Hendricks unfazed by Koscheck’s jabs

Rigorous training sessions have not only prepared Johny Hendricks for everything he will encounter inside the cage but even most of what he has heard from his opponent before his fight.

While putting in long hours at the gym training for the biggest fight of his mixed martial arts career, the Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight contender heard all the ribbing from his teammates and locker room smack talk that one would expect from such a setting.

So it didn’t faze Hendricks when notorious villain Josh Koscheck, Hendricks’ opponent on tonight’s UFC on Fox 3 card in East Rutherford, N.J., started his barrage of trash talk.

“I’ve got 12 guys who I work out with every day that say worse things to me,” Hendricks said. “That’s just the nature of the beast, and that’s what sells fights.”

Koscheck has taken to calling Hendricks “Mr. Lucky Punch.” The moniker evolved from Koscheck’s insistence that Hendricks’ 12-second knockout of Jon Fitch in December at UFC 141 was simply good fortune.

It was actually the third straight win for Hendricks and second in that stretch by early knockout.

Hendricks, a four-time All-American and two-time NCAA champion wrestler at Oklahoma State, has lost just once in 13 pro fights. While Koscheck believes Hendricks has gotten cocky about his power because of a couple of fluke punches, Hendricks has won seven times by knockout.

Koscheck also referred to Hendricks as a “fat lil’ boy,” which Hendricks took with a laugh.

“I’ll be the first one to tell you I am fat. I love McDonald’s, I love Taco Bell,” he said. “But whenever it comes fight time, I’m always ready.”

He will need to be against Koscheck, a perennial contender whose only loss in his past six outings came against longtime champion Georges St. Pierre in a 2010 title bout.

Hendricks, 28, is excited to prove he belongs among the world’s elite 170-pounders by facing someone who has been in that group for several years.

“You don’t stay No. 2 or No. 3 in the world for as many years as he’s been without being a tough fighter, and that’s why I got into the division is to see if I have what it takes to compete with these guys,” Hendricks said. “That’s what makes it so exciting is every fight you don’t know what’s going to happen. All you can do is train your best and prepare your best and go out there and put on a good one and get your hand raised.”

Koscheck, 34, also was a successful collegiate wrestler, so those skills could cancel out and turn the fight into a brawl. Koscheck also has shown good knockout power, but a relatively weak chin could put him at a disadvantage.

Under normal circumstances, the winner probably would fight for a belt, but the welterweight title is on hold with St. Pierre recovering from knee surgery and interim champion Carlos Condit waiting for him to come back. Koscheck has lost to St. Pierre twice, so that could be another obstacle.

Koscheck says an immediate title shot isn’t as important as the fact that the outcome will go a long way in determining the track each fighter takes in the near future.

“Yes, it’s a big fight. I know there’s a lot riding on this fight for both of us,” Koscheck said. “The winner goes on to a nice path toward the title shot, and the loser goes who knows where.”

The bout is the co-main event of a four-fight card that will air live on Fox (Cable 5) at 5 p.m. Lightweight contenders Nate Diaz and Jim Miller will meet in the main event.

Also, heavyweight sluggers Lavar Johnson and Pat Barry square off. In the middleweight division, submission ace Rousimar Palhares faces veteran Alan Belcher, who looks to continue his comeback from eye surgery.

The six-fight preliminary card will air live on Fuel TV (Cable 319) at 2 p.m. The first two fights on the card will be streamed on Facebook at about 1 p.m.

Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509. Follow him on Twitter: @adamhilllvrj.