Johny HendricksMany with wrestling backgrounds who follow MMA will watch the event with non-wrestling fans. Non-wrestling fans may even ask, 'Who is this Johny Hendricks guy?' Some wrestling fans will respond that he was a two-time NCAA champion and four-time All-American at Oklahoma State. Many will likely point out the fact that he is the former villain of college wrestling and maybe even call him a bad guy.
But do wrestling fans really know Johny Hendricks? How many have actually spoken to him? What did he do that made fans cheer extra loud when he lost the last match of college wrestling career? Why did the college wrestling world embrace Ben Askren for his unique personality and loathe Johny Hendricks for his unique personality?
"Look, in wrestling, I was so tired of what people said about me," said Hendricks. "I felt like, if you think that I really am that way, you know what, I'll give you something to bark at me about. I have no ego. God blessed me with the abilities that I have and it would be very rude for me to be like, 'I am better than anybody.' In wrestling, I was tired of that. I was like, hey, I'll talk to you, clear some things up, just give me the time of day and we'll do this. They wouldn't do that for me. They would just say that Johny's at it again ... yadda yadda yadda. If you want that kind of person, I will give you that kind of person. "
Hendricks was tenacious on the wrestling mat. He competed with a non-stop, in-your-face, attacking style. When Hendricks took the mat, wrestling fans knew they were in for a show, regardless of whether they liked him or loathed him. However, despite that, most wrestling fans outside of Oklahoma rooted against him.
Johny Hendricks (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)Rewind three years to Hendricks' senior season at Oklahoma State in 2007. The National Duals had just concluded in mid-January. Hendricks had gone through a 10-match stretch in which he wrestled eight ranked wrestlers, including the No. 2, No. 3, and No. 4, No. 5, and No. 7-ranked wrestlers in the country. He won all 10 of those matches and was not feeling challenged. He had just dominated his main rival, Iowa's Mark Perry, 9-1. Hendricks was burned out. He was tired of the persona. He was sick of wrestling. He approached his coach, John Smith, and asked for time away. He felt alone and isolated. He wished that someone would take the leadership reins like he did for his predecessors.
"I was the only leader," said Hendricks. "Nobody else helped take it with me my last year. When Jake (Rosholt) and Espo (Zack Esposito) were seniors I stepped up with my leadership role at times so that they could do what they had to do and focus on their senior years. I feel like I didn't have that. I took that role as the leader of Oklahoma State. Coach Smith wouldn't let me take time away. I went through the motions. It started wearing on me and I started not to care what happened."
Hendricks would go on to lose in the NCAA finals to Perry in his final college wrestling match. After that loss, Hendricks stepped away from the sport he had known all this life and prayed about what the next step was going to be. He knew he was too young to quit competing. He did not want to wrestle internationally, although Coach Smith suggested it. Hendricks had faith something would come his way and work itself out.
"I did not want to wrestle internationally or train for the Olympics," said Hendricks. "I was mad at the wrestling community."
Three weeks after his final college wrestling match, Hendricks received a call from Team Takedown, an MMA management company, and was asked a simple question: "Do you want to be an MMA fighter?" He didn't know much about MMA, but decided to give it a try.
Johny Hendricks (Photo/Sherdog.com)Hendricks knows that he still has a lot to learn as a fighter, but he is hungry and is not putting a limit on how far he can go or how high he can climb in the UFC.
"Man, I can't wait until I get a couple years under my belt and really truly understand this game ... because then it's going to be awesome," said Hendricks.
Hendricks admits that it will take time to get to where he wants to be and understands that he cannot fight for the sake of getting bouts. He schedules fights about 12 weeks apart so he can get time to learn technique and understand all the nuances of MMA. He and former Oklahoma State teammate Jake Rosholt were featured on a television series Tapout.
In his early MMA career, Hendricks walked through smaller venues en route to reach the WEC, the UFC's sister promotion. He kept winning and learning. His game continues to evolve.
"I fell in love with the striking game just because you've got to have people fear your hands," said Hendricks. "You have to have people believe that. Then my takedowns are way easier."
When the UFC called last summer, the promotion company did Hendricks no favors by lining him up to fight Amir Sadollah at UFC 101 on August 8 in Philadelphia. Sadollah was the contestant winner of the popular TV show, The Ultimate Fighter, which springboards fighters into instant celebrity status and notoriety.
In Sadollah's previous fights, he showed serious skills in defeating some accomplished former wrestlers Gerald Harris and CB Dollaway.
Hendricks knew he had a daunting task, but went on to knock out Sadollah with an uppercut in the first round, stunning the MMA world. He then heard a familiar sound, booing. The crowd was not booing Hendricks, but was unhappy that the referee jumped in to stop the fight so quickly. They wanted to see more. In his post-fight interviews, Hendricks spoke with class and dignity, talking about how much respect he had for Sadollah, which helped him gain popularity with MMA fans.
Johny Hendricks with his daughter, AbriWhile the goal to be champion remains the same, other things have changed.
Hendricks, who became a father in October with the birth of his daughter, Abri, has reinvented himself in MMA. He is hungrier than he has ever been and has brought the hard work that wrestlers preach and live by to MMA.
Hendricks has been ever so gracious and MMA fans have embraced and enjoyed his unique personality. No labels. No false persona. No team standards.
But the question remains: Will wrestling fans finally embrace Johny Hendricks?
For all things MMA, follow Tony Nguyen on Twitter at www.twitter.com/tonynguyenmma.
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