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Does Benson Henderson get enough respect as Champion?

3K views 31 replies 25 participants last post by  Sterl 
#1 ·
The Fox broadcast framed his fight against Diaz as a 'respect' fight. Which I somewhat agree with. Henderson has consistently been near the top wherever he's been fighting, but he seems to be constantly looked over as just another name in lieu of other supposedly superior lightweights who simply need to hit their groove to get their crown and dominate the division.

Let's face it, lightweight is a minefield of possible contenders and fighters who don't seem to be able to be finished. I don't hold it against Bendo for not having a finish in the UFC and its impressive that he's managed to survive his UFC tenure without a loss (though detractors will bring up the Edgar fights).

After his performance against Diaz, will Bendo be seen as a more credible Champion?

He has the gas tank, the athleticism, the skills in all areas, and the gameplan to beat anybody I think or at least stay relevant for a long time.

Yeah, his post fight Jesus rallies are corny, but I think people that hold that against them might be indulging in the same narrow-mindedness that they supposedly abhor. It almost feels like he just does that to troll people.

I think a fight everyone wants to see is a Pettis rematch, because that fight was insane. Unfortunately Pettis hasn't been able to keep apace with Hendo in the UFC to have that fight be possible yet, so the question remains to be asked,

Who's next for Bendo? Who can beat him? (No Edgar fanboys please)
 
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#2 ·
The reasons he wasn't getting any respect is because of the second Frankie fight, he hasn't finished a fight yet.

Funny enough his Jesus rants don't bother me at all, I don't hate the fact he hasn't finished a fight in the UFC yet, although it's only a matter of time until SOMEONE brings it up, if he doesn't finish someone soon the same people who blast GSP for not finishing will soon be on his tail, what I have a problem is the same reason many people have/had a problem with him, the second Frankie Edgar fight. Look throughout the annuals of MMA history and you'll see that a guy who wins a controversial decision gets a lot of shit, Lyoto Machida after the first Shogun fight is a perfect example of this, you win a fight many feel you shouldn't have and the fans are coming for you with cries of robbery.

He destroyed Nate, complete domination from bell to bell and he should get his props for that, some of his detractors will go away and people will probably give him a lot more respect, which he deserves. He erased some of the stigma around him, of course the Atheist crowd will always be on his case, so that's always gonna be there but for me, he hasn't shown me anything that could lead me to believe he's gonna win a rematch with Pettis, he may be the Champion and that's all fine and dandy but Pettis was the better man the first time and when and they will indeed fight again, I promise you that, when they meet once more the result will be the same and his title reign will once again come to an end at the hands of Showtime except this time, it's gonna be a UFC belt that gets put on Anthony and not the WEC one.
 
#3 ·
He has my respect, not 100% because I do think Franky beat him. But I don't question his skill.

For some reason though I don't think I can every be a fan. I always want him to loose. I don't know if its his horrible tattoo or what but I seem to always root against him
 
#4 ·
Not yet. Some don't think of him as the true champion because of how close his second fight with Frankie was. That and he doesn't have an impressive finish yet, which baffles me because of how he fights. He's beaten the f*ck out of everyone so far, but just can't get the finish.

It might have to do with the Jesus stuff too. I used to absolutely hate it but it doesn't bother me anymore. What bothers me now though is how hard he's trying to be some kind of role model. He went on some inspirational spiel last night after the fight, and then did it again at the post fight conference. It's like that fake sh*t Jones was doing for awhile.
 
#5 ·
Ben Henderson has only defended the title one time and his win against Frankie was questionable to some(Personally, I had 1st fight Edgar, 2nd fight Draw) so it's no surprise he hasn't gotten much respect as a champ. If he's able to defend one more time people will give him props. Right now the Nate fight showed us he's champ for a reason, but the win against Nate wasn't exactly an exclamation point or anything.
 
#6 ·
He doesn't no. But the fight for the title being very close and not the best fight and then his first defence being very close and not the best fight is the reason why. He should have gained some more respect after a good figth against Nate where he owned him and was being very aggressive, but to truly earn most fans respect you need to finish guys. Every fight he has had in the UFC has gone to the decision. Gotta finish guys to be seen as a great champ.
 
#8 ·
"Does Benson Henderson get enough respect as Champion"

After this fight I'm sure he does.
 
#9 ·
I'm sure losing to Pettis and his bouts with Edgar have left certain people unconvinced. I've always had respect for Henderson and I felt he beat Frankie soundly both times. And he took Nate to school. I would, however, like to see him square off against Pettis at long last. That fight needs to happen so that certain lingering questions can be put to rest.
 
#11 ·
I new he was good before the Diaz fight but I didn't know how good he was. He dominated Diaz who was on a role, he was even more dominate then Macdonald was at welterweight over Diaz. Diaz got nothing going at all against him, I'd say hes the best lightweight in the world right now. I had Edgar winning both there fights slightly but they were very close and now that Edgar's down at 145 the only guy who I could see possibly dethroning Henderson at the moment would be Maynard. I think if Henderson meets Pettis again, Henderson will be able to beat him, since there first fight Henderson has looked like a completely different animal.
 
#14 · (Edited)
He beat a Diaz brother fair and square without having to resort to dirty tricks. He has my respect as a fighter.

