Benson Henderson’s rematch with Frankie Edgar now has a date and location.
The Decatur grad and current Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight champion will face off against Edgar inside Denver’s Pepsi Center on Aug. 11. The title fight will be the main event at UFC 150, according to numerous sources. MMAJunkie.com first reported the bout on Friday.
Henderson, who graduated from Decatur in 2001, won the UFC’s 155-pound lightweight title by winning a unanimous decision over Edgar at UFC 144 in Tokyo, Japan, in February.
Henderson landed several powerful kicks and knees during the five-round fight. Judges had it scored 49-46 twice and 48-47 for Henderson.
The biggest kick and moment came late in the second round when Henderson broke Edgar’s nose with an upkick. He also shut Edgar’s left eye by landing several jabs during the fight.
Edgar tried to use his more polished boxing and movement, but Henderson used his size and strength to control the middle of the ring, landing the more powerful shots.
As expected, Edgar and others around the UFC thought that he won the fight and was shocked when ring announcer Bruce Buffer called out the decision for Henderson. The slight controversy, and the fact that Edgar gave rematches to B.J. Penn and Gray Maynard during his reign, necessitated Henderson-Edgar II.
Edgar (15-2-1 MMA, 9-2-1 UFC) held the lightweight title for nearly two years and successfully defended the belt twice with a draw mixed in.
But Henderson also defended a world title several times. Henderson held the World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) 155-pound title for over a year before his 10-fight win streak was stopped by Anthony “Showtime” Pettis in December 2011.
Since the loss to Pettis and the move to the UFC, Henderson (16-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC) has been dominant. He has won all four of his matches by unanimous decisions over top-quality opponents, including Mark Bocek, Jim Miller, Clay Guida and Edgar.
Henderson, 28, began wrestling during his time at Lakota Middle School and continued at Decatur, where he competed under head coach Mike Bressler.
His prep career culminated with a second-place finish at the 2001 Mat Classic state wrestling championships inside the Tacoma Dome, losing to University’s Tommy Owen in the 135-pound title match.
After Decatur, Henderson went on to wrestle at Dana College in Nebraska, where he earned NAIA All-American honors as a senior after finishing in fifth place at 157 pounds in 2006.
Henderson’s performance helped Dana College win the NAIA national championship that year.
He actually started MMA fighting a year later after a dare from a couple of Dana wrestlers.
“I live this this,” Henderson said. “This is what I do. I live this lifestyle. I’m a fighter.”
