#4 Johny Hendricks
The curious case of Johny Hendricks.
The NCAA Division I All-American almost upstaged the greatest Welterweight of all time in George St Pierre in one of the most controversial decisions in MMA history. Nonetheless, Hendricks was given another crack at the belt after Rush vacated the title.
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He defeated Robbie Lawler and finally reached the pinnacle of the 170lb division with a unanimous decision victory. Hendricks, however, lost the title to Lawler in his first defense and it all went downhill from there on.
Bigg Rigg was one of the best Welterweights before the advent of USADA. The anti-doping organization’s arrival meant Hendricks was barred from using IV bags to help with weight cuts. He missed weight thrice after his loss against Lawler and was forced to move up to the Middleweight division but was discernibly a shadow of his old self.
Hendricks lost 5 of his last six fights (3 savage knockouts) and eventually announced his retirement in June 2018 to focus on coaching.