Report: Dan Henderson to Strikeforce after UFC contract negotiations falter (Updated)

I speculate that this may have been avoided if Dana kept his word on that title shot.

He didn’t deserve a title fight, he got granted 2 because of his Pride form and lost both times. He hasn’t beaten any top 5 MWs so I don’t see him as being any more worthy than Nate or Vitor. Fact is Hendo got greedy and asked for too much, now SF have picked up a huge name and are going to put on some big fights. Finally Gegard has some real competition at 205 and Hendo can get the title fight he is demanding and chances are he’ll lose again.

@say that…and he lost! twice! back to back! he has no room to cry and whine like a child…he had two oppertunities at ufc gold back to back and lost…how many other people get back to back shots at ufc gold? hes not worthy of another title shot…if you lose back to back title shots you should be put in title shot timeout for 5 years…cause you arent a worthy champion

The title shot wasn’t the issue, his desire to make EVEN more money than everyone else was. When the last event #’s came out, let me tell you I was shocked at how much he makes.

See ya later Dan, it was fun while you were here, loved that shot at Bisping! Go get your money from SF, oh yeah they don’t have any because Fedor and M1 have it all.

thats not accurate…he had two shots at gold but he had 2 belts of his own…don’t talk like Dan was the only one with something to gain…unifying the titles was one of Dana’s biggest accomplishments imo and he couldn’t have done it without Dan…was he able to unify the Pride LW, or HW belts…nope. Lets not forget how accomplished he was AND is…he lost to your beloved Andy Silva and lost a close 5 rounder to Rampage…not Championship worthy is a BS statement

agreed with Diceman

Agree with you Mac 100%, but that’s not even my point. Whether or not he deserved it isn’t the point, the point is that Dana promised him one and reneged. Now Dana goes out and BLASTS Rampage for not keeping his word and fighting at 107, but he said Dan had the next shot and then went back on his word. And he’s the company president for crying out loud. If you’re going to say he’s getting the next shot, you should give him the next shot regardless of what your cash cow’s manager thinks.

The unification thing was a gimmick, he never even brought out the belts. Really it was just an excuse to bring in Hendo and give him 2 huge fights in quick succession, both of which he lost. Randy gets so much stick for not doing anything to earn a title fight but Dan is just as bad in my opinion.

As for the promise, that was only to Bisping because Dana wants to make MMA huge in the UK and having a British fighter get a title shot against the best p4p MMA fighter was the way to do it. Unfortunately for us fans and Dana, Bisping was out of his depth and got smashed. After that Dana only said that Dan was in line for a title fight before Nate and Vitor’s impressive wins, after that all 3 were on equal footing. He specifically said that he’d like to see how the 3 MW contender fights panned out before deciding and in the end Vitor was the most interesting fight, Dan-Nate would have been sick but the guy who had 2 title fights wasn’t having it. Dana shouldn’t have promised anyone a title fight and he only did in my opinion to get people interested in 105 and to keep Andy focused on MW because he wants to end his career with superfights before taking on RJJ.

Still money seems to be a big issue here and after seeing the amount Dan got paid for 100 you have to wonder how much he expects, considering he’s not a big draw or a champion. Hopefully he’ll face Mousasi in SF.

David-leading up to UFC 101 Dana said, and I quote, “Dan Henderson is definitely next in line for the title shot.”…“It depends what happens next week(at UFC 101). If Silva doesn’t get busted or have injuries, it could be very soon.” That IS a promised title shot, straight from the horses mouth. Like I said, I don’t really care if he deserved one or not(I personally think he did, but that’s not the issue), Dana told him he had the next shot, so he should honor his word. If your boss tells you when the guy above you leaves you get his position, you’d be pissed if he gave that job to someone else. It’s unethical.

Cant wait to see MOusasi prove how good he is by thrashing Henderson!

Diceman, the wauy I interpret that quote is lets wait and see how the Andy-Forrest and Nate-Maia fights pan out, if Nate-Maia had have been a lackluster decision win for Nate or even Maia then Dan would have gotten the fight but Dana wasn’t promising anymore than that in that quote. Ultimately Andy and Nate got dominant wins, which put Silva on another level to the other MWs and Nate in the same position as Dan, as both had put a winning streak together and were coming off brutal KO wins over top contenders but had already been beaten comfortably by Andy making the smart choice a Dan-Nate fight for the next title shot.

Well first you said he didn’t say it, and then when I find the quote you try to put your own twist on it. Fact is, he told Dan he was next. That’s reneging my friend, and it’s reason for Hendo to be upset.

