Dan Henderson: Time to Ride Off Into the Sunset

A lot of insane things happened at UFC 199. It turned out to be one of the best UFC cards in the history of history. There were a lot of big underdog wins, and it was tough to pinpoint one subject to talk about this week. However, I opted to pick one that I’m very passionate about as a huge Dan Henderson fan. So this week I will be talking about Dan Henderson and his fantastic second round knockout win over Hector Lombard. With this moment, Dan Henderson was given the best moment possible to end his career on a high note, and while he wouldn’t come out and call it quits right after the fight, I hope he does so very soon.

First of all, I want to personally apologize for picking against Dan Henderson here. It’s not because I doubted Henderson’s competitive spirit and that he could still win the fight, but I should’ve known better against picking someone like Hector Lombard, who’s UFC career has been an exceeding disappointment. Henderson may not be as fast as he used to be, but he’s still pretty dangerous. Not to mention, Lombard has numerous flaws in his game that I should’ve seen would’ve made this a bit more of a favorable match-up for Hendo in this stage of his career. Either way, I was wrong, and I’m eating a huge plate of crow for that. I highly regret picking against Dan Henderson for his career.

Before I go further, obviously, this isn’t my decision. Henderson obviously loves fighting and it’s an ingrained part of his personality. It’s understandable why professional fighters have a hard time leaving this sport. But UFC 199 has handed Henderson a nigh-perfect opportunity to end his career on a high note and ride off into the sunset clean. So many great fighters rarely get the opportunity that Henderson has been handed on a silver platter, and that’s exactly why Henderson should take it.

Going into this fight, Henderson was riding a record of 2-6 in his last eight fights. Not only that, his once legendary chin had clearly gone away. Watch his fight with Lyoto Machida at UFC 157 in February 2013. That’s when Henderson started looking way slower. For quite some time, Henderson was one of rare few who could still fight very well despite being at a more advanced age. Now he’s 45. He turns 46 in August. So not only is his speed gone, but his chin is not what it once was. Even though he walked away from this fight with a win, Lombard had Henderson in trouble numerous times and almost stopped him in the first time. That’s why it doesn’t make any sense for Henderson to continue putting his body through all this punishment. It’s unrealistic for him to make another run toward title contention. That’s just unrealistic at this point.

Henderson may never have won the UFC title, but he has an indelible legacy. It should be inevitable that he will join the UFC Hall of Fame as a legend of this sport. Not only that, his fight with Shogun at UFC 139 is one of the greatest fights in MMA history, and it was a fight I had the pleasure of watching and covering live. His MMA career spans almost 20 years, where he fought a who’s who of this sport, becoming the first man in history to hold two titles in two different weight classes at the same time in Pride FC. His resume is effectively awesome, having defeated the likes of Wanderlei Silva, Mauricia Rua, Vitor Belfort, Rich Franklin, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Fedor Emelianenko, and of course that unforgettable knockout win over Michael Bisping at UFC 100. The same Michael Bisping who just won the UFC middleweight title at UFC 199. Henderson should easily earn a spot in the UFC Hall of Fame, both from his legacy as a legend in the sport, but also in the Fight Wing due to his bout with Shogun Rua.

The end of Henderson’s MMA run was becoming quite sad to watch. The reason fighters like Henderson keep fighting far past their prime and desired expiration date is because they are essentially searching for that one thing that Henderson found at UFC 199. They are looking for that signature win or moment to end their career on. Unfortunately, it rarely ever comes. No matter how much we hear about them being in the best shape of their life, feeling renewed or young again, or still being hungry, none of it really makes a difference. And the problem is that these fighters are still incapable of being competitive or winning a fight, it’s gotten to a point where it’s nonsensical to do so. But look at Wanderlei Silva. In hindsight, the right time for him to end his career was after beating Brian Stann in Japan. If he had just done that, he wouldn’t have had to “retire” and leave the sport in disgraced. He wouldn’t have faced an indefinite suspension from the Nevada State Athletic Commission and had his legacy tarnished by running away from a drug test.

Another fighter going through problems right now is BJ Penn. Penn tried to amount another comeback, this time to featherweight. Now he’s facing a USADA violation for using a banned IV. There was absolutely no reason for Penn to try and come back again, and to do so at featherweight, where he looked absolutely terrible before, was even more foolish. BJ Penn is another great champion who ended his career in a steep decline. But Penn hasn’t lost that competitive spirit, and he’s struggling to let go of his fight career. For Penn, he is still desperately searching for that glory Henderson received last Saturday.

It’s unrealistic that now is the time for Henderson to go an amazing run. But if he retires now, he gets the chance to have a pure and perfect moment. No one can ever take this moment away from Henderson. The victory was amazing. He actually landed a head kick of all things, a move that Henderson almost never attempts or pulls off, before landing a vicious reverse elbow to the head of Lombard. Not only that, he did it in his own backyard of SoCal, in front of a crowd that was solidly behind him, with his whole family watching live. The circumstances for Henderson could not have gone any better. Rocky movies don’t have endings scripted as perfect and wrapped up as that. This was a pure, perfect and unadulterated moment for MMA, and Henderson should keep it that way.

No matter what happens. Thank you for everything, Dan Henderson.

Jeffrey Harris is 411mania’s resident Jack of All Trades and has covered MMA for the site since 2008. You can shoot him an e-mail at [email protected] or hit him up on Facebook. You can also check out the latest edition of the podcast he co-hosts alongside Robert Winfree, The 411 Ground & Pound Radio Show, below.