Editor’s Note: Thanks to Akhilesh Gannavarapu and our friends at SportsKeeda.com for providing us with his interview with UFC Welterweight Champion, Johny Hendricks.
Before Johny Hendricks and Robbie Lawler throw punches in a much anticipated rematch inside the Octagon this Saturday, I had the pleasure of interviewing the UFC Welterweight Champion. Here’s a transcript of our interview.
Akhilesh Gannavarapu: Johny, starting off, I would like to check with you about your health going into this title fight with Lawler. How was the surgery (tricep/elbow) and how does your arm feel now?
Johny Hendricks: The surgery went well, very well actually, and I feel great right now. The training camp was good – rough, but good. I can’t complain about it at all. It was a hard, rough camp, which is what I needed. The bicep is performing better than I could ask for. So that’s going to be at the back of my mind, which is nice.
AG: You are a power puncher and have some of the best one punch KOs with your left sledgehammer of a hand. How did it feel when you got back to hitting the mitts after your surgery?
JH: It felt good. Once I started re – hitting; this camp we did a lot of focus on mitt work, which I think has really helped me out because I was able to do that. I was able to focus a lot of time on that, which is important as maybe my timing was off and those kind of things, but this fight, we focused a lot on that, which I think is going to help me tremendously whenever I fight Lawler.
AG: Going back to your college wrestling days, you were a successful division one national champion. How did you journey into a career into MMA and not pursue amateur wrestling, all the way to the Olympics?
JH: That’s a great question. I knew that I wanted to compete, but I didn’t know if I still wanted to do wrestling. I prayed and prayed about it, and my management group now which is Team Takedown – they sort of contacted me and said, “Hey, would you like to be a fighter?”, and that’s sort of how it kicked off. I’m thankful for the time when the good lord led me this way.
AG: Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen were some who were very effusive about how much of a prospect you were for the Olympics. Who were some of your favorite fighters to follow during your formative years in the sport of MMA?
JH: In MMA, there were so many that I can’t really talk about it. We used to love watching Randy Couture, Chuck Liddell; Matt Hughes was a great one to be watching; pretty much any wrestler that was coming through. Because as I said, it wasn’t about these guys doing this and that, but it was about supporting the wrestlers.
AG: The last time you and Lawler met in the cage, it was a fight for the ages and both of you left everything in the octagon. What did you think of that fight and how big of a risk was it going into that fight with a torn tricep and what prompted you to do that?
JH: What made me do that was the fact that it was my chance to have a fight back to back (for the title); you lose your first one – close decision against George St. Pierre, they give you a title shot in your hometown in Dallas, and ten days out, you can’t really back out. It doesn’t make sense, there’s too much on the table. That goes back to wrestling; you’re sitting there and you just go, “Alright hey, it is what it is. You may not be at your best, but you’re going to try and do everything you can to put on a good show, and get a win.”
AG: We know you have respect for Lawler’s ability and are looking forward to this fight on Saturday. We had a chance to talk to Robbie last week and he was very confident about his chances, given his way back into title contention after your last fight. What do you think of your game plan for this fight, after being sidelined for so long?
JH: I think it’s probably better. I was able to refocus, I was able to heal my body up the way it needed to. Of course he thinks he has a good chance, I mean if he doesn’t, why is he fighting? I just know that I had to fight his game the last time, and I was still able to win. Don’t get me wrong, it was rough, but I still fought him at his best. He has yet to see me at my best. What is that, one arm missing? What is that – 75 percent? So this fight could be totally different. He can have all the confidence in the world, but when we get in there and I’m able to hit him with my right hand, able to set up different shots. If you rewatch the last fight, he had to do so much because my left hand was pretty much the only punch I could throw. A lot of counters came off that left hand, which is great because if he does that this time, I’ll be able to get him with my right hand.
AG: The welterweight division is one of the most competitive ones in the UFC right now with contenders such as Rory, Woodley, Lombard and even Diaz waiting in the wings. What are your thoughts about the division and its future from a champion’s perspective?
JH: Super excited. It is what you just said. It’s going to be an exciting weight division. There’s a lot of talented guys that are scratching up a bit to get a shot at me and hopefully take it (the title) away from me, and that’s what gets me up every day too. The fact that the competition; they do want to take that away. And that’s what gives me the desire to do better.
AG: Your bout with Georges St. Pierre was a terrific one, with somewhat of a controversial finish. Given the constant talk of his return, what do you think of an immediate rematch for the title with the former long standing champion?
JH: We might. I’m never going to count it out. If he comes back, he comes back. If he doesn’t, then he doesn’t. Here’s the difference between me and other people – I can’t control that right now. So I’m not going to worry about it. I got to get through Robbie Lawler; don’t get me wrong. I understand what I have to do and what I have to say, but I look at it as that. I’m just going to say it, but I’m not going to put any thought into it, because who’s to say that he does come back? I can sit here and worry about GSP every day for the next 3 years, and he could just be saying the same thing.
What I know that I have to do, is that I have to make sure that I get out there, and I beat Robbie, and that’s the only thing that matters to me right now.
AG: Another guy who has been singing your name all the time is Ben Askren, the welterweight champ of ONE FC, who claims to have some unfinished business from your days of wrestling together in college. Do you want to throw some light on that situation for the fans here?
JH: No.
We have seen knockout punches and top notch wrestling from you in your career so far. Have you had time to practice your kicking techniques since getting back in the gym post your surgery?
JH: Yes, we work a lot on kicks and knees. All that stuff, to be at the top, to be able to fight these guys is I have to constantly evolve. Everybody knows I have a left hand. They don’t know if I have a right hand. After that Lawler fight, everybody sort of saw my kickboxing skills. It’s about adapting and overcoming. When you know certain things are hindering you, how do you overcome that? And that’s what I think was my best attribute that last fight was a way to overcome adversity.
AG: Could we see a head kick knockout coming our way?
JH: (Laughs) I wish. I’m never counting it out for sure.
AG: You are main eventing the most stacked card this year, with the co – main being the title fight for the lightweight championship. What are your thoughts on the participants involved in that duel and do you have a pick?
JH: They’re both very talented fighters; I do think that Pettis is going to win. I think Melendez has a lot of stuff to offer to Pettis. I just think that the striking of Pettis is going to hinder him a little bit. It’s going to stop him in his tracks, and that’s who I’m going with – Pettis.
In closing, any last words for your fans in India who would be cheering for ‘Big Rigg’ this weekend, who will be cheering for you to retain the title?
JH: Yes, first off and foremost is thank you for your support. Any time I can get a fan anywhere, I’m super excited. I’m very grateful, that’s the best way I can say it. It’s something that I know comes and goes, but the fans I have, I want to make sure I give them thanks for everything they do and support that they show me. And that it means a lot to me.
You can also follow ‘Big Rigg’ on Twitter here, and make sure to catch what will surely be yet another fantastic fight as Hendricks takes on Lawler for the second time this year.
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