Interesting development. While it’s cerainly debatable whether Henderson was deserving of another title shot, the fact is that DW promised him one. A promise reported to the media should be honored. Henderson is no dummy. I’m sure he realizes he’s near the twilight of his fighting career. I can’t blame him for negotiating tough for either a headline title fight and/or a top dollar contract. Personally, I haven’t been overly stoked about either Henderson or Marquardt re-matching Silva, but I’d have liked to see them fight each other.

Bigger picture, expect to see more of this sort of thing with Strikeforce. While it will deprive us of an occasional matchup we may want to see, us as fans will benefit, as healthy competition will ensure the promotional entities will provide higher quality fight cards. Ultimately, this news is more good than bad if it is viewed long term.

Hendo is a badass, dana will take him back if the strikeforce thing doesn’t work. I am pretty sure they can do a Hendo-Fedor fight together too even though he would get smashed coz Hendo fights anywhere he doesn’t give a f@ck. They can bill as a fight between two former Pride and King of Kings champs. This also cleans up the UFC MW division meaning Silva might get a chance to smash on overrated Mir before retiring or they’ll finally accept Okami as part of Zuffa and give him a title shot. Great news and sad news at the same time. Crazy sh!t though, i go to sleep for a couple of hours and this happens. Same thing with the fedor signing. God i love this nutty MMA world.

Whatever, it’s unfortunate, but I’m still a Hendo fan. I may have to order Showtime, sorry Dana, your loss.

…and what happens if Strikeforce has the opportunity for Rampage/Hendo II?!?! The first fight was great, I wouldn’t mind a second go at it.

What everyone is failing to forget-promises or not Anderson Silva wanted there to be a MW #1 ranked fight between NAte and Dan before he blew one or possibly 2 of his last 3 fights on rematches. Hendo has beat no top 10 competitors since losing to Silva. He beat Franklin at 205#(debatable if he won), On my back-Jump in my Guard please Palhares, and an overated top 15 Bizzzzzping. Not impressive at all. Nate at least beat 2 top 10’s and a top 20 in Goveia. Anderson as the champ who has fought both of these guys, beat them both convincingly, had every right to ask for a #1 challenger fight. So all the promising in the world don’t mean shit if Andy doesn’t want to waste his time on a fighter,who is still the same exact fighter, he beat a little over a year and a half ago.

at the time the ufc bought PRIDE, the PRIDE belts meant more than the ufc paper belts. at the time, the ufc had so many fighters winning their gold and walking that u couldn’t even really tell who had actually lost their belt and who had actually walked while still having their belt. the PRIDE divisions were deeper, more talented, just better all around. the ufc’s top LHW went over there and couldn’t make it out of the semi-finals of a tournament, LOL. the ufc’s MW champ had been run out of PRIDE by a couple of WW asian’s,LOL. when u hold 2 belts in the most prostigious and competitive organization then come to a AAA minor league org., at the time, so to speak, u don’t move to the bottom of the line after a loss to the new org’s. champs, u should actually be right back in line for another shot at getting ur strap back. those unified belts were dan’s to lose, not rampage’s and silva’s. not many fighters in the entire world gave two shits about the ufc straps, the WORLDS greatest fighters only cared about those PRIDE belts

yeah the Pride belts were much more meaningful!

Hendo probably deserves the money he was asking for. The dude went 5 rounds with Rampage, and I had him squeeking out a split decision. Granted, he lost to Silva, but so does everybody else. He’s won his last three fights, ko’d bisping, and gained stardum on the Ultimate Fighter. The guy has fans for f’sake.

Dana really dicked him around with the Silva rematch. Vitor doesn’t deserve it as much as Dan or Marquardt. Just when the division was starting to get interesting..

I don’t know spitforce i think the UFC would have the best dollar value on the table for Dan I hope he just asking for a high amount to see what falls really if Strikeforce does offer more he probaly would take it with easier fights beside one guy he could rule the LHW and MW division are maybe like a lot of fighters he wants a shot at Fedor before his age catches up with him? A lot of speculation right now but I hope he stays in the UFC if not he would add much needed talent to Strikeforce.

Damn straight samirpamba

Hey Dan, way to duck Nate Marquardt, p*ssy!

He had a title shot coming – guess he didn’t believe he could actually beat Nate. I know I sure as hell didn’t. To the minor leagues with you! Old man. No one gives a sh*t that you beat Bisping. So did Mark Hammill.

