Dan Henderson has been waiting for his next fight since his incredible win over Mauricio Rua at UFC 139. It seemed that the fight had put him in line for a title shot but the way the divisions have already been lined up, he has been put on the back burner without a clue what was next. And from what Dana White is saying, he doesn’t know what is next for Hendo either.
If Rashad Evans had been upset by Phil Davis, Henderson would have been thrust into a title fight with UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones. And even if Evans had won but Chael Sonnen had lost his fight on the same night, Henderson might have received a chance at a rematch with middleweight kingpin Anderson Silva.
Neither of those scenarios transpired, however, as both Evans and Sonnen won, setting up their own respective title shots. That has left Henderson in a kind of championship purgatory, with no obvious short-term move, according to Dana White.”He doesn’t want to fight Machida,” White said following last night’s UFC on FUEL event. “He doesn’t want to wait. He’s going to have to wait. Who does he want to fight? I don’t know what to do with Dan. Dan’s either going to have to wait for Jones or wait for Silva. Or fight somebody else.”
It’s unfortunate because Henderson is near his expiration date, turning 42 later this year. I would hope that they can get Dan a single fight and then get him into a title fight of some sort before it’s just too late for him to have his one last shot while still a legitimate (read: not old and shot) fighter.