Tag: Johny Hendricks

What Will the UFC Welterweight Division Look Like After UFC 158?

What will the UFC welterweight division look like after UFC 158?The absence of the injured Rory MacDonald aside, this Saturday night’s fight card is set up as an elimination tournament involving five of the best six 170-pounders in the entire universe….

What will the UFC welterweight division look like after UFC 158?

The absence of the injured Rory MacDonald aside, this Saturday night’s fight card is set up as an elimination tournament involving five of the best six 170-pounders in the entire universe.

Champion Georges St-Pierre will finally get his shot at silencing Stockton bad boy and No. 1 contender Nick Diaz in front of his legion of followers in Montreal. GSP has shown a bit of a darker side in the lead up to this fight, and I don’t like anyone’s chances against an angry and emotionally invested St-Pierre.

Diaz is a formidable foe indeed, with his peppering, pistol like hands being his biggest weapon in a very dangerous and complete arsenal. Diaz is similar to the last challenger, Carlos Condit, in the fact that he is very vulnerable to GSP’s bread and butter, the take down. Diaz has very good submissions from his back, but I don’t believe that he will do much better than Condit in that regard and GSP will remain the undisputed champion for the eightth consecutive time.

Carlos Condit is coming off his November challenge for the belt, and in my opinion, he remains the next man in the welterweight pecking order. Many people disagree with that and put rising knockout artist Johny Hendricks in that spot over Condit. The MacDonald injury has served the perfect purpose to settle this argument and declare a true No. 1 contender following the fight.

Like Jon Fitch and Martin Kampmann before him, Condit is another beast for Hendricks to get through, and if he can beat Condit, he deserves an immediate shot at the GSP-Diaz winner. That will leave a perfect scenario for Condit to revisit his fight with MacDonald.

I don’t believe that Hendricks will beat Condit, and it will leave a very tough situation for the UFC if GSP wins, with GSP vs Condit II being the next legitimate title fight at 170-pounds. Are these two men Velasquez-Dos Santos? Do we want to see them rematch so soon? A dilemma will loom after this weekend.

The division implications do not stop there at UFC 158 as Hendricks’ original opponent and somewhat forgotten contender Jake Ellenberger remains on the card to face Nate Marquardt. These two men are not a fight away from a title shot but the winner will remain right in the mix with the injured MacDonald and the rest of 170-pound fighters that lose on this card.

Georges St-Pierre will remain the champion after this weekend and Carlos Condit will put a halt to the Hendricks train, leaving these two as the best welterweight’s in the world. GSP and Condit have held those spots for at least the last three years and nothing will change this weekend. If the UFC doesn’t want to make that rematch yet, look for GSP to go the super fight route and for Condit to face MacDonald.

Diaz will remain defiant in defeat, and will have to take his frustrations out on Johny Hendricks in his next fight. Hendricks will be humbled by Condit, and be forced to fight Diaz to get his long awaited shot at the title, but he may have to wait a long time for it.

Jake Ellenberger will get back in to the picture with a win over Nate Marquardt, but he will be put in a gauntlet with guys like Martin Kampmann, Tarec Saffidine, Demian Maia and maybe even Robbie Lawler and be forced to fight his way out.

 

Dwight Wakabayashi is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report UFC and regular contributor to Sportsnet.ca’s UFC section. Follow him on Twitter @wakafightermma.

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Carlos Condit vs. Johny Hendricks Head-to-Toe Breakdown

UFC 158 is this Saturday on pay-per-view, and the co-main event of the evening will go a long way to determining who the next in line for a shot at the UFC Welterweight Championship is.Former interim UFC welterweight champion Carlos Condit battles No. …

UFC 158 is this Saturday on pay-per-view, and the co-main event of the evening will go a long way to determining who the next in line for a shot at the UFC Welterweight Championship is.

Former interim UFC welterweight champion Carlos Condit battles No. 1-ranked Johny Hendricks in the important divisional matchup.

Condit returns to action after losing his bid to become the undisputed champion back in November to Georges St. Pierre. Hendricks rides in on a five-fight win streak that has garnered him the top spot in the official UFC rankings.

Here is a look at how this crucial bout breaks down.

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Carlos Condit Sees Johny Hendricks as “More Dangerous” Version of Dan Henderson

It was so close Carlos Condit could almost taste it. After two hard-grinding rounds facing UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre, Condit finally saw an opening and launched a head kick that landed flush sending the Canadian legend flailing backwa…

It was so close Carlos Condit could almost taste it.

