Hendricks could retire even if he beats Magny at UFC 207
A victory over Neil Magny may not be enough to keep Johny Hendricks from hanging up his gloves.
Shortly after vowing to retire if Magny handed him his third straight loss at UFC 207, Hendricks told MMAjunkie Radio his life outside the Octagon would dictate his future within it.
"As soon as my wife says, 'Honey, I want you home more,' that's when I'm done," Hendricks said. "Even if I win this fight, (I could retire). We have four kids now, and she needs help, and I get that and I want to be a father in my kids' life."
"I know for my career this isn't my last fight - unless my wife says so. I have a feeling I'm going to go out there and show I am going back to the old me. I want to show I do still want to compete in this sport and that I can."
The former welterweight champ's previously self-imposed ultimatum followed consecutive losses to Stephen Thompson and Kelvin Gastelum earlier this year. His sole victory since losing the division strap to Robbie Lawler at UFC 181 came in the form of a unanimous decision over Matt Brown in March 2015.
"Bigg Rigg" is hell bent on regaining his past form, and while every fighter dreads suffering three straight strikes, he sees little reason to going through the rigors of a full camp only to be labeled a gatekeeper after fight night.
"If I don't win this fight, then obviously it's not my fighting skills, it's my willingness to train. That's sort of where my mindset is. I'm back to training hard and working out hard. But let's say something does happen and I lose - for one I would be a gatekeeper. For two, I don't want to just fight the fights. It's a waste to beat yourself up for 12 weeks and go from there. Then I can also put more time into my kids and all that stuff, and that's really where my head's been."
The 33-year-old meets Magny on Dec. 30 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
- With h/t to Bloody Elbow