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Revision as of 03:18, 2 April 2011

Benson Henderson
Born (1983-11-16) November 16, 1983 (age 41)
Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA
Other namesSmooth[1]
ResidenceArizona Arizona
NationalityUnited States American
Height5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight155 lb (70 kg; 11.1 st)
DivisionLightweight
Reach70.0 in (178 cm)
StyleWrestling, Tae Kwon Do, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Muay Thai
Fighting out ofGlendale, Arizona
TeamMMA Lab
Rank  black belt in Taekwondo
  brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Years active2006–present MMA
Mixed martial arts record
Total14
Wins12
By knockout2
By submission8
By decision2
Losses2
By submission1
By decision1
Other information
UniversityDana College
Notable school(s)Decatur High School
Websitehttp://www.smoothben.com/
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
Last updated on: April 14, 2010

Benson Henderson (born November 16, 1983) is an American mixed martial artist. He fights for the UFC in their lightweight division and is a former WEC Lightweight Champion.

Early life

Henderson was born in Colorado Springs, Colorado to a Korean American mother and an African American father.[2] He was raised in Federal Way, Washington. He attended Decatur High School from 1998 to 2001. After graduating from high school, he attended Dana College in Blair, Nebraska and graduated in 2006 with a double major in criminal justice and sociology. While attending Dana College, Henderson was on the wrestling team, and was twice named an NAIA All-American.[3]

Henderson is currently a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Brown belt under John Crouch, who is a black belt under Royce Gracie.[4]

Mixed martial arts career

Henderson compiled a 2-1 record as an amateur before turning professional in 2006, winning his first match against Dan Gregary.[5] He lost his third fight to Rocky Johnson via submission. However, this defeat was a minor setback. He rebounded with four straight wins before facing his toughest fight yet, against a UFC veteran, Diego Saraiva. Henderson came prepared as he dominated Saraiva for three rounds, winning a unanimous decision and his 7th professional win.

World Extreme Cagefighting

Three months later, Henderson made his World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) debut against Anthony Njokuani. Henderson defeated Njokuani after with a guillotine choke early in round two. He made his second appearance in the WEC at WEC 40 knocking out contender Shane Roller.

Henderson was given an opportunity to fight for the WEC interim lightweight title against Donald Cerrone when lightweight champion Jamie Varner was unable to defend his title due to an injury. The fight was the main event for WEC 43 which was held in Texas. Henderson won an exciting back-and-forth fight by unanimous decision. Both Henderson and Cerrone were awarded with an additional purse of $20,000 for fight of the night.[6] The bout was also awarded 2009 Fight of the Year for all of MMA by Sherdog.com[7]

Henderson defeated Jamie Varner with a Guillotine choke to unify the WEC Lightweight Championship at WEC 46 on January 10, 2010. After being outboxed and outwrestled in the first two rounds, Henderson came back and caught Varner in a standing Guillotine choke ending the fight at 2:41 of the third round.[8]

Henderson had his first title defense in a rematch with Donald Cerrone on April 24, 2010 at WEC 48, defeating Cerrone via guillotine choke in the first round.[9]

Henderson faced Anthony Pettis on December 16, 2010 at WEC 53.[10] Henderson lost his title by unanimous decision. The fight won Fight of the Night honors.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

In October 2010, World Extreme Cagefighting merged with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As part of the merger, all WEC fighters were transferred to the UFC.[11]

Henderson is expected to face Mark Bocek on April 30, 2011 at UFC 129.[12]

Personal life

Ben has one older brother, Julius Henderson.[13] Ben and his girlfriend Katie are engaged.[14]

Championships and accomplishments

  • Brazilian Jiu Jitsu
    • 1st Place, Middle Purple, Arizona Grappling Challenge, October, 2008[15]
  • Wrestling
    • NAIA Collegiate All American (2 times)[3]
  • World Extreme Cagefighting
    • Interim WEC Lightweight Champion (1 time)
    • WEC Lightweight Champion (1 time)
    • Fight of the Night (2 time)
    • Submission of the Night (WEC 48 against Donald Cerrone)
  • Sherdog
    • 2009 Fight of the Year

Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown
14 matches 12 wins 2 losses
By knockout 2 0
By submission 8 1
By decision 2 1
Result Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
— — Canada Mark Bocek — UFC 129: St-Pierre vs. Shields April 30, 2011 — — Canada Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Loss 12-2 United States Anthony Pettis Decision (Unanimous) WEC 53: Henderson vs. Pettis December 16, 2010 5 5:00 United States Glendale, Arizona Lost WEC Lightweight Championship; Fight of the Night
Win 12-1 United States Donald Cerrone Submission (Guillotine Choke) WEC 48: Aldo vs. Faber April 24, 2010 1 1:57 United States Sacramento, California Defended the WEC Lightweight Championship; Submission of the Night
Win 11-1 United States Jamie Varner Submission (Guillotine Choke) WEC 46: Varner vs. Henderson January 10, 2010 3 2:41 United States Sacramento, California Won Undisputed WEC Lightweight Championship
Win 10-1 United States Donald Cerrone Decision (Unanimous) WEC 43: Cerrone vs. Henderson October 10, 2009 5 5:00 United States San Antonio, Texas Won the Interim WEC Lightweight Championship; Fight of the Night
Win 9-1 United States Shane Roller TKO (Punches) WEC 40: Torres vs. Mizugaki April 5, 2009 1 1:41 United States Chicago, Illinois
Win 8-1 Nigeria Anthony Njokuani Submission (Guillotine Choke) WEC 38: Varner vs. Cerrone January 25, 2009 2 0:42 United States San Diego, California
Win 7-1 Brazil Diego Saraiva Decision (Unanimous) EVO MMA October 4, 2008 3 5:00 United States Phoenix, Arizona
Win 6-1 United States Ricardo Tirlone Submission (Guillotine Choke) MFC 17: Hostile Takeover July 25, 2008 2 3:49 Canada Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Win 5-1 Canada Mike Maestas Submission (Rear Naked Choke) MFC 16: Anger Management May 9, 2008 3 4:11 Canada Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Win 4-1 United States Brian Corley Submission (Rear Naked Choke) VFC 21: Infamous December 7, 2007 N/A N/A United States Council Bluffs, Iowa
Win 3-1 Canada David Dagloria Submission (Punches) UCE: Round 26: Episode 12 June 23, 2007 1 1:45 United States Ogden, Utah
Loss 2-1 United States Rocky Johnson Technical Submission (Anaconda Choke) Battlequest 5 - Avalanche March 31, 2007 1 0:46 United States Vail, Colorado
Win 2-0 United States Allen Williams TKO (Punches) VFC 18: Hitmen February 16, 2007 1 1:37 United States Council Bluffs, Iowa
Win 1-0 United States Dan Gregary Submission (Punches) MCF: Genesis November 18, 2006 1 4:21 United States North Platte, Nebraska

References

  1. ^ http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Benson-Henderson-20548
  2. ^ http://news.msn.co.kr/article/read.html?cate_code=8400&article_id=201001131050103012
  3. ^ a b "WEC - World Extreme Cagefighting - Ben Henderson". www.wec.tv.
  4. ^ http://smoothben.ning.com/profiles/blogs/so-yeah?xg_source=shorten_twitter
  5. ^ "Ben Henderson "Smooth" Official Mixed Martial Arts Record". www.mixedmartialarts.com.
  6. ^ "HENDERSON & CERRONE EARN EXTRA WITH WEC BONUSES". www.mmaweekly.com. Retrieved 2009-10-11.
  7. ^ "Sherdog's Fight of the Year". www.sherdog.com. Retrieved 2010-01-14.
  8. ^ WEC 46 live results and play by play
  9. ^ "WEC 48: Aldo vs. Faber - Live Results and Commentary". BLOODYELBOW.com. 2010-04-24. Retrieved 2010-04-25.
  10. ^ "HENDERSON VS. PETTIS OFFICIAL FOR WEC DEC 16". MMAweekly.com. 2010-09-23.
  11. ^ "UFC and WEC set to merge in 2011; events to air on Versus and Spike TV". mmajunkie.com. October 28, 2010.
  12. ^ "Ben Henderson vs. Mark Bocek targeted for UFC 129 in Toronto". mmajunkie.com. January 3, 2011.
  13. ^ "Northwest Asian Weekly - Smooth Operator". www.nwasianweekly.com. Retrieved 2009-10-22.
  14. ^ "A Different Side of Ben Henderson". MMASOCIALITES.com. 2010-01-28. Retrieved 2010-04-01.
  15. ^ http://azgrappling.strongvon.com/sv/html/tournament/Tournament_69/azgrappling2008_adult.pdf
New title 1st WEC Interim Lightweight Champion
October 10, 2009 - January 10, 2010 		Vacant
Preceded by 6th WEC Lightweight Champion
January 10, 2010 - December 16, 2010 		Succeeded by

Template:WEC Championships

Template:Persondata

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