UFC 204's Dan Henderson expects promotion to quickly put up title if he beats Michael Bisping

Say Dan Henderson beats Michael Bisping at UFC 204.

Then what?

There’s not much precedent for what happens when a newly crowned UFC champion decides to retire, which is what Henderson said he’ll do, win or lose, after the pay-per-view headliner on Saturday at Manchester Arena in Manchester, England.

No UFC fighter has won the belt and then immediately retired, meaning the promotion is in uncharted territory for the title fight.

The way Henderson (32-14 MMA, 9-8 UFC) sees things, the promotion will figure out something if he again starches champ Bisping (29-7 MMA, 19-7 UFC) seven years after a knockout victory at UFC 100.

“I think they’ve experienced this type of thing in the past, a number of times,” he told MMAjunkie during a Q & A in support of the event. “They don’t have any problem making an interim or a new champion.”

Henderson, the No. 14 ranked fighter in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA middleweight rankings, sees a number of eligible contenders that should be queued up by next month, making the transition a little less awkward should he walk into the sunset with the strap.

UFC 204 co-headliners Gegard Mousasi (39-6-2 MMA, 6-3 UFC) and Vitor Belfort(25-12 MMA, 14-8 UFC), who stand at No. 9 and No. 6, might not fit the bill just yet. But No. 2 Luke Rockhold (15-3 MMA, 5-2 UFC) and No. 3 Chris Weidman (13-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) – both ex-champions – stand a chance to get back in the picture if they can beat Ronaldo Souza (23-4 MMA, 6-1 UFC) and Yoel Romero (12-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) in respective bouts at UFC 205 and UFC Fight Night 101.

Then there’s always Bisping, whose late-career turnaround might warrant another chance to win the belt should he fall short.

“I’m not sure where Michael Bisping’s going to end up on that spectrum, but he’ll probably have to challenge for a new belt to get a shot after I beat him.”

There’s little about the rematch that’s played out in a conventional manner, with Henderson booked at May’s UFC 199 on short-notice and Bisping taking the title from Rockhold as an injury replacement for Weidman. Both fighters scored spectacular upsets, bringing Henderson into contention for a fairytale ending to his storied career.

Bisping, of course, is trying to make sure that doesn’t happen. But Henderson can’t help but see fate in the way things have played out.

“I think somebody upstairs wanted this fight to happen again, and I’m just thankful for the opportunity to be able to end my career with this type of fight for the belt,” Henderson said. “I’m just honored to be here and be able to do what I love to do. I just don’t want to waste this chance to walk away with accomplishing the last goal in the sport I have to achieve.”

Henderson has come up short in two previous attempts to win a UFC belt after capturing titles in the now-defunct PRIDE and Strikeforce. If the third time is a charm, he’ll go out with a bang, and leave the promotion to pick up the pieces.

For more on UFC 204, check out the UFC Rumors section of MMAjunkie.