Mar 13, 2006- In an exclusive interview with PRIDE, Dan Henderson gives us an update and speaks his mind about being the welter weight champion and on his upcoming fight against Kazuo Misaki.

PRIDE: Any thoughts about fighting in 83kg/185lbs class first time? DAN HENDERSON: Coming from the 205 lbs weight class, I definitely felt stronger than my other opponents and had more power than they did and that made a difference in a couple of fights, however I wouldn't call them easy because they were very tough. PRIDE: Any thoughts about fighting in 83kg/185lbs class first time? HENDERSON: Coming from the 205 lbs weight class, I definitely felt stronger than my other opponents and had more power than they did and that made a difference in a couple of fights, however I wouldn't call them easy because they were very tough. PRIDE: Among your 3 opponents in the last tournament, who would you say was the toughest? HENDERSON: Out of those three, I'd say Bustamante was my closest fight in the tournament PRIDE: How does it feel to be the welterweight champion? HENDERSON: I'm happy to have that responsibility and look forward to defending my title in the future. PRIDE: Has winning the belt changed your everyday training routine? HENDERSON: It feels good to be welterweight champion; I haven't really changed my training regime or anything. PRIDE: Let's talk about your opponent Misaki. He's got speed, likes to strike and tries to confuse his opponents. He just defeated Akira Shoji at DEEP and says he will not retreat from your punches and shoots. He says he is a better striker than you and will be just as offensive as you are. What are your thoughts on facing him? HENDERSON: First of all, Im not an easy fighter to confuse, secondly I am glad he likes to strike because I would like to trade punches with him as well. I respect him as a fighter and I am not taking him lightly what so ever. He may be a better striker than me, but I guarantee that my punches are harder than his. PRIDE: Whats your game plan against Misaki? HENDERSON: I haven't thought of one yet. PRIDE: Are you training with anyone in particular to prepare for Misaki? HENDERSON: No, just the usual people that I've been training with for the last year. I'm on my way to practice right now as we speak. PRIDE: Who have been your toughest opponents? Wanderlei Silva has said you were his toughest opponent. HENDERSON: Wanderlei and big Nogueira have been my toughest opponents. PRIDE: What do you think you learned from those fights? HENDERSON: I have learned to be more prepared and in shape for my fights. In my fight against Ninja Rua, I learned not to go for the guillotine and end up on my back because last time I attempted it, I was there for too long. During my fight against Wanderlei, after I rocked him, I shouldn't have taken it to the ground and should have kept it on my feet. In my fight against Ninja Rua, I learned that I don't want to go for guillotine choke and go on my back because I ended up on my back for too long. PRIDE: You are a renowned trainer in MMA. Are you training any fighters at the moment? HENDERSON: I am currently training a couple of amateur fighters at my gym. PRIDE: How have you been keeping yourself busy since your last win? HENDERSON: I've been training of course, but I've taken time from that to open my gym and build my house. PRIDE: If you could, who would you like to face and who do you think you'd match up well against? HENDERSON: A great match up would be Sakuraba and I, in either weight class, I think the fans have been wanting to see it for a long time. We're about the same size, we've both been used to fighting bigger guys, and both done fairly well. PRIDE: Dan, thank you so much for your time, I appreciate it. Is there anything you'd like to say to your fans as we close out the interview? HENDERSON: I'd like to thank my fans and hope it'll be a good show on April 2nd.