Benson Henderson Faces Vagner Rocha at Polaris 8
Fresh off his victory from Bellator 208, Benson Henderson will be keeping busy in competition at Polaris 8 on December 9 from the Ice Arena in Wales. Henderson faces Vagner Rocha who has been making some news on the grappling scene with his aggressive style of competing lately. While this is not an MMA fight, Henderson should be a good matchup for him as he is an experienced grappling competitor himself and is no stranger to roughness as an MMA competitor.
When Henderson was doing media for Bellator 208 in New York City, he was asked about the current state of jiu-jitsu and competing in both.
When comparing both sports Henderson says “even at the highest level of jiu-jitsu”, does not compare to MMA. He added, “It’s still not a fist fight, you’re still holding back.”
Many times when an MMA fighter competes in a grappling event at the level Polaris is at, fans wonder about leg-locks and how an MMA fighter will handle them but it’s nothing new to Henderson. That part of the game is just as dangerous as any other submission according to Henderson and while it may be something fans are seeing more of, it’s only part of what the grappling arts are.
The leg-lock game is only a small door to the mansion full of techniques that exist in jiu-jitsu and being a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Henderson is more than prepared for what Rocha will be bringing to the mat in December.
Polaris 8 airs on UFC Fight Pass December 9, live from Wales. You can see the full card details at Polaris’s official website.