After two hard-grinding rounds facing UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre, Condit finally saw an opening and launched a head kick that landed flush sending the Canadian legend flailing backwards towards the mat. Condit pounced like a leopard on its prey and he immediately began to rain down shots on St-Pierre looking for the finish.

Punch after punch came flying, but Condit couldn’t quite find the right combination of strikes to put an end to the fight, and a few moments later St-Pierre regained composure and two rounds later the bout was over. 

Condit lost to St-Pierre by unanimous decision, but he came as close as any fighter has in the last few years to wrestling the title away from the UFC’s most dominant welterweight. 

Now just a few months later, Condit finds himself right back in the title picture with a chance to gain another shot at St-Pierre if he can get past top contender Johny Hendricks at UFC 158 in Montreal.

“The reward could be pretty sweet,” Condit told Bleacher Report about what happens should he beat Hendricks on Saturday night. “He’s real high profile, he’s pretty much cleared out the division, and he’s definitely the No. 1 contender. A win over him would put me right back in the No. 1 contender’s spot.”

Condit has no plans of only reaching the top of the UFC once in his career, and this fight against Hendricks is a chance to launch right back to the No. 1 position he held for virtually all of 2012. 

It was actually a strange turn of events that took place to put Condit in the fight with Hendricks to begin with after he was originally scheduled to face Rory MacDonald on the card instead. Unfortunately, MacDonald suffered a neck injury that forced him out of the fight and as soon as that news broke, Hendricks called the UFC to ask and face Condit on the card.

Hendricks was already scheduled to face Jake Ellenberger at UFC 158, but when the chance came to face Condit, he couldn’t refuse that kind of opportunity. Hendricks knows the fastest path to the title is to beat the guy who was just there in front of him, and Condit was that very person.

Condit understands why Hendricks asked to fight him because it’s no different than when he requested a bout against Dan Hardy when he was fresh off of his loss to Georges St-Pierre in 2010. Things went well for Condit because he ended up knocking out Hardy in the first round, but he doesn’t expect Hendricks to find the same kind of fortune.

“Good move on their part (asking to fight me),” said Condit. “But I have plans on spoiling their party.”

During his quick rise to the top of the welterweight rankings, Hendricks has managed to flatten two former contenders with first-round knockouts (Jon Fitch and Martin Kampmann) despite the fact that he’s supposed to be a wrestler with NCAA championship credentials. 

Hendricks’ left hand has made both Fitch and Kampmann wake up wondering what just happened, and it’s easy to find a comparison between the UFC’s top welterweight contender and former Pride and Strikeforce champion Dan Henderson.

Just like Hendricks, Henderson came from a decorated wrestling past, but in the last few years he’s become most known for the knockout power in his right hand aptly nicknamed “The H-Bomb”. Condit can see the similarities as well, but thinks it is Hendricks who is actually the far more dangerous opponent on paper.

“There are some similarities there but I think the difference is Hendo is towards the end of his career, he’s not as versatile as he used to be. Ultimately he kind of is a one-trick pony,” Condit said about Henderson. “Hendricks, he does have that in his arsenal, but he has a lot of other things. He’s still athletic, he still moves really well. He’s a more dangerous version of the one-punch, KO wrestler that Hendo is.”

Condit is clearly aware of the ability that Hendricks has to put anybody’s lights out with one, lone punch, but he doesn’t plan on being another highlight on his opponent’s growing resume.

Instead, Condit plans on beating Hendricks soundly, stealing his thunder and riding it all the way back to a rematch against St-Pierre.

“It’s a huge fight for me, it keeps me right there in the title picture,” said Condit. “Johny is the man to beat right now in the division other than GSP.  I’m looking to go in there, fight a great fight, come away with the win and get another title shot.”

Beating Hendricks at UFC 158 would certainly go a long way to proving Condit has earned that opportunity.

Damon Martin is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report and all quotes were obtained first hand unless otherwise noted.

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UFC 158: Georges St-Pierre vs. Nick Diaz Fight Card by the Numbers

We are less than a week away from UFC 158, a fight card that will see UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre put his title on the line against former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz. The bout between these two talented fighters has bee…

We are less than a week away from UFC 158, a fight card that will see UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre put his title on the line against former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz. The bout between these two talented fighters has been a long time coming, and in case you missed it, things reached a different level on the recent media call for the March 16 fight card.

The card will also feature two additional welterweight bouts that could very well determine who the winner of the main event will face in their next contest.  Those fights will see Carlos Condit meet Johny Hendricks and Jake Ellenberger meeting Nate Marquardt.

