Mixed Martial Arts star and two time Olympic athlete Dan Henderson had no idea when he first got into wrestling at age 5 that he'd go on to become a legend in the sport and also a successful entrepreneur. Henderson, 53, grew up in Victorville, Calif. and credits his father with first introducing him to the sport he would dominate for the next two decades. "My dad got me into wrestling - he was a wrestler and he was my wrestling coach most of my life," he says. Henderson competed in the 82 kilo weight class throughout high school and college and picked up a host of local and national titles over his career, including USA University Greco Roman Champion (three times), U.S. Open Senior National Champion, World Cup Silver Medalist and Pan American Games Champion. Henderson wrestled at Cal State Fullerton but left after two years to train and to pursue his goal of becoming an Olympic wrestler. "I made the '92 team which was in Barcelona and [the team in] Atlanta which was in '96." He finished 10th and 12th, respectively.
After the Atlanta Games, Henderson put his career plans on hold to try out for a third Olympic team. "I was going to start chiropractic school," he says, "but I put it off to wrestle another four years and try to make a third Olympic team." But life had other plans. "During that time was when I got started fighting MMA." Henderson says he had only two weeks to prepare for his first fight. "My first fight was in 1997 - and I had about two weeks' notice. It was a quick turnaround. The sport was pretty new in America. I'd been wrestling so long that it kind of got redundant as far as the technique and the moves you learn. There's a lot more you can do and learn in MMA so I think it was a lot more exciting to me." Henderson, who was 27 at the time, won his first fight and then eight more after that and credits his wrestling skills for preparing him well for his new sport. "If it wasn't for wrestling, I wouldn't have accomplished nearly as much in MMA," he says. "I definitely liked it and was only planning to do it [MMA fighting] for a little bit and then I fell in love with it and decided to keep going. There weren't that many great wrestlers in MMA [at the time] and wrestling definitely helped a lot."
Henderson has traveled the world in his MMA career, including to Brazil, the UK and Japan and sustained a few injuries along the way before retiring in 2016 after a nearly 20 year career that encompassed 47 matches with 32 wins and 15 losses.
The MMA pioneer and father to three children and one step daughter, discovered Temecula years ago. "I was driving past it to San Diego from Apple Valley and I kind of thought it would be a good place to buy property." So he purchased a parcel of land, built a house and settled in Wine Country with his family. And he's been here ever since, opening his first gym in Murrieta in 2003. "The lack of places to train made me want to open up a gym - there were no MMA gyms and no MMA coaches back then. For a while, I had been training in the wrestling room at Temecula Valley High School before I opened my gym."
In 2012, he opened Dan Henderson's Athletic Training Center in Temecula, which today offers a mix of training classes including Muay Thai, Jiu-Jitsu, cardio kickboxing, wrestling, cardio bag, strength and conditioning and yoga in a 15,000 square foot facility on Jefferson Avenue. Henderson, who is at the gym every week day and coaches MMA once a week, says about his gym, "We do a little bit of everything. You can't get better coaching than we have. Our instructors are awesome - the community I've built there is like a big family. It's infectious - it's a lot more fun than doing the treadmill or riding a bike. Our youngest client is probably 5 and we have people into their early 80s. It's a fun way to get in shape - you're learning something and at the same time getting a good workout."
Henderson has also published a book, "Hendo: The American Athlete," in 2023. "It's an autobiography of what I've done in my life and how I got there - what built me and what I've done." He also talks about his "mental attitude which was a big part of me as a competitor - how mentally strong I was." The athlete acknowledges his father, Bill, a school teacher who passed away in April, as the source of his mental fortitude. "My dad instilled certain things in me that made me mentally tough. [The weeks since his passing] "have been tough."
So with a thriving gym and a new book under his belt, Henderson is not sitting still. He's currently working on opening Hendo's Barrel House, a restaurant/bar and distillery in Temecula in June of this year. (See sidebar).
Henderson relishes his role as a successful local businessman and is grateful to his chosen city. "I love it here - we've got the best spot in California. My kids grew up here - I really fell in love with the area and the people here." And he is excited for the future. "Once the Barrel Room is open, I'll be able to focus on improving and creating a great community around the restaurant." For all his success, the athlete acknowledges his sport as a major contributor. "Once I started in MMA and the sport grew so much, it put me in a great position to do things like this."
HENDO'S BARREL HOUSE
In June, Henderson is scheduled to open a 12,500 square foot brewery/distillery/restaurant in the same building that houses his gym. "The atmosphere will be more of a country bar/sports bar/steakhouse. We'll have bar food like burgers, steaks, wings and we'll definitely have a few Wagyu beef selections."