(This story first appeared in Friday’s USA TODAY .) DALLAS – To hear Johny Hendricks tell it now, it would seem he hardly remembers that bitter November night when, for a brief moment, he felt certain he was mere seconds away from wrapping the UFC’s welterweight belt around his waist. “As soon as the judges announced what they said, I sort of had to put that in the back of my mind,” Hendricks tells USA TODAY Sports. It’s a fantastic answer, to be sure – one that should earn the top-ranked 170-pound contender praise for his professionalism and mental strength. How true it actually is, only Hendricks can know for sure.
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