But the second someone identifies them self as a Christian, Mulsim or Jew I just feel sorry for them. Same way I would if someone told me they were a Zoroastrian.

When you make your religion a large part of your 'character' in the UFC you have to expect a good chunk of the population to write you off as a wackjob. Loads of guys are christians, they don't have to make it the central thrust of everything they say when a microphone gets put in front of them.

But hey, he can do what he likes. It's his life.

I don't think anyone has a real reason to disrespect his ability to win fights.
 
#15 ·
Yeah we get it, you don't have any religious convictions and laugh at the idea of it. Your completely entitled to your opinion just like everyone else is. Same reason someone who has faith would feel sorry for you for being a lost soul. (And no, not me. I'm not overly religious but I'm not a big enough tool to act differently to someone who isn't or is.)

Anyway, Ben absolutely dominated Nate. After the second Frankie fight, he needed to do this to prove to everyone he deserves where he's at right now. I think Pettis beats him in a rematch again, but he's deserving of his belt now in my eyes.
 
#16 ·
In answer to the OPs question, I don't think he does. Some of the comments on this thread are evidence to support this. I'll be honest, I always respected him as a fighter, but a champion? No, not really. Not until I saw the Diaz fight that is. Complete domination. I was really really, yes two reallys, impressed with his domination from top position. His sub defence was spot on as usual. I kept jumping off my seat whenever he took Diaz' back hoping for a RNC. Unlikely against Nate but Big Nog did get submitted not too long ago so I'll never rule anything out.

One thing I really don't understand how people can judge Benson on his faith. To me that is the same as judging a fighter on their race, creed, gender or sexuality. Its got F*ck all to do with his ability as a fighter so why even mention it? The dudes a monster at 155 and after the Diaz fight I can proudly say I'm now a Benson fan.
 
#18 · (Edited)
In answer to the OPs question, I don't think he does. Some of the comments on this thread are evidence to support this. I'll be honest, I always respected him as a fighter, but a champion? No, not really. Not until I saw the Diaz fight that is. Complete domination. I was really really, yes two reallys, impressed with his domination from top position. His sub defence was spot on as usual. I kept jumping off my seat whenever he took Diaz' back hoping for a RNC. Unlikely against Nate but Big Nog did get submitted not too long ago so I'll never rule anything out.

One thing I really don't understand how people can judge Benson on his faith. To me that is the same as judging a fighter on their race, creed, gender or sexuality. Its got F*ck all to do with his ability as a fighter so why even mention it? The dudes a monster at 155 and after the Diaz fight I can proudly say I'm now a Benson fan.
Well, imagine another fighter winning and crediting it to his race.

"I would like to thank my white parents for raising me up. All this won't be possible if I ain't white!"

I doubt the people here are unhappy about Benson believing in Jesus. They are unimpressed by him raising the issue of his faith after every fight.

To be back on topic, I respected Benson as a person before the Diaz fight. Didn't think much of him as a champion though. I believe that Edgar definitely won the rematch between them two, and thus I didn't feel Benson deserved the belt around his waist. However, he did put on a very impressive and convincing win over Diaz. If he continues to dominate like he did against Diaz, he would gain my respect as a champion.
 
#17 ·
Yeah, everyone's pretty much on point here. He has had two fights with Frankie... one was close with the slight majority leaning his way... the second was close with the heavy majority leaning towards Frankie.

If he gets a couple more wins like this one, his stock will rise. GSP has proven you don't have to stop the opposition to be considered great, just dominate them.

I also agree that being on the bad end of one of the most famous MMA highlight moments ever courtesy of Showtime has at least a little effect on his stature. If I were Benson, the Pettis rematch would be the absolute top of my to do list.
 
#20 ·
Honestly I don't see what all the controversy on the Henderson/Edgar fights is about. I thought both fights were close especially the first fight (which could have been a draw). The second fight, although close, I thought Ben landed the harder strikes and did the most damage. Frankie might have landed slightly more, but they were largely ineffective pitter patter punches. It could have gone either way, that's why I shrug when people say Frankie was robbed.
 
#21 ·
He did earn my respect, I don't know why I didn't much before but I really watched this fight close, he impressed me the way he handled nate and I see no reason not to give it to him.
That stands for me regardless of if he gives thanks to Jesus or his bubble bath soap...
He is still a good fighter.
 
#25 ·
I used to be one of them, but seeing him against Nate, he really looked just like GSP a few days before, dominant all through the fight, he looked like those great champions. Maybe I still have to watch him do that a couple more times. it could happen. the LW division is stacked but Nate was arguably one of the bests it has to offer right now and he got ragdolled the whole fight, I think a judged scored one or two rounds as 10-8s which is impressive for a fight at this level
 
#27 ·
Honestly, who cares if he thanks Christ for his win in his post fight speech. Why the hell does that bother some people?

He can believe in what ever the heck he wants to believe in, and if he wants to attribute that belief as a large part of his success as a Mixed Martial Artist then what is wrong with that?

It amazes me that people can "hate" this guy because he praises his Christianity in a post fight speech. I really think it's just sad that people would hate a guy for that.

And no, I don't believe in God myself either, but I can respect what ever Benson wants to believe in, ******* leave the guy alone.
 
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