5 Things You Might Not Know about Dan Henderson

Nearly five years have passed since Dan Henderson exited the mixed martial arts stage for the final time, but his accomplishments still resonate with those who witnessed his exploits.

The former simultaneous two-division Pride Fighting Championships titleholder announced his retirement in 2016, closing the book on a historic run that saw him compete against—and defeat—many of the sport’s all-time greats. Henderson finished his career with a 32-15 record, having secured more than half (17) of his victories by knockout or technical knockout. The Downey, California, native made his final appearance at UFC 204, where he wound up on the wrong side of a unanimous decision against longtime rival Michael Bisping on Oct. 8, 2016.

As Henderson, who turned 51 on Aug. 24, fades further and further into memory, here are five things you might not know about him:

1. He was molded on the mat.

After starring at Victor Valley High School in Victorville, California, Henderson wrestled collegiately at Cal State Fullerton and Arizona State University. He went on to become a two-time Olympian in Greco-Roman wrestling, placing 10th at the 1992 Summer Games in Barcelona, Spain, and 12th at the 1996 Summer Games in Atlanta.

2. Early success balanced out his Octagon shortcomings.

Though he failed in three tries—he came up short against Bisping, Anderson Silva and Quinton Jackson—to capture an Ultimate Fighting Championship title, Henderson did not leave the organization empty-handed. He won the middleweight tournament at UFC 17 on May 15, 1998, posting back-to-back 15-minute decisions against Allan Goes and Carlos Newton.

3. Few can match his strength of schedule.

Henderson defeated 12 former Strikeforce, Pride, UFC and Bellator MMA champions. He owns victories over Bisping, Hector Lombard, Mauricio Rua (twice), Fedor Emelianenko, Rafael Cavalcante, Renato Sobral (twice), Rich Franklin, Wanderlei Silva, Vitor Belfort, Murilo Bustamante (twice), Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Carlos Newton.

4. He logged plenty of miles.

The Team Quest founder competed in five separate promotions during his 47-fight career: Brazil Open Fight, UFC, Rings, Pride and Strikeforce. Henderson also fought in seven different countries. In addition to the United States, he tested his mettle in England, Brazil, Sweden, Canada, Ireland and Japan.

5. Quick-strike offense made him a multi-dimensional threat.

Henderson had 12 first-round finishes to his credit, four of the sub-minute variety. He submitted Eric Smith with a guillotine choke 30 seconds into their Brazil Open final on June 15, 1997, knocked out Bustamante with a knee and follow-up punches 53 seconds into their Pride Final Conflict encounter on Nov. 9, 2003, punched out Ryo Chonan 22 seconds into their Pride Bushido 9 pairing on Sept. 25, 2005 and wiped out Tim Boetsch with punches 28 seconds into their UFC Fight Nigh 68 clash on June 6, 2015.