FIGHTLEDGER/MMA report

Former National Football League running back Herschel Walker is always looking for a challenge. He might have found his toughest -- mixed martial arts.Herschel Walker/ Kravetz photo

Walker recently signed a multi-fight deal with Strikeforce. No date is set for Walker’s MMA debut, but the 47-year-old isn’t likely to step in the cage until next year.

The 1982 Heisman Trophy winner and NFL standout will begin a 12-week training camp next at San Jose, Calif.-based American Kickboxing Academy. Walker is no stranger to martial arts; he holds a fifth-degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do.

“I’ve been training for several years,” Walker said. “I would play college football games on Saturday and compete in martial arts tournaments on Sunday after church.

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FIGHTLEDGER/MMA press release

World Extreme Cagefighting® announced Monday the postponement of its Sept. 2 card. An injury to main event fighter Ben Henderson forced the postponement of the event. 

The entire card has been rescheduled for Saturday, Oct. 10 at a venue to be announced at a later date. The event will be broadcast live on VERSUS.

Ticket refunds for the Sept. 2 event can be obtained at the point of purchase.

BY FRANKLIN McNEIL/For FightLedger.com

Top-rated mixed martial arts heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko is scheduled to work out Wednesday afternoon at Fighthouse in New York. He will meet fans, sign autographs and take pictures. Emelianenko/Strikeforce

The event begins at 3:30. Fighthouse is located at 122 West 27th Street.

Emelianenko is regarded by many as the best mixed martial artist in the world, regardless of weight class. Little was done in January to dispel that notion when Emelianenko registered a first-round knockout of former UFC champion Andrei Arlovski.

Recently, Emelianenko made headlines when he rejected an offer to join UFC in favor of a three-fight deal with Strikeforce. He is expected to makes his Strikeforce debut in the fall, though an opponent has yet to be named.

FIGHTLEDGER.com/MMA press release

LAS VEGAS -- Lightweight contender Ben “Smooth” Henderson finally admits to a secret he once kept close to the vest. For most of his professional fighting career, the Arizona native couldn’t see the punches his opponents launched at him. It wasn’t for reasons you might assume.WEC lightweight Ben Henderson lands a right during his TKO win April 5 over Shane Roller./WEC photo

Henderson wasn’t blinded by his opponents precision striking or lightning speed. Rather, the 25-year-old had such poor vision that he could barely make out figures and objects just feet in front of him. Shortly following his knockout win over Shane Roller in April, Henderson took the first steps toward correcting the problem. The results have been incredible for the well-spoken Taekwondo black belt.

“I have recently had surgery to correct my vision so I have been enjoying the ability to actually see my opponents,” Henderson said during a break from training. “Prior to my eye surgery, I used to memorize the seeing-eye chart to get through the vision test, but I was unable to really see before.

"The WEC gloves being blue really helped me out, letting me see the blue blur to avoid punches. In my first WEC fight, I missed a kick and my opponent was right in front of me. That wasn't nervous energy as some might have thought. That was my vision problem putting me at risk. In this camp, I have tried to balance my awareness with my newfound vision.”

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