In the whole welterweight/middleweight title/super-fight mess of excitment and speculation going on right now, number one 170 pound contender Johny Hendricks is one of the few people giving real talk. “I’m not going to fight unless it’s for a belt,” Hendricks told MMAJunkie Radio Friday.
The former NCAA Division I wrestling national champion solidified himself as the number one contender to Georges St. Pierre’s welterweight crown with five straight wins, his last three against Jon Fitch, Josh Koscheck and Martin Kampmann. Despite earning his shot, Hendricks is far from a lock to be the next one to fight St. Pierre.
Middleweight champion Anderson Silva is chasing a super fight with the Canadian and St. Pierre surrogates are lobbying for his next fight to be against his rival Nick Diaz. Diaz is currently serving a suspension for testing positive for marijuana metabolites before his last fight, a loss to Carlos Condit.
(Ain’t no tantrum like a Big Rigg tantrum)
In the whole welterweight/middleweight title/super-fight mess of excitment and speculation going on right now, number one 170 pound contender Johny Hendricks is one of the few people giving real talk. “I’m not going to fight unless it’s for a belt,” Hendricks told MMAJunkie Radio Friday.
The former NCAA Division I wrestling national champion solidified himself as the number one contender to Georges St. Pierre’s welterweight crown with five straight wins, his last three against Jon Fitch, Josh Koscheck and Martin Kampmann. Despite earning his shot, Hendricks is far from a lock to be the next one to fight St. Pierre.
Middleweight champion Anderson Silva is chasing a super fight with the Canadian and St. Pierre surrogates are lobbying for his next fight to be against his rival Nick Diaz. Diaz is currently serving a suspension for testing positive for marijuana metabolites before his last fight, a loss to Carlos Condit.
“I really want a belt. They don’t come around that often, and I feel like I’ve done enough to earn a shot, and that’s pretty much all I’m thinking of right now. I’m training for a five-round fight, and that’s it,” Hendricks continued.
For all the wrestler turned KO artist cares, St. Pierre, Silva and Diaz can do whatever they want with one another, but after they are done he will make sure that he is waiting in the wings for whomever is welterweight champion. “Nothing else matters but the belt,” he believes.,
“My last three fights were guys in the top five, and I finished two of those three fights. I stated my claim. My stock’s really high right now, and the only thing left is to get a shot at that belt.”
What do you think, nation? Is Hendricks right to sit out until he gets his shot at St. Pierre? And what do you think the chances are Diaz will skip ahead in line now that we have the Chael Sonnen modern precedent of getting title shots immediately after losses?
In the non-negotiations for a possible Georges St-Pierre vs. Anderson Silva superfight, No. 1 welterweight contender Johny Hendricks is the odd man out.Despite a 9-1 UFC record with wins over the division’s best 170-pound fighters, Hendricks isn’t cons…
In the non-negotiations for a possible Georges St-Pierre vs. Anderson Silvasuperfight, No. 1 welterweight contender Johny Hendricks is the odd man out.
Despite a 9-1 UFC record with wins over the division’s best 170-pound fighters, Hendricks isn’t considered the next in line to challenge for GSP‘s title. At least, not if you ask the champion’s training staff.
According to FirasZahabi, St-Pierre’s head trainer, former Strikeforce champion Nick Diaz is the one who deserves the next shot at the UFC welterweight championship belt due to having “more fights” and “bigger wins” in his career.
Famed MMA nutritionist Mike Dolce, who worked with Hendricks for his UFC 154 match this month, doesn’t agree with Zahabi at all. During an interview with MMA Junkie, he heavily criticized the notion that Diaz deserved a title shot over Hendricks:
Nick hasn’t beaten anybody substantial in the welterweight division to earn that shot. Nick certainly will be in line soon. He’s got to get a couple of wins. Johny’s got those wins already.
I’m looking at Nick’s record right now. He beat K.J. Noons, a 155-pounder; Evangelista ‘Cyborg’ (Santos), and who is he? Then Paul Daley—all right, Paul Daley’s tough. Then B.J. Penn, a very uninspired B.J. Penn, who’s a lightweight. He beat two lightweights, one very fringe welterweight, and Paul Daley.
Dolce further claimed that Hendricks posed a much bigger threat to GSP than anyone else in the division, pointing out the fighter’s wins over Josh Koscheck, Mike Pierce, Jon Fitch, and most recently, a stunning first-round knockout win over the iron-jawed Martin Kampmann.
