Johny Hendricks (16-3) tar sig an Matt Brown (19-12) på UFC 185 nu i helgen och det som ofta har varit mest jobbigt för Hendricks har varit viktnedgången inför varje match, men nu verkar Hendricks ha tänkt om kring hela processen.
Hendricks förklarade att han noga tänkte på om han ville förändra sin livsstil eller om han ville gå upp till mellanvikt.
”It was a thought process. It was,” sa Hendricks. ”Did I want to change my lifestyle, or did I want to just move up to 185? 185 is a tough weight class. I’d be the shortest guy in there. I think I hit as hard as they do, I’m probably as strong as most of those guys in there. But I want to be champion.”
Det var en mycket smalare Hendricks som anlände i veckan till open workouts och Hendricks hade mycket mer energi än vad han brukar sista veckan innan invägningen.
”I sort of pulled back and said, ‘Hey, if we’re going to start pointing fingers at anybody, I want it to be on me,'” sa Hendricks.
”I’m the guy that, when it’s the offseason, I want to have fun, I want to get away. But I don’t have that luxury. I only have so long I can fight for, right? Do I want to look back and say I lived my life fun, but I could’ve accomplished so much more in the three or four years, whatever I got left? Would I rather say, ‘hey, I got to where I want to be, I’m satisfied with that, I’ll be comfortable with that?’ No. I want to be the champion. I want to remain the champion. And I’d like to go out as being the champion.”
”That’s why I’m making this change and hopefully it works. I believe it’s going to work. I feel like I’m back in college. I’m busting my butt everyday because I have something that I want. It got taken away from me, and I don’t want that to happen again.”
Hendricks hade valet att vänta på att få möta Robbie Lawler (25-10-0-1) senare i år eller att ta en fight innan det och Hendricks bestämde sig för att han ville gå match eftersom att det är hans jobb att fightas, inte att sitta och vänta.
”UFC came to me and they said, ‘Well, you’re about 10 weeks out, would you like to fight Matt Brown? You can wait for Robbie in July, or you can get another one?'” sa Hendricks. ”I’m sitting here going, well, if Rory MacDonald puts on a good performance or Hector Lombard knocks out Rory MacDonald, there could be an argument they steal it from me, right? Because I’m sitting on the shelf.”
”If I fight and I get an impressive win, or I win in general, then they can’t take it (away from me). So you’ve got to sit there and weigh out the options. Matt Brown is a tough dude. Robbie fought him to get back to me, so who am I different to get in there with somebody like him and hopefully win and get back to my belt?”
