After having to bow out of Saturday’s now-canceled UFC 151 event against light heavyweight king Jon Jones, Dan Henderson (Pictured) finally received some good news. According to the 42-year-old, the torn MCL he suffered in his knee will not have to be operated on.
“No surgery is needed, luckily, but I’ve just got to immobilize it and ice it a lot for the next three or four weeks and then rehab it a little bit,” Henderson revealed on this week’s edition of AXS TV’s Inside MMA. “Hopefully, they said I’d be 100 percent in three to four months.”
UFC 155 will be jumping off in exactly four months from today, and December 29th is the date Henderson’s highlighted on his calendar for his comeback. However, that event is slated to showcase the heavyweight title tilt between champ Junior dos Santos and Cain Velasquez, so it’s highly unlikely the organization would also feature a 205-pound championship affair on the same card.
Even if they did, Hendo wasn’t given any guarantees from Octagon officials that he’ll retain his top contender moniker when he resumes his illustrious career.
“I don’t know [if I’ll still get a title shot when I return]. I didn’t ask what was gonna happen if I didn’t take the [UFC 151] fight,” Henderson stated. “It wasn’t going to be a part of my decision making process. I wanted to make sure I made the right decision for the right reasons.
“I still don’t know what’s gonna happen. I can only hope that I’m still in line for that title shot.”
When UFC president Dana White first announced the debacle surrounding UFC 151, he said he wasn’t sure if Henderson would maintain his next dibs status upon return. He referenced Rashad Evans’ situation where injuries (to him and the champions at the time – Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Jon Jones) forced Evans to take a couple of different fights before challenging for the hardware.
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August 28, 2012
