Maria Henderson: Bellator 268 debut win 'couldn't have gone any better'
Could Maria Henderson have asked for a better Bellator debut? The short answer is no.
Henderson, the wife of former UFC lightweight champion Benson Henderson, wasted no time Saturday, scoring a 40-second rear-naked choke submission of Collette Santiago in their flyweight amateur bout at Bellator 268. The fight, which kicked off the prelims at Footprint Center in Phoenix, was just Henderson’s second and pushed her amateur record to 2-0.
“It couldn’t have gone any better, really was like jiu-jitsu textbook 101,” Maria told reporters after the fight. “Headlock, hand off the neck, sit back so they can’t throw you over, hook in, go to the neck, punch the face, finish choke.”
The week was big for the Hendersons, who fought on the same card for the first time in their backyard (they train out of the nearby MMA Lab). While the fight week experience easily could’ve been stressful, Maria indicated things went as smoothly as possible for both husband and wife.
“It really was, like, pretty ideal for us,” Maria said. “I normally join him during fight weeks when I can. With our kids, it makes it a little bit harder, but it was really nice to kind of be there with each other. Josh Thomson said it well when he spoke with us before the fight: ‘You both know what you’re doing, you trust him, he trusts you, I know that’s not a thing.’ And that wasn’t a thing. Ben trusts me to get the job done, and I did. And I trust him to do the same thing, so it’s not really stressful for either one of us to be here together with each other.”
Benson unfortunately went on to lose a unanimous decision to former champion Brent Primus about three hours later, spoiling what could’ve been a perfect night overall for the couple.
Maria said she would love another opportunity from Bellator if the promotion presents, adding that she’s also in no hurry to turn professional.
