One of the more intriguing match-ups on this Saturday’s UFC 129 card in Toronto pits former WEC lightweight champion Ben Henderson against Canadian BJJ standout, Mark Bocek. In earlier fights, Henderson has earned the nickname “Bendo” for his seemingly superhuman resilience to various submissions that seem tight enough to tap out even the most seasoned fighter. Bocek, however, thinks that Henderson’s previous opponents simply weren’t applying the submissions correctly, as he tells Sherdog:
“Absolutely, absolutely,” Bocek said recently during a “Savage Dog Show” interview on the Sherdog Radio Network. “Maybe not with armlocks but definitely with chokes. I just don’t think people are choking him the right way. He’s a very tough guy to choke. He’s really resilient, but at the same time, I don’t think people are doing guillotines or the rear-naked chokes right.”
“He’s pretty tough everywhere,” Bocek said. “I’ve scouted him for a while. I think he’s pretty tough, but with that being said, I don’t think he has any area that really outshines mine. I don’t think he’s fought anyone like me before.”
“I feel evolved and I feel this Henderson fight is really going to show that,” said Bocek, whose transformation began after his April 2008 loss to Mac Danzig. “After the Danzig loss, I really had to analyze a few things. I had to get a weight-training regimen going. I had to understand weight cutting and recovery from weight cutting better, which I didn’t really understand that much. Had to really, really focus on my weak areas in case fights don’t hit the ground.”