Bantamweight Victor Henry took a nasty low blow at UFC 294 that sent him to hospital with swollen testicles, but he has no ill will towards opponent Javid Basharat.
The foul — on a night brimming with them, especially if you were Nathaniel Wood or Johnny Walker — resulted in Basharat vs. Henry being declared a No Contest. Basharat was incensed with that result, and has been butting heads with Henry’s coach, UFC legend Josh Barnett, online ever since.
Henry, however, has taken a calmer approach, and gave the latest update on his mini-Victors on Monday.
“A little update for you guys, doctors said no permanent damage to my pills but I’m gonna walk a little funny for a couple days,” Henry stated on social media. “Swelling has gone down a significant amount after sleeping with ice on my smooth criminals which isn’t very easy to do. For those of you calling for a DQ don’t be ridiculous. I don’t think my opponent had ill intentions to kick my nuts, he threw a legal strike that just so happen to hit an illegal spot. Totally not his fault, but that’s MMA.”
From @VictorHenryMMA pic.twitter.com/aopQxh7cPC
— 𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝖂𝖆𝖗𝖒𝖆𝖘𝖙𝖊𝖗 (@JoshLBarnett) October 23, 2023
Basharat has argued that the foul-induced finish should count as a TKO for himself, though that is a dubious proposal at best. The Afghani fighter, a red hot prospect in the bantamweight division, remains undefeated following UFC 294 with a 14-0, 1NC record. As for Henry, who has competed for the likes of RIZIN Fighting Federation in the past, he stands at 26-3, plus the No Contest.
Whether UFC officials schedule a rematch remains to be seen, though Henry’s camp has suggested they would accept such an offer. “We already asked for the rematch so we will see who quits,” Victor Henry’s coach Barnett wrote on social media in response to Basharat earlier this week.
