Dan Henderson has his 46th professional fight on June 4. He takes on Hector Lombard at UFC 199, and according to the longtime vet the result of this fight could determine whether or not he fights again.
“I’m definitely capable of keeping on and still competing at a high level, but I’m almost ready to retire, and depending on how things play out after this fight with negotiations, yeah, it could be my last,” Henderson said in an interview with MMAJunkie.com. “Or maybe I’ll still fight. I don’t know yet. I’m at that point where I’m about ready, but definitely, I know in my heart I’m still capable of doing it and if I do decide to keep going on I’ll make sure I do it well.”
Henderson says he’s excited about the prospects of this June 4 matchup, which came after a Lyoto Machida removal took him off April’s UFC on Fox 19 event, and believes the stylistic fight Lombard presents should make for an entertaining bout.
“When they told me what had happened with Lyoto they had already had this on the books with Hector Lombard, June 4th, in L.A.,” Henderson commented. “Just to soften the blow they already had that arranged.
“Instead of fighting a guy that runs all the time I got a guy that runs at you the whole time – at least for the first few minutes. It’s a totally different style, just a completely different fighter I’m training for. It is what it is I think it’s – the fight with Hector Lombard is definitely something the fans will enjoy more than watching Machida run around the whole time.”
The Henderson-Lombard bout is part of the event in Inglewood, Calif., headlined by the Middleweight Championship bout between Luke Rockhold and Michael Bisping.
Penick’s Analysis: Henderson’s continued to believe in fight after fight that he could keep going and continue competing, regardless of whether or not the results of his fights have supported that. Still, if he beats Lombard, the UFC might be willing to give him another short term contract, and if he’s wanting to keep going he will. If he loses, that new deal probably isn’t coming. So this remains up to him to perform come June 4.
[Photo (c) Derek E. Hingle via USA Today Sports]
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