Hansen's next fight was set to be against Gesias Calvancante at "Dynamite!! 2008" on 31 December 2008, but the bout was canceled the day of the event due to Hansen not passing pre-fight medicals and subsequently being hospitalized for a "head injury". It was later clarified that the injury stemmed from a teammate landing awkwardly on Hansen's head after a takedown during warm-up, resulting with Hansen being rushed to the hospital where he was diagnosed with a concussion. In February 2009 Hansen was reported as being healthy and was in negotiations with Dream about his first title defense. His first title defense was on 6 October 2009 when he lost the title to Shinya Aoki.