Benson Henderson relocated training camp for UFC Fight Night 42 preparation

Benson Henderson believes Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 42 main event against Rustam Khabilov is the most important of his career.

The former UFC lightweight champion always goes the extra mile during preparation for his fights. In this instance, with his FOX Sports 1 headliner opposite Khabilov (17-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) taking place in the high-elevation city of Albuquerque, N.M., Henderson (20-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) relocated his training camp to help duplicate the fight-night environment.

“What most people are sleeping on and don’t realize is that Albuquerque is a mile up,” Henderson told MMAjunkie. “A lot of people go there for their high-elevation training. It’s a little over a mile up. That’s going to be a huge deal for myself and all the other fighters on the card.”

The Arizona-based Henderson typically trains out of The MMA Lab in Glendale. However, for this camp, the 30-year-old and four teammates who also fight on the card shifted camp to the city of Flagstaff, which has an elevation similar to Albuquerque’s.

After fighting at high elevation for his UFC 150 title fight with Frankie Edgar, which took place in Denver, Henderson knows conditioning and cardio are big factors. He managed to defeat Edgar by controversial decision in that contest, but this time he wants to walk away with a definitive victory.

“It does take a lot out of you,” Henderson said. “We’re here in Flagstaff getting ready. We have five guys including myself from my gym fighting on this card, so we kind of moved our camp up here to Flagstaff to make sure we are ready and prepared for it. You have to make sure you’re ready for elevation.”

Improving his conditioning to the point it neutralizes the elevation was a major goal in Henderson’s training camp. Unfortunately, though, he starts one step behind his opponent due since Khabilov spends the majority of his time training at the Albuquerque-based Jackson-Winkeljohn MMA camp.

Winning a fight at the UFC level usually takes a whole lot more than just world-class conditioning. It also takes well-rounded skills and confidence, two traits that Henderson admittedly owns.

As a man who put together the second longest winning streak in UFC lightweight history – and one who also shares the organization’s 155-pound title defense record – Henderson has already experienced some larger-than-life moments during his roughly three-year UFC stint.

He’s faced some of the greatest lightweights to step in the octagon, and he’s won more often than not. So why, with all his big-fight experience, is Henderson claiming Khabilov to be the most important fight of his career? According to Henderson, it’s because “actual fighters” view every bout as a do-or-die, make-or-break situation, regardless of the opponent.

“For the actual fighters, the mindset, we know a fight’s a fight,” Henderson said. “It doesn’t matter whether it’s a main event or the first time in the UFC or your first pro fight or your first amateur fight. Your first amateur fight is just as important as your first fight in the UFC – as your title fight. You have to win all your fights.

“My motivation to win and get my hand raised doesn’t come because of this or that or other stipulations. I’m excited for all my fights because that’s what I do. You have to be a competitor at a high level to understand that. It’s important to win no matter whether you’re in game 45 of an NBA season or the NBA finals. You’ve got to be ready for it.”

Considering how often upsets occur in MMA competition, Henderson must be on point, or he’ll risking losing his No. 2 spot in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie lightweight MMA rankings. Khabilov isn’t even in the top 15.

To guarantee that doesn’t happen, Henderson doesn’t allow himself to buy into how the public ranks an opponent. Instead, he trains like he’s fighting the best lightweight in the world and carries the mindset into the octagon.

“I treat every game, every fight like it’s the most important thing there is,” he said. “Is Rustam a lesser-name opponent? It doesn’t matter to me. I have to go out there and get my hand raised. I have to get my hand raised. Against Frankie Edgar winning the belt, I had to get my hand raised. It’s just as important for me to win this fight as it was to win the title fight.”

For the latest on UFC Fight Night 42, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.