MATT Hamill

Bisping was winning that fight until Mark Hammill used The Force on him.

marquardt has never been and never will be on dan henderson’s level. come on guys, open up ur eyes, ur all the same bunch that thought bisping was gonna stomp him. bisping didn’t even deserve to be in the same building as dan henderson. u all thought he had his hands full with palhares, again, he dominated him like a 6th grader dominates a 3rd grader, with ease. same with franklin, he owned rich for 2 rounds, absolutely owned him, rich did nothing at no time that even appeared to hurt dan, hell dan even said that he was sooooo much better than rich that he ‘coasted’ in th 3rd round, lol. that means u got absolutely NO respect for anything ur opponent is capable of doing to u. it would be the same thing with marquardt. dan was above fighting the nate marquardts of this world about 5-7 yrs. ago. i mean really, who wants to see him rematch alan goes again

this comment is wrong on so many levels

no it isn’t and why is that people think the great would maul hendo. hendo has the biggest right hand in mma and nate doesnt have an iron chin at all. dan would finish nate in either the first or second round 8 times out of 10. and nate’s one of my favorite fighters.

Dominating Palhares is no big feet. They Guy Sucks. He laid on his back and prayed for Dan to fall into a submission. He did not own Rich at all. The Striking was all Rich. Dan had takedowns. Most people that watched that fight actually feel Rich got robbed. You might be the first person I have heard to say Dan owned Rich. Iron Chin or not Nate is a much more complete fighter then Dan is. Dan has wrestling and a right hand. Nate has kicks, punches, a wrestling game, and a bjj game. He has done more since losing to Silva then Dan has. Nate is the #2 ranked fighter at MW. Dan is the #4 ranked fighter because he has done shit since losing to silva. So Dan is not above fighting Nate. I am not saying Nate would win, but he stands as much of a chance as anyone else right now…

Point is Dana promised him one. Whether he deserves it or not is another issue.

there’s been no offer from strikeforce, he hasn’t signed with them, it’s been reported that he “had a cup of coffee with coker” but no offer was proposed. he got paid 250k for his last fight with bisping and i dont see aff….whoops SF matching that. if he wants more and SF does sign him, more power to both sides. i see it as nothing more than bargaining ploy.

Dana White is full of chit. He will bail out Rampage but not give the same level of consideration for Hendo.
I usually support Dana, but the UFC made a BS decision on this one. Hendo is much more marketable than Page. Put a blindfold on him and he could still coach better. Rampage just acts like a dick as a human being and the company still pushes him while he walks away for a B movie, straight to DVD.

But Hendo has the personality of door nail. But i agree with you for the simple reason that a man much like my hero big nog who has been a perennial fighter and p4p best for the better part of this decade only belongs in the best promotion fighting the best fighters. He has two or three fights at best in strikeforce then what?Dream? I guess he can keep his MW ranking by beating up lawler, shields, santiago if they don’t lose their next fights which is very likely for everyone except lawler. He can get ranked at LHW if he can beat up Mousasi which is a bad stylistic matchup for him. It’s like fighting an unrefined A Silva from a technical standpoint. Finally the Fedor fight which he has the resume to do despite being a middleweight. Much more deserving than Linland in Bodog for sure.

Along with that 250K he also got a fat KO of the Night bonus, double the usual amount and very well deserved, and I have no doubt Dana slipped him some extra unreported cash the way he does with all the top performers at an event.

people kang, manhoef and jacare all had mousassi in good positions before he pulled 3 different haymakers and won those fights. dan if he was smart would take gegard down and gnp the shit outta him. mousassi will have his time but against dan, no way

Ditto. I’d much rather see Hendo vs. Gegard than Dan vs. Anderson Silva again.

I hear what you’re saying but at his age he dosen’t have much left in the tank. Strikeforce only has a handful of decent fighters. Most of the others are UFC has-beens or wanna-be’s.

I’m far from a Hendo fan but this is a big signing for SF. It’s far from good news for the UFC to lose a top MW to the competition especially when he’s coming off a high profile KO win following TUF 9 on the highest drawing MMA PPV ever.

SF are the ones making the big signings at the moment and are becoming a bigger threat all of the time, from top prospects like Grim, Lashley and King Mo to legends like Fedor and Hendo to the future stars like Nick, Gilbert and Shields as well as Dream stars Mousasi, Jacare and Mayhem to add to an already decent roster including Babalu, Overroids (if he ever fights), Shamrock (still a legend) and Thomson (if he’s ever healthy). Add to this a CBS and Showtime deal and they’re looking dangerous, certainly far more of a threat than poorly run companies like Elite and Affliction.

