Dan Henderson is officially (and without question) in the debate for not only being the one true test left for Jon “Bones” Jones’ UFC light heavyweight crown, but also for being known as the greatest of all time—at least, some would say so, and they would not get an argument to the contrary from me.
He’s fought the best, beaten the best and has not severely deterred, despite having been beaten by some of the best also. His streak of fighting the best fighters in MMA will continue as he headlines UFC 139 opposite one Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, the former UFC light heavyweight champ.
Now, anyone who has followed Shogun’s career knows his UFC patterns: He loses one after a knee surgery, wins a couple, then loses the next one, but rebounds easily.
That’s how it’s been for Shogun. The key thing about his losses so far is that they have all come either when Shogun was somewhat rusty or—in the case of his UFC 104 loss to Lyoto Machida—on account of atrocious ringside judging.
As a result, we’re forced to ask if Henderson will be added to the collection of heads that Shogun possesses.
All things considered, will Henderson’s be the next head collected by Shogun?
Ask one man and he’ll tell you that the KO will happen with Shogun on the receiving end, but he will be as healthy of a fighter as he’s ever been.
Shogun will hit Henderson with everything—including the dishwasher and the garage—in order to find the finish. But just like Rafael Cavalcante, just like Michael Bisping, just like Renato Sobral and even just like the great Fedor Emelianenko, he will not be able to obliterate the most legendary iron jaw in combat sports.
Ask another man and he’ll tell you that Henderson will somehow survive the onslaught and will lay Rua out in a more devastating fashion than he did Michael Bisping en route to facing either Jones or Rashad Evans for the first time or Quinton “Rampage” Jackson in a UFC 75 rematch.
It’s not a foregone conclusion that a healthy Shogun will be knocked out by Hendo in San Jose—anything can and always does happen in MMA—so I won’t be so quick as to say Shogun cannot escape this fight without getting knocked out.
That said, is it always possible that Henderson will knock out a healthy Shogun?
It absolutely is, whether it’s on Shogun’s best night or Henderson’s worst night.
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