As UFC 158 nears, here are some interesting facts and figures surrounding the pay-per-view event.

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Johny Hendricks Unphased by Nick Diaz’s Taunts; Remains Steadfast in His Mission

Just a few short months ago on the heels of a blistering knockout of Martin Kampmann at UFC 154, Johny Hendricks sat poised on the cusp of receiving a welterweight title shot against Georges St-Pierre. Instead, the UFC opted to give perpetual bad boy N…

Just a few short months ago on the heels of a blistering knockout of Martin Kampmann at UFC 154, Johny Hendricks sat poised on the cusp of receiving a welterweight title shot against Georges St-Pierre.

Instead, the UFC opted to give perpetual bad boy Nick Diaz the shot instead when St-Pierre asked to face him as opposed to taking on Hendricks.

Fast forward to Thursday when Hendricks had to sit on a media conference call for the better part of 45 minutes listening to St-Pierre and Diaz go back and forth at each other without his name coming up for almost the entire duration of the conversation.

Finally, Hendricks’ ears perked up when it was Diaz who finally mentioned his name, but it wasn’t a compliment—only a disparaging remark stating why he’s not fighting for the UFC welterweight title and Diaz was the man for the job.

“You gonna go out there and work out with Johny (Hendricks) and you guys are going to have a wrestling match? No, that’s not what nobody wants to see that,” Diaz shouted when speaking to St-Pierre.

Instead of erupting like St-Pierre and Diaz did for most of the call, Hendricks sounded like he just woke up from a deep meditation when he was finally asked a question. On paper, Hendricks was clear and away the No. 1 contender for the welterweight title, yet still he ends up in the co-main event while watching Diaz battle St-Pierre on the same card.

Did Diaz‘s comments rattle Hendricks to the point of an angry, four-letter response? No, far from it actually.

“If he’s watching my fights when have I ever took anybody down? I have wrestling, yeah I do, my background is wrestling. I have knockout power. Just because I don’t go out there and use it all, you don’t have to use it all to win fights,” Hendricks said referencing Diaz‘s comments about him earlier in the call.

“The most important thing is to win fights. Doesn’t matter how you do it. If that means you’ve got to take the guy down to get a win like Georges does, then do it. It’s about getting your hand raised and the fans like that.”

Quite possibly the strangest turn happened when Hendricks then ended up agreeing with St-Pierre’s “win at any cost” strategy, even if it means a five-round decision. In a matter of only a few minutes, Diaz managed to turn Hendricks from a staunch St-Pierre adversary into an advocate for what he was preaching.

“(Diaz) has his opinion, I’ve got mine. It doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters is like Georges said, everybody’s got to be on top, but there can only be one and we’re all fighting to get there,” Hendricks added.

While Hendricks would like nothing more than to fight St-Pierre at UFC 158, it’s not happening, and instead he draws former interim champion Carlos Condit.

There will undoubtedly be a great amount of focus during fight week with questions being thrown at Hendricks about St-Pierre and a title shot looming overhead. Hendricks is careful, however, not to let the angst of not fighting for the belt now cloud his performance next Saturday night. A loss to Condit would dash his title hopes before they ever become reality.

“Nothing else matters but Carlos Condit at this point,” said Hendricks. “If I even think about overlooking him, he’ll definitely beat me. I’ve got to go out there and nothing else matters but Carlos Condit.”

Damon Martin is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report, and all quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

6 Reasons to Believe Johny Hendricks Will Defeat Carlos Condit at UFC 158

Johny Hendricks will be afforded another chance to remind Dana White that he’s more than deserving of a title shot on March 16th, when he meets Carlos Condit in the co-main event of UFC 158.Hendricks, who turned in a movie-like performance agains…

Johny Hendricks will be afforded another chance to remind Dana White that he’s more than deserving of a title shot on March 16th, when he meets Carlos Condit in the co-main event of UFC 158.

Hendricks, who turned in a movie-like performance against Martin Kampmann at UFC 154, has now beaten three top-10 ranked foes in succession, stopping two of them in emphatic fashion. He’s tired of battering the division’s best only to be ignored in his lobbying for a bout with champion Georges St-Pierre.

Condit should theoretically be his final test. If Hendricks topples Condit, especially in explosive fashion, it would be downright criminal to deny him a fight with the champ.

But realistically, he may not have too much to worry about. As amazing as Condit is, Hendricks has some unique strengths that should—assuming he fights smart but doesn’t abandon his killer instinct—lead him to victory.

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