Additionally, Dolce suggested that GSP‘s camp is more fearful of Hendricks than Diaz and that Zahabi‘s claim was made not for the bigger PPV draw, but the safer fight:
He’ll make a little bit more money if he fights Nick Diaz – but he’s not going to make a lot more money if he fights Nick Diaz. He will make a lot more money if he fights Anderson Silva. So it’s not about the money. It’s about protecting his belt. He thinks he can beat Nick Diaz – they don’t think they can beat Johny Hendricks. And I agree.
Dolce has worked with many UFC fighters over the years, using his patented “Dolce Diet” to help several athletes cut large amounts of weight before bouts. Prior to UFC 154, Dolceclaimed that Hendricks cut a whopping 41 pounds before hitting the scales, which marked his third time working with the “Team Takedown” star.
Johny Hendricks has spent the last two years making his presence known in the welterweight division. Initially presumed to be little more than a one-dimensional wrestler, Hendricks has evolved at an alarming rate, proving doubters wrong. Dead wrong. Of…
Johny Hendricks has spent the last two years making his presence known in the welterweight division. Initially presumed to be little more than a one-dimensional wrestler, Hendricks has evolved at an alarming rate, proving doubters wrong. Dead wrong.
Of his most impressive new tools is that savage left hand that’s put down many an opponent, including quality foes in Martin Kampmann, Jon Fitch and Charlie Brenneman. There’s a power in that particular punch that most have trouble dealing with, and as a result, “BiggRigg” is a promotional moniker now synonymous with frighteningly violent finishes.
There aren’t going to be many men at 170 pounds eagerly lining up to test their fortitude against this man any time soon.
That massive left of his has now begun to emerge in conversations regarding Dan Henderson’s “H-Bomb.” And the comparison is indeed valid. Dan lands that right hand, it’s lights out; Johny lands that left hand, it’s lights out.
But there are glaring differences between these two fighters, despite the near carbon-copy background the two share. Henderson has been an active, top-ranked competitor for more than a decade. Johny has got less than half of the time invested and 22 fewer fights. He hasn’t yet accumulated the experience, time and fights to find complete comfort in exclusively striking.
If Hendricks gets hit with something he doesn’t particularly like, or is having little success with his fists, he’ll transition directly into a takedown. Whereas Dan Henderson isn’t befuddled by failure. If his punches aren’t finding their mark, he simply disengages, resets and once again initiates his pugilistic assault.
While it sounds as though Hendricks may be the more desperate fighter, in all likelihood he’s probably the more well-rounded of the two. Henderson has found himself somewhat stuck in a head hunting haze. He wants to knock men unconscious, whatever the cost, and he’s willing to eat plenty to deliver the only one that matters: the H-Bomb.
Hendricks has more ways to win a fight these days. He’s still versatile enough to keep opponents guessing, and his offensive wrestling is rather impressive. If those fists fail, he has other tools that he likes to fall back on.
Who’s the more dangerous man? Who’s more likely to see the fight end with his opponent sprawled, lifeless on the canvas? It’s impossible to say definitively.
What can be said is this: Johny Hendricks looks like the owner of the “Mini H-Bomb,” the not-quite-yet fully developed weapon that ends all things combat and will be near unstoppable in years to come. Dan Henderson has seen enough years and endured enough wars to know how to fully rely on that weapon, and Hendricks hasn’t.
They’re two different fighters, who by all accounts should mirror one another when competing, both with the ability to finish a fight with a single punch that resonates through the body, canvas and television at any moment. Those are punches we all feel.
Give Johny Hendricks a few more years and a few more elite opponents and he’ll likely prove that his own rendition of the H-Bomb is every bit as relevant as Dan Henderson’s original masterpiece. Until then, enjoy the further success of both.
There will be more H-Bomb knockouts in the future from both men, mark my words.
Having one-punch knockout power in MMA is a very beneficial thing to possess.You have the ability to end any fight with just a single punch. You’re never completely out of a fight because it can change with one well-placed fist.Some MMA fighters have t…
Having one-punch knockout power in MMA is a very beneficial thing to possess.
You have the ability to end any fight with just a single punch. You’re never completely out of a fight because it can change with one well-placed fist.
