Benson Henderson is set to compete in the PFL smart cage next month, a development that his former teammate finds amusing. Henderson, a decorated former WEC and UFC lightweight champion, is scheduled to face Patrick Habirora on May 23rd, 2026, at the ING Arena in Brussels, Belgium, as part of the Professional Fighters League event.
The former ONE Championship fighter, James Nakashima, recently secured the Unified MMA lightweight title in Canada. When questioned about Henderson’s upcoming PFL bout and his opponent, the undefeated prospect Patrick Habirora, Nakashima shared his thoughts with Bowks Talking Bouts.
“No, I don’t; I rarely get on social media. So I didn’t know. Me and Benson don’t ever contact. I love Benson, but we were just friends in the practice room. That was it. It didn’t go on beyond any of that. So, I hardly only stay in contact with a couple people from The [MMA] Lab, but Benson’s he’s; fighters don’t ever retire. I guess that’s kind of what I’ve heard and that’s funny.”
Nakashima further elaborated on how Henderson exemplifies the common struggle fighters face in fully stepping away from the sport. He continued:
“I don’t know. I just feel like fighters never retire. As long as they keep calling and Benson’s training. Benson, for any one workout, Benson will train as hard as; he can go as deep and as in the water as anybody, anyone. Benson’s a dog. So that’s cool to hear that he’s fighting again. Like I said, that’s funny because I always think that’s funny whenever fighters say that they retire and I don’t know, they always come back.”