I don’t see how SF could possibly pay him more than the UFC, though—especially when you consider how many high-profile fighters they’ve been acquiring lately. I just hope they’re not gonna go the Affliction route and end up bankrupt. I really don’t want them to go under.

That’s another key question, if SF can afford these fighters including Dan then they’re a threat but I have no idea how much they are paying. The next show will give us a clue but the main question has to be M-1, as without a doubt they took too much from Affliction amongst the other promotions that they co-promoted shows with. Until more is known about their finances I’m not going to bash them for signing top fighters, unless they put said fighters in pointless fights which they nearly did by trying to put on Fedor-Buentello before a proper opponent in Grim was chosen.

Well my question is how could they possibly pay significantly more than the 250k, (which is what Dan seems to want)even ignoring the new co-promotion? For damn sure they don’t have anywhere near the profits of the UFC.

affliction was signing fighters up till a few days before they caved in. they said last year they were going to have 12 events. they said what everyone wanted to hear. now SF is saying that they are going to have 20 shows a year-all free! ok then unles the nov 6th gets abnormaly high ratings, they WILL have to go the way of ppv, where else are they going to get money from. CBS JUST FILED FOR BANKRUPTCY, and they own showtime, so they are not going to get from them. theyonly option they have is ppv, and that is where FEDOR will sink them. he doesn’t sell! SF have been cutting promos and showing clips of nothing but fedor, BIG MISTAKE. why aren’t they promoting brett rogers, gegard vs soku, or mayhem vs shields. they are in the same mode as affliction being bedazzled by fedor and his cronies, finkie and scumbag millen. eveyone dogs out dana, but fail to realize he’s grown his company by 200%.no one else has proven that thye can even run a top level promotion, let alone make it grow as large as the ufc. scott coker has been in the kickboxing/mma business for 20 years, and always been a small time regional promoter, so why hasn’t he been able to go nationwide up till now? he’s riding the wave of the ufc’s success, just like all the others he’s letting m-1 global use them for their showtime and cbs connections, b/c he’s out of his league. within the year strikeforce,sadly, will be dead and another small time promotion will try and rear it’s ugly head and there will be fedor and finkie and millen and m-1 to jump on their back in deep waters. so if anyone doesn’t think dana white doesn’t know what he is doing with guys like hendo and rampage, THINK AGAIN!. he is pwning their assess straight up and you will see them doing a jon fitch,(remember that “fiasco”), peter tuck and come crawling back to the ufc like whipped dogs just like randy,just like tito, just like the aka guys, just like bj, and just like Affliction did.

p.s. guys like shields, gegard, rogers and king mo are all dying to get into the ufc and will be there sooner than you think.;)

Well, I remember finding out on this site that Gegard made all of 2K for his fight against Babalu, so it may not be too promising. The ratings and the sponsorship of SF’s event next month will be huge for them. What does Dana and the boys have planned for that night? You know they are going to have something on Spike that night.

yea i know i just waiting for your reaction since you were waiting for it!! hahaha

Why my posts being altered?

“say that to my face” insults me, but I call him a dipshit and the mods take it off lol.

cause if your trying to call me a dipshit MANIA already knows that you should say it to my face

and just for that your the dipp shit! hahahah

I don’t think anyone who knows anything would think Hendo is ducking anyone. His resume speaks for itself. Fedor’s nationality has nothing to do with negative perception he has with a lot of fans.

I’m actually excited by the prospect of Hendo fighting in Strikeforce. There weren’t any fights in the UFC that I would have liked to see.

SF needs Fedor to do well but with signings like Hendo as well as Gegard they’re far from a one fighter roster. It all depends on how much they are paying these guys and how much profit they are making from live gates, Showtime and CBS as the main worry is M-1 taking their cut for providing virtually nothing to the shows.

Exactly. No doubt thye have the fighters, but will they pay them too much and loose money. Have to wait and see.

It’s funny because Dana’s really not the boss at the end of the day. The Fertittas are and they’re much richer than him. Also don’t forget the locker room bonuses and the PPV percentages that alot of top guys make. Hendo may act like he’s poor, but I assure you that he’s not.

I agree with you on everything your saying! But Dana is a very rich man and he is a cheap ass as well. He needs to start paying a little more money in my opinion to the guys that make the UFC what it is today. Don’t lose good fighters because another organization like Strike Force wants to out BID you.