Some MMA fighters have this ability and use it to great effect in their fights. They have provided wicked knockouts that will live on highlight reels for years.
Check out some UFC fighters with dynamite in their fists.
If Pat Miletich was Georges St-Pierre, he’d be leaning towards fighting Anderson Silva over Johny Hendricks.Hendricks has been on a roll as of late, ousting three straight top welterweight contenders. At UFC 154, he knocked out Martin Kampmann in 46 se…
If Pat Miletich was Georges St-Pierre, he’d be leaning towards fighting Anderson Silva over Johny Hendricks.
Hendricks has been on a roll as of late, ousting three straight top welterweight contenders. At UFC 154, he knocked out Martin Kampmann in 46 seconds.
Miletich believes Hendricks’ rare combination of knockout power and world class wrestling makes him an intriguing opponent for St-Pierre, even more so than Silva.
“I think Johny Hendricks might have a unique game that may go as a serious risk for GSP,” the former UFC welterweight champ said during an interview on the Sherdog Radio Network’s “Rewind” show.
Miletich continued:
[St-Pierre] may get a takedown, but he’s not holding Hendricks down. I think Hendricks is obviously a good enough wrestler, a strong enough guy when he’s coming back up. And Hendricks has some serious one-punch knockout power. When he hits people, he’s sliding them across the ice.
If I’m Georges St. Pierre, to be honest with you, I’m probably going to lean towards fighting Anderson Silva…There’s a hell of a lot more to gain obviously with [fighting Silva], but that might even, to be honest with you, be a safer fight for him.
After nearly a two-year hiatus, St-Pierre took a unanimous decision over Carlos Condit in his Octagon return over the weekend at UFC 154.
UFC President Dana White remains determined to set up a superfight between St-Pierre and Silva, but the French Canadian seems reluctant to move up in weight.
If St-Pierre stays at welterweight, Hendricks will likely be named the No. 1 contender for the UFC title.
Stylistically, Hendricks presents plenty of problems for St-Pierre. He was a two-time NCAA Division I wrestling champion at Oklahoma State University, and his one-punch knockout power is second to none in the entire welterweight division.
With that said, it’s a rather bold statement in claiming Hendricks is a more dangerous opponent than Silva, who is widely considered the top pound-for-pound fighter on the planet.
Silva lacks a strong wrestling base, but he more than makes up for it with otherworldly striking, black belt level Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
There is no easy way out.
Whether St-Pierre chooses Silva or Hendricks, he faces the biggest test of his professional career.
At the end of 2011, UFC Magazine (now known as UFC 360) released their Complete Fighter and Event Guide for 2012, highlighting who they thought were the movers and shakers in each division. Surprisingly absent from the list was welterweight wrestler-turned-knockout-specialist Johny Hendricks. Fast forward a year and he’s next in line to face Georges St. Pierre for the gold. After his 46-second KO of Martin Kampmann at UFC 154, Hendricks’ emergence as a legitimate threat to and rise to the top of the 170lb. division is undeniable.
Although this past year has seen the Oklahoma native’s stock price triple — thanks in large part to his powerful left hand — he was anything but an overnight success story. To hear Hendricks’ diehard supporters tell it, he’s always been this good; we’re just now noticing it. One quick Google search is all it takes to confirm; the two-time NCAA Division I National Champion (2005, 2006) has been just as dominant in the cage as he was on the mats, though he no longer seems to be interested in playing the bad guy.
Starting his professional MMA career in 2007, Hendricks only competed on regional cards in Oklahoma at first, racking up a 3-0 record with all wins by stoppage. That was until he signed a multi-fight deal with the now-defunct World Extreme Cagefighting where he continued his winning streak against Justin Haskins by TKO in December 2008. Three months later at WEC 39, Hendricks was featured in the last welterweight bout in company history, defeating Alex Serdyukov in a Fight of the Night performance. After Reed Harris and company announced their intentions to focus solely on the lighter weight classes, Johny Hendricks was in need of a new home. Although his fights in the blue cage were few, they were the perfect appetizer for the next stage of his slow-cooking career.
