James Hendin is gearing up for a huge opportunity in his career that he intends to grab with both hands.
The featherweight contender has felt for a long time that he doesn't get the recognition he deserves but at OKTAGON 62, the world will have no choice but to take notice.
At the promotion's biggest show of the year inside the Deutsche Bank Park in Frankfurt, he faces another highly touted rising contender in Mochamed Machaev.
Machaev recently competed as part of the Tipsport Gamechanger tournament meaning that a win here for Hendin will earn him some serious credibility in this division.
"He had two very tough fights, which he handled well in my opinion." Hendin told Fighters Only. "Watching them have given me and my team a good insight as to what he’s capable of."
"He’s probably the most well rounded person, in terms of skill set, that I’ve fought. I always try to look at it from the perspective that your next fight is always your hardest fight. The fact that he’s coming off a loss also generally suggests that he’ll be on a mission to get back on the winning streak. Hopefully it brings the best out of him."
The match-up itself is one thing but of course, like everyone that is set to compete on October 12, the opportunity to fight in front of a packed out football stadium is adding some extra motivation on top for Hendin.
"It’s everyone’s dream to fight in front of such a large crowd. I feel really fortunate to have got a spot in this card. The goal remains the same, whether there’s 600 or 60k people in attendance, and that is to get my hand raised."
With that many people in attendance and a top-level opponent, this is the moment that "The Honey badger" has been waiting for.
A debut win under the OKTAGON banner against Jakub Dohnal in April set him off on the right path but a victory over Machaev can take him to that next level.
"Overall I was obviously pleased to have won, but as I said in the post-fight interview, I was a bit disappointed in my performance. I feel like I could and should’ve got the finish earlier, no disrespect to Jakob, he was a really tough opponent and I have a lot of respect for him."
"I feel like it’s time that I get some more recognition and having that many people watch me, as long as I put on a good performance, surely have to take some notice of me. OKTAGON have secured a huge opportunity for all the fighters on this card, the exposure can only be a good thing."
Along with earning back-to-back wins in his new home, Hendin hopes that he can showcase more of his skills this time around after dominating his last opponent with his grappling skills.
The 26-year old may never get the opportunity to compete on a stage quite like this again so he plans on seizing the moment by any means necessary.
"Ideally, another dominant win in the bag. Hopefully I get the opportunity to show more of my skillset. I’m not just a grappler!"
