Author: Mike Chiari

Shogun vs. Henderson 2: Winner, Scorecard and Analysis

In a rematch of the 2011 Fight of the Year, Dan Henderson once again got the better of Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, as he came away victorious at UFC Fight Night 38 on Sunday.
ESPN’s MMA Live had the news:

USA Today’s Ben Fowlkes details how the fight ended…

In a rematch of the 2011 Fight of the Year, Dan Henderson once again got the better of Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, as he came away victorious at UFC Fight Night 38 on Sunday.

ESPN’s MMA Live had the news:

USA Today’s Ben Fowlkes details how the fight ended:

I think it’s safe to say Dana White enjoyed the fight:

Hendo was lucky to last past the first round after a vicious blow in the second round, as the UFC’s official Twitter account points out:

He showed the granite chin that has become his trademark. He was also rocked in the first frame, but Shogun couldn’t finish the 43-year-old veteran.

Both Rua and Henderson have struggled since their meeting three years ago, but the old magic was rekindled as they put on a great show for the fans. Not only was the fight entertaining, but the atmosphere was great in front of partisan, pro-Rua crowd.

The event took place in Natal, Brazil, and it’s possible that being on home soil put a little too much pressure on Rua. A late comeback bid by Shogun fell just short against Henderson in 2011, and he was once again unable to put together a complete fight on Sunday.

With the loss, Shogun is now 2-3 since his initial loss to Henderson, and he has been unable to put together any type of winning streak. There were definite questions regarding the 32-year-old light heavyweight’s form entering Sunday’s bout, and they will almost certainly persist.

According to Fernando Arbex of BloodyElbow.com via UFC Brazil, Rua felt as though returning to his homeland to train was instrumental in terms of changing his attitude and outlook.

I have always been with great coaches, but I lacked motivation. With the training here in Sao Paulo my motivation raised again because I’m just another fighter. In Curitiba, the coaches were hired by me and they were focusing only on me. Now, here in Sao Paulo, I have good athletes that help me like Demian Maia and Daniel Sarafian.

Unfortunately for Shogun, that didn’t translate to the Octagon.

As inconsistent as Rua looked leading up to Sunday’s contest, Henderson seemed to be in even direr straits. Henderson’s win over Shogun in 2011 marked his seventh win in eight fights, but he was winless ever since.

Henderson entered UFC Fight Night 38 having lost three fights in a row, and Hendo desperately needed a positive result in order to turn things around.

Henderson’s back was essentially against the wall, and he came through with flying colors. There was plenty of talk about the Henderson potentially retiring in the near future, but perhaps the whispers will be put on hold for now.

Even with that win, trouble could be on the horizon for Hendo. A recent rule change may adversely impact his ability to perform moving forward. According to Steven Marrocco of USA Today, UFC has banned testosterone-replacement therapy, and the ban will begin now that Rua and Henderson have fought.

Henderson has utilized TRT since 2007, and it remains to be seen how the elimination of TRT will hurt or help him moving forward.

Per Marrocco, Henderson is confident that he can cope without it, and he doesn’t intend to retire any time soon.

I don’t think TRT has anything to do with my skills as a fighter. I think I get sick a little bit less and have a little more energy. I don’t lay on the couch as much when I’m on TRT, but it’s not the reason I’ve done as well as I’ve done in the sport … I have no plans of retiring at all. I just signed a six-fight deal, and I plan on achieving my goals within those six fights.

Henderson clearly still has the desire to compete at a high level in UFC, and he gave it his all against Rua. At Henderson’s age it is inevitable that his skills will begin to decline at some point, but he proved that there is still some gas left in the tank.

He is obviously still a big draw as evidenced by the interest in his fight against Rua, and Sunday’s victory should net him some more big opponents moving forward.

As for Rua, he now finds himself in a tough situation. He remains an extremely popular fighter, but he is no longer the dominant guy that he once was.

Shogun will likely continue to be placed in high-profile fights because of his name recognition, however, his time as an elite fighter may be over.

 

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UFC Fight Night 38: Predictions for Biggest Fights on Stacked Card

UFC Fight Night 38 from Natal, Brazil, Sunday night will be headlined by a huge rematch between Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Dan Henderson, but there are plenty of evenly matched fights throughout the card.
Although most of the star power relates to Rua a…

UFC Fight Night 38 from Natal, Brazil, Sunday night will be headlined by a huge rematch between Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Dan Henderson, but there are plenty of evenly matched fights throughout the card.

Although most of the star power relates to Rua and Henderson, the vast majority of the bouts should be quite exciting. Most of them look too close to call on paper, and that should make for a spectacular event.

The added element of the card taking place in Brazil is an interesting wrinkle that could impact the fights as well. With that in mind, here are the latest predictions for the highly anticipated Fight Night 38.

 

Mauricio Rua vs. Dan Henderson

Rua and Henderson are two of the most popular fighters in UFC, so it should come as no surprise that there is plenty of hype surrounding their upcoming bout. Much of that is due to the fact that they engaged in one of the most exciting battles in recent memory back in 2011. As seen in this photo, courtesy of UFC, it was a hard-hitting and brutal affair:

Henderson won that fight by unanimous decision, due largely to his work in the first three rounds. Rua mounted a huge comeback and was nearly able to sway things in his favor, but he fell too far behind the eight ball. Shogun has struggled to bounce back from that loss, as his results have been mixed ever since, with two wins and two losses.

Meanwhile, Henderson has dropped three straight since that victory. The 43-year-old veteran is extremely vulnerable right now, and Rua intends to do whatever it takes to reign supreme