(Destroys some of the UFC’s toughest welterweight contenders; still afraid of spiders. / Photo via Esther Lin of MMA Fighting)
At the end of 2011, UFC Magazine (now known as UFC 360) released their Complete Fighter and Event Guide for 2012, highlighting who they thought were the movers and shakers in each division. Surprisingly absent from the list was welterweight wrestler-turned-knockout-specialist Johny Hendricks. Fast forward a year and he’s next in line to face Georges St. Pierre for the gold. After his 46-second KO of Martin Kampmann at UFC 154, Hendricks’ emergence as a legitimate threat to and rise to the top of the 170lb. division is undeniable.
Although this past year has seen the Oklahoma native’s stock price triple — thanks in large part to his powerful left hand — he was anything but an overnight success story. To hear Hendricks’ diehard supporters tell it, he’s always been this good; we’re just now noticing it. One quick Google search is all it takes to confirm; the two-time NCAA Division I National Champion (2005, 2006) has been just as dominant in the cage as he was on the mats, though he no longer seems to be interested in playing the bad guy.
Starting his professional MMA career in 2007, Hendricks only competed on regional cards in Oklahoma at first, racking up a 3-0 record with all wins by stoppage. That was until he signed a multi-fight deal with the now-defunct World Extreme Cagefighting where he continued his winning streak against Justin Haskins by TKO in December 2008. Three months later at WEC 39, Hendricks was featured in the last welterweight bout in company history, defeating Alex Serdyukov in a Fight of the Night performance. After Reed Harris and company announced their intentions to focus solely on the lighter weight classes, Johny Hendricks was in need of a new home. Although his fights in the blue cage were few, they were the perfect appetizer for the next stage of his slow-cooking career.
It wasn’t long before the UFC came calling, looking for a relatively unknown prospect to throw in against Amir Sadollah at UFC 101. If they were hoping to bolster The Ultimate Fighter season 7 winner’s record with an easy win, they were in for a rude awakening. In less time than it takes to nuke a Hot Pocket, the OSU graduate had improved his undefeated record to 6-0 after punching Sadollah until the ref pulled him off.
The Team Takedown product went on to win his next three fights, most notably TKO-ing Charlie Brenneman in the second round. Now at a perfect nine wins and zero losses, Hendricks’ would face his toughest challenge to date, Rick “The Horror” Story. Call it fate, call it destiny, call it what you will, but no one can remain undefeated forever. Story took home the unanimous decision victory at the TUF 12 Finale, serving the four-time All-American his first defeat in the cage.
They say what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, but they don’t know what it’s like to lose a fight in front of thousands in attendance and millions watching at home on live TV. That’s the sort of thing that sticks with a guy, regardless of where it happened. The sour aftertaste must have been a fearsome motivator, considering the five-fight win streak and three Knockout of the Night bonuses the welterweight has racked up in the wake of the solitary blemish on his record.
Since that UFC publication hit newsstands, “Bigg Rigg” did what BJ Penn and Georges St. Pierre could not — finish Jon Fitch. It took only twelve seconds for the southpaw to stamp his trademark on the fight and turn off the lights with a left straight. A full training camp later, perennial contender Josh Koscheck showed up to derail Hendricks’ hype train — one that was steadily gaining steam. Promoters will tell you that styles make fights and in this case, it almost bought another mark in the ‘L’ column.
The judges scored the bout 29-28, 29-28, 28-29. Luckily for our hero, two of the judges gave Hendricks the nod thus furthering his win streak. That’s not to say, however, that the fight couldn’t just as easily have went the other way. Both Hendricks and Koscheck had moments of dominance. The momentum shifted back and forth throughout the duration; as soon as one fighter appeared to have the upper hand, the holes in his game were exploited only to have the same thing done to him. In the end, it was Kos who went home upset.
It’s fights like this that make writers everywhere thankful they’re not judges.
Speaking of judges, Hendricks gave them the night off over the weekend in Montreal. In what many considered to be a title-eliminator, the twenty-nine year old utilized his best-in-class left hand to quickly dispatch Martin Kampmann, effectually declaring himself the number one contender to GSP’s welterweight championship. If a 46-second knockout isn’t a compelling enough argument in support of that, I don’t know what is.
Looking back on the past 12 months, it is clear that Johny Hendricks is not only a highly-skilled fighter with an elite wrestling pedigree worthy of gracing the pages of UFC 360′s 2013 power list, but he’s also the most qualified, well deserving challenger for the welterweight crown. But that doesn’t mean he’s who I want to face GSP next.
In the non-negotiations for a possible Georges St-Pierre vs. 
