Dan Henderson injured 3 weeks ago, but was still willing to fight Jones
News surrounding the cancellation of UFC 151 continues to surface as time passes, and recently it came out that Dan Henderson did indeed injure his knee in training some time ago. According to his Muay Thai and striking coach Daniel Woirin, Henderson partially tore his MCL while defending a takedown in practice, but continued to push on in hopes of being able to fight. Woirin recently spoke to FightersOnlyMag.com about the precarious situation, stating the following:
“Dan Henderson got hurt three weeks ago during sparring when he went to defend a takedown and for a while he has to be away from training, for two to three weeks. It was very difficult for him to refuse the fight. All the team had to convince him not to do it. We did a final sparring yesterday to evaluate his condition and he really didn’t have the chance to fight with Jones. It is so depressing for everybody. Many things are involved in a high-level fight like this one, but unfortunately, this happened. His fight has been called off and when he bounces back, he will be able to dispute the belt.”
This finding raises some interesting questions, such as the issue of finding a replacement had it been known that Henderson was unable to continue. Dan Henderson is an incredibly tough fighter and will be back in the mix. But will his title shot be there once he is able to return? It may seem that MMA training is becoming a bit too strenuous on the fighters , who feel the need to turn to TRT to withstand the punishment to their bodies. Even still, main events are being gravely affected by injuries on a seemingly daily basis. Where does MMA go from here? Obviously some changes have to be made, or more and more cards will be trashed by fighters being hurt. Does Dan Henderson deserve to receive an immdeiate title shot upon his return to the cage?
