having won the PRIDE middleweight and welterweight championships before moving on to Strikeforce where he captured the light heavyweight title. Hendo’ has faced a murderers’ row of MMA icons with notable wins over Renzo Gracie, ‘Shogun’ Rua, Vitor Belfort, Wanderlei Silva, Rich Franklin, Michael Bisping, Fedor Emelianenko, and Hector Lombard.
Hello LowKickMMA readers. My name is Paul Heyman Chavy and as the newest member of the team I’ll be taking you on trips down memory lane to simpler times in MMA. Back when fans would sit through a PPV and wonder how far Joe Rogan would unbutton his shirt. Back when Corn Nuts were the […]
Hello LowKickMMA readers. My name is Paul Heyman Chavy and as the newest member of the team I’ll be taking you on trips down memory lane to simpler times in MMA. Back when fans would sit through a PPV and wonder how far Joe Rogan would unbutton his shirt. Back when Corn Nuts were the official nuts of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. And back when Face The Pain was considered outdated by about 10 years.
Throughout the years of the sport there have been an infinite amount of KO’s not only in the UFC but across the entire MMA globe that have quite the story to tell. Whether it be bad blood between fighters. Or even something small like a fighter missing weight, there is a story to be told. And that’s where I come into the picture here at LowKickMMA.
As a fan of the sport since TUF 6 (shoutout Tommy Speer & Mac Danzig) I’ve seen countless amounts of fights in my day. So, with KO Wednesday & Tapout Tuesday I hope to enlighten the newer MMA fans to some of the craziest and greatest moments the sport has to offer from it’s huge fight library. So, without further ado here is the first entry in KO Wednesday!
The year: 2009.
The PPV: UFC 100
The Fight: Dan Henderson vs Michael “The Count” Bisping
The Result: You’re about to find out.
July 11th 2009. 16-year-old Chavy to no avail is doing everything he can to watch UFC 100. UFC 100 was the biggest and baddest card the UFC had ever put together, there was no way I was missing this. I begged my parents to let me buy the card on our DirecTV, they stuffed my takedown attempt. I even went through my tried PS2 games trying to figure out which games I was willing to part with before I would make a trip to GameStop and trade them in. In short, I was down bad. Finally at about 6PM (4 hours before the PPV) my luck changed! I received the text. “Want to go with me to watch UFC at (name redacted)’s house?” Finally! My prayers had been answered I now had a place to watch UFC 100! This must be what it feels like when NFL players get the call that they’ve been drafted.
Anyone who called themselves a fan of the sport at the time remembers just how big this card was.
Brock Lesnar vs Frank Mir II for the Heavyweight Title
GSP vs Thiago Alves for the Welterweight Title
Dan Henderson vs Michael Bisping in a battle of TUF 9 coaches.
These fights alone could’ve headlined the next 3 PPV’s…. but they didn’t they were on the same freaking card!
Couple that triple main event with a stacked preliminary card that included names like Jon Jones, Stephen Bonnar, UFC Hall of Famer Mark Coleman, CB Dolloway, Mac Danzig, Jim Miller, this card truly had it all.
Looking back, it’s crazy to think the Michael Bisping/Dan Henderson fight almost didn’t happen.
That’s right one of the greatest KO’s in UFC history was almost a “what if?”. For the unaware Michael Bisping was already slotted to be a coach on TUF 9. With the upcoming season having the gimmick of “USA vs United Kingdom” it was kind of a given that Bisping would lead the UK team. The coach opposite of him would be TBD up until UFC 93 where Dan Henderson faced off against Rich “Ace” Franklin with the winner being named the USA coach. The close fight saw most scoring it 29-28 in favor of Henderson. However, one judge (who shall remain nameless) made hearts around the world collectively skip a beat when it was read that they scored the fight 30-27 in favor of Rich Franklin. Thankfully the other two judges got it right and Henderson left Dublin, Ireland with the title of “TUF 9 USA Coach”.
TUF portrayed Henderson as a laid back coach. (Orange Cassidy like in his demeanor for all the AEW fans). While Bisping was brash and arrogant (to the surprise of nobody since this was his bread and butter at the time). Bisping spraying DeMarcus Johnson with water and constantly throwing barbs at Henderson with Hendo taking it all in stride. Bisping played the perfect heel.
The season came and went, Team UK had come out victorious with lightweight Ross Pearson & welterweight James Wilks winning the six-figure contract. Henderson had to right this wrong at UFC 100 right? 80’s movies had taught me the bad guy isn’t supposed to win.
From the TUF 9 Finale (which is worth the watch just to see Clay Guida and Diego Sanchez have one of the craziest fights you’ll ever see) let’s fast forward 21 days to UFC 100.
Hendo vs Bisping was second up on the card, (despite what Wikipedia says the Jon Fitch vs Paulo Thiago fight actually took place after the main event) and followed a hell of a scrap between the debuting Yoshiro “Sexyama” Akiyama and Alan “The Talent” Belcher. After months of hype, we were only minutes away from the fight. The opera singing blared through the TV speakers, the tale of the tape hit the screen, and everyone crammed into (name redacted)’s basement was HYPED!
If you asked me back then how I saw the fight going of course I would’ve said Henderson by KO. Every fight Bisping had up until then is how I wanted it to play out. The man was simply that good at being a bad guy. Did I expect that to happen? Not at all. All of Henderson’s fights in the UFC up until then had gone the distance (sans his submission loss to Anderson Silva at UFC 82). I was also unaware of Hendo’s PRIDE fights where he flatlined guys like Akihiro Gono, Wanderlei Silva, and Ryo Chonan. Shame on me for not knowing Dan had dynamite in his hands!
The bell rang and it was time. The fight starts and Henderson is trying his best to make the KO a reality. He tags Bisping, Bisping recovers and starts working the jab. The horn sounds and the fighters make their way to their respective corners. Most MMA media outlets scored the round 10-9 Henderson.
The second round starts and we get some action going, but then with 1:40 left in the round Bisping does exactly what his coaches told him NOT to do. Circle to his left which put him right in the crosshairs of Hendo’s right hand. What happens next not only blew the lid off the Mandalay Bay Center, but also the house out in BFE we were watching the fights at.
Hendo catches Bisping flush on the chin with a right hook, sending him straight to the shadowrealm. What followed was a flying forearm that in real time felt like slow motion. Like Hendo had just triggered bullet time in Max Payne.
The dust settles, the adrenaline subsides, and Bisping comes to wondering what had happened. Thanks to the endless replays being shown on the broadcast he was brought up to speed rather quickly.
Henderson picked up his second modern day UFC win (he previously won a 1-night tournament at UFC 17 back in 1998) and his stock went through the roof as he scored a highlight reel KO on the biggest UFC card of all time. Now some may say this moment was overshadowed by Brock Lesnar’s throttling of Frank Mir and his post-fight speech. And to them I say “can’t we enjoy them both equally?”.
Anyways, Hendo parlays his newfound fame with his expiring contract and negotiates a deal to fight in Strikeforce. Henderson would unfortunately lose his Strikeforce debut via decision to Middleweight Champ Jake Shields on CBS (and is again overshadowed by some post-fight shenanigans).
Bisping on the other hand was able to get back in the win column with a hard-fought win over Denis Kang at UFC 105 where he again faced some adversity in the striking department.
Dan Henderson ended his 2020 by dishing out a nasty leg kick to his daughter’s boyfriend and it was all caught on camera. The 50-year-old knockout artist hasn’t competed in more than four years but still looked in shape as he brought in the new year with his family. Henderson is surrounded by a small […]
Dan Henderson ended his 2020 by dishing out a nasty leg kick to his daughter’s boyfriend and it was all caught on camera.
The 50-year-old knockout artist hasn’t competed in more than four years but still looked in shape as he brought in the new year with his family. Henderson is surrounded by a small crowd as he begins to line up the kick. His daughter’s brainless boyfriend seems willing to take the kick but notes “this is going to f*cking suck” before Henderson rattles in a shot that buckles him – check out the full video below.
During his Hall of Fame career Henderson captured titles in Pride FC and Strikeforce while also challenging for UFC gold on several occasions. He holds a bunch of high profile wins over the likes of Fedor Emelianenko, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, Vitor Belfort, Wanderlei Silva, Rich Franklin, and Michael Bisping.
Henderson retired from the sport in October 2016 after falling short against the then middleweight champion Bisping in their long-awaited and eagerly anticipated rematch at UFC 204. After hurting the Englishman twice in the first two rounds Henderson was picked apart for much of the fight and ultimately dropped to a unanimous decision defeat.
MMA icon Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson is not the kind of fighter known for letting his emotions get the best…
Dan Henderson is confident that if he had stepped inside the Octagon with Jon Jones, he would “beat the…
Dan Henderson believes Jon Jones has lost a step ever since the former light heavyweight champion’s doping violation ahead of UFC 200 in 2016. Henderson, a former PRIDE and Strikeforce champion, was on hand at Bellator 290 on Saturday night for the final fight of Fedor Emelianenko’s iconic heavyweight career. Outside of the Kia Forum […]
Hello LowKickMMA readers. My name is Paul Heyman Chavy and as the newest member of the team I’ll be taking you on trips down memory lane to simpler times in MMA. Back when fans would sit through a PPV and wonder how far Joe Rogan would unbutton his shirt. Back when Corn Nuts were the […]
Dan Henderson ended his 2020 by dishing out a nasty leg kick to his daughter’s boyfriend and it was all caught on camera. The 50-year-old knockout artist hasn’t competed in more than four years but still looked in shape as he brought in the new year with his family. Henderson is surrounded by a small […]