Dan Henderson interview

T-Bone · 01-17-2008, 10:13 AM

We can expect to see a more aggressive Henderson against A.Silva.

Quote:

MMA Madness Executive Editor Ben Zeidler recently spoke with Dan Henderson, who discussed his future at Light Heavyweight, his strategy for Anderson Silva, and his involvement with Team Quest

MMA Madness: What made you consider the drop to 185?

Dan Henderson: Well, I was a little bit hesitant at first, but the more I thought about it and the more I talked to Dana, I realized how excited I was for this fight. Dana wanted me to drop down for a while too so it made sense. Anderson Silva is a big challenge for me and these are the kind of fights I like to take.

MMA Madness: Win or lose, do you think you would ever go back up to 205?

Dan Henderson: I'll be staying at 185 for a while but I definitely have plans to go back to 205 at some point in my career.

MMA Madness: The Rampage fight was a close one, and many still have you ranked #2 at 205. What would you do differently if you got another shot at that title?

Dan Henderson: I would definitely be a little more aggressive on my feet and on top. I definitely think I made some mistakes and I'm still making adjustments to fix what I did wrong and get used to the cage. I can tell you that I wouldn't lost to him again.

MMA Madness: What are some of the difficulties of the cage?

Dan Henderson: You just have to get used to it. You know, I tripped once or twice just because I'm just used to having some give with the ropes. With the ropes, you can't press your feet up against them when you're standing up. Little things make the difference in there. On the ground, I'm not to being able to use it walk up. So I'll work on that and I'll be fine by the time March 1st comes along.

MMA Madness: How do you see yourself matching up to Anderson Silva? Do you see him as a good match up for you?

Dan Henderson: Yeah, I think for sure that I'm a bad match up for him. His strength is his striking and he's technical, but he likes to get into that clinch which is another strength of his. But he's never fought anyone like me in that clinch and he won't be used to that.

MMA Madness: Are you saying that you WANT to be in Anderson Silva's clinch?

Dan Henderson: Yep, that's where I want to be. That's my home.

MMA Madness: How is your training going for the fight? What specifically are you working on?

Dan Henderson: Training is good. Nothing too special as far as training, Silva is a well rounded fighter. I want to work on my hands and keeping them going, but nothing too specific. I'm getting some southpaws in to spar with me, but that's about it.

MMA Madness: Many consider the MW division to be easier than the LHW. Do you see this as being true?

Dan Henderson: I don't necessarily believe it's an easier division. There are some studs out there and Silva is one of them. People expect it to be a walk in the park for but size doesn't matter. It all has to do with how technical you are and how good at fighting you are. Mental toughness is a big part of it too. Silva will be tough and he's proven that he can knock some guys out and beat some guys that a lot of people thought should have beaten him.

MMA Madness: Who do you see as the best guys at 185?

Dan Henderson: Well, there's...I dont know, there's quite a few and Silva has beat most of them already. I can't think of any right now.

MMA Madness: You left Team Quest a little while ago to open up your own place. How is new facility going?

Dan Henderson: Well actually, I'm still technically with Team Quest. Randy is the one who left. I opened up another Team Quest gym in California. We have a great training situation with lots of fighters and organized practices. We've got great strikers, great wrestlers, and great jiu-jitsu guys. Everyone contributes knowledge, we work on technique and it's just great. Matt and I still own Team Quest together and we're looking on opening more gyms soon.

MMA Madness: Well, you should think about the East Coast. I'm out of Philadelphia and all we have are second-rate Action Karate places.

Dan Henderson: (Laughs) All right then, I'll remember that.

MMA Madness: Any sponsors you'd like to thank? Do you have a website?

Dan Henderson: Team Quest at teamquestmma.com. I just started my clothing line, Clinch Gear so that's at clinch gear.com and danhenderson.com.

MMA Madness: Anything to say to your fans?

Dan Henderson: Hopefully I'll give you a great show on March 1st. Thanks for all the support.

MMA Madness™ - MMA Insight™ News - Interview with Dan Henderson

basslogic4003 · 01-17-2008, 11:23 AM

Cool read, thanks for posting. I love the fact that he wants to be in the clinch with Silva! I just rewatched his fight with Rampage, and I'm absolutely thrilled for this upcoming bout. I got Hendo using his Greco clinch to neutralize the inside knees and elbows from Silva, and slugging out a decision victory...or maybe one of his famous overhand rights... Regardless of the outcome, we all win as fans of the sport

T-Bone · 01-17-2008, 11:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by basslogic4003

Cool read, thanks for posting. I love the fact that he wants to be in the clinch with Silva! I just rewatched his fight with Rampage, and I'm absolutely thrilled for this upcoming bout. I got Hendo using his Greco clinch to neutralize the inside knees and elbows from Silva, and slugging out a decision victory...or maybe one of his famous overhand rights... Regardless of the outcome, we all win as fans of the sport

Yeah, I rewatched some of that fight last night.

Buffer: "winner - by famous overhand right...Dan Hendersonnnnnn" - hah, sounds good to me.

Yeah, that should be a good test for both fighters and any outcome wouldn't surprise me in that fight.

mxfuel · 01-17-2008, 11:59 AM

Didn't Rich want to be in the clinch in the first fight?

I think Hendo can take this. The Spider is no joke though.