Dan Henderson Training For Pride 14
Some very rare, never seen before footage of Dan Henderson at PRIDE 14. Training alongside MMA legends such as Randy Couture, Heath Sims, Ryan Parsons and Matt Hume. This footage was from Dan’s last workout before his Pride 14 fight against Akira Shoji in Tokyo Japan.
The footage is narrated by the Bad Guy, Chael Sonnen. Who gives us insight into what the guys are doing to prepare for the upcoming fight. To give the footage some perspective, this is back before the UFC was bought out by Zuffa, so no Dana white, Lorenzo etc.
Henderson had already fought in the UFC in 1997 but had subsequently been trying to get back into the Olympics. So here he was again fighting in a four-man tournament at Pride 14. Surrounded by his good friends and training partners.
Pride at the time including the UFC was one of the two dominant promotions in the world. Filling out huge arena’s with up to ninety thousand people for their grand finals. It posed a very real threat to the UFC and was subsequently bought out by the company in 2007.
Before that happened, Hendo managed to become a two-division champion in the organisation. Both at 185lbs and 205lbs. If there is ever to be the talk of potential Hall of Famer’s. Then Dan Henderson is, without doubt, one of those fighters who should have pride of place.
Hendo Training with the Greats
Chael talks about the influence of current trainer to UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson, Matt Hume. Hume was and still is one of the most influential and highly respected coaches in the game. And even right back as far as 2001, his influence can be seen amongst emerging greats in the sport of MMA.
As a final treat, we get to see dan and Randy Couture working out. Maybe one of the only times a fan will get to see similar footage. And a real treat for any of the old-school Pride Fighting Championship days.