"Broke my nose, black and both my eyes" - Chris Leben confirms brutal truth after Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen name hardest hitter in UFC

Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen recently engaged in a discussion about who they believe is the hardest hitter in UFC, particularly during their active years.

In a recent video shared on Sonnen's Instagram, Cormier specifically mentioned former middleweight title contender Dan Henderson as the hardest hitter in the UFC during their time, saying:

"It made me think who was the hardest puncher that I had been there with. I think you and I could agree with one though. One guy [who] hit harder than just about anyone — Dan Henderson."

Sonnen agreed with Cormier's assessment, and later in the comments section, Leben also agreed, claiming that he was on the receiving end of Henderson's punches:

"100% I’ve been on the receiving end of that punch, no fun broke my nose, black and both my eyes in practice lol."

Check out Chris Leben's comment below:

Chris Leben's comment. [Screenshot courtesy: @sonnench on Instagram]

Though Leben and Henderson competed in the same division, they never faced each other in the octagon. Nonetheless, they shared training sessions as both were members of Team Quest.

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Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen shares differentiating opinions on mid-year UFC knockout award

In a recent episode of Good Guy / Bad Guy, Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen shared their thoughts on the best UFC knockouts of 2025 so far.

Sonnen chose Ilia Topuria's first-round knockout of Charles Oliveira at UFC 317, while Cormier selected Mauricio Ruffy's heel kick knockout of King Green at UFC 313, saying:

"I think Ilia Topuria's knockout was more valuable because of the stage and what it meant. But in terms of just a knockout, it was that Mauricio Ruffy's heel kick of King Green. Bro, that was crazy. He kicked King Green in the face with that heel kick... That's my knockout of the year to this point."

Sonnen added:

"I love it and I'm going to weigh in mine, and I am going to go with Ilia Topuria for one simple reason. It was so basic... Charles has been knocked down before. But to knock him out with his eyes rolled back in the head, actually unconscious. Man, that was a sight to see."

Check out Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen's conversation below (29:05):