(Props: MMAFightingonSBN)
Between “Hey pussy, are you still there?” and “Kiss them feet Nazi,” it’s easy to think that all UFC fighters hate each other, or at least feign enough hate to sell some tickets. Donald Cerrone and Benson Henderson proved otherwise during their staredown at the UFC Fight Night 59 media day yesterday. Let’s timestamp the awesomeness:
0:04 – Cerrone steps into frame and excitedly claps his hands and stomps his foot because he’s just so damn excited to see his buddy Benson again. They embrace like two long-lost friends.
0:10 – Dana White reminds them they’re here to promote a fight and tells them to square off. Cerrone, who’s already four inches taller than Henderson, gets up on his toes, and Henderson just smiles and laughs because his buddy Donald is such a clown.
0:15 – Dana tells them to “face forward, shoulder to shoulder,” and Cerrone takes the command as literally as possible, then starts nudging at Henderson like a young boy pestering his older brother. Cerrone, wearing a soon-to-be-banned Budweiser shirt, announces that “rounds are on ‘Cowboy’ after this fight.”
0:21 – Henderson grabs Cerrone’s cowboy hat — which might cheese the latter in another circumstance, but this is his boy Benson — so Cerrone returns the favor and grabs Henderson big knit cap. They put on each other’s hats, and the crowd (and media?) is just eating this shit up.
0:35 – They return each other’s respective hat, and Cerrone goes full McConaughey, telling Henderson, “See you on the other side.” These guys, man.
If you don’t understand why this interaction is so special, go back and watch Henderson and Cerrone’s first two fights from WEC 43 and WEC 48.