Dan Henderson: I will fight my fight against Jon Jones

Dan “Hendo” Henderson came out today with a few comments about his strategy to defeat Jon Jones for the UFC Light Heavyweight championship. Never one to beat around the bush, Henderson was frank in his discussion about the title fight at this weekend’s UFC 145. While Jones did not finish the former champion Rashad Evans as he had three previous champions, he utilized accurate strikes to keep Evans well outside of his range. That is not the way to be successful against a fighter like Jon Jones according to Henderson, who had the following today via an interview on usatoday.com:

“Rashad’s game should have been a little bit more mix it up from the outside and threaten more with takedowns and put Jones on his back. Rashad fought Jon Jones‘ fight, not his own. … I definitely saw (openings) that Rashad should have capitalized on.”

Henderson seems to have seen opportunities to inflict damage upon Jones, and will apparently look to be more aggressive in his title fight. At this point in time, it has become increasingly clear that Jon Jones‘ superior reach is causing fits for the most elite Light Heavyweights in the world. While challengers such as Quinton Jackson and Lyoto Machida have tried to get inside of it to land significant strikes, they were ultimately finished. Henderson has relied much on his devastating right hand recently, but it cannot be forgotten that he is a high-level Greco Roman wrestler. He continued:

You’ve really got to get inside and fight with him and end up in the clinch with him a lot. Jones is better than most guys in the clinch. … but that’s where I’m most comfortable. At the same time I need to be real careful with catching one of those goofy elbows that he throws.”

Dan Henderson knows what he is up against having seen the elbows that Evans ate last Saturday night. He is smart enough to be prepared for a war when he fights Jon Jones. Can he utilize the clinch in his favor? Will he be the first fighter to find himself close enough to Jones to actually hurt him? There are not many Light Heavyweights left for Jones to dismantle, can Henderson derail the freight train that he has become?

Further Reading: Dana White: Dan Henderson is next in line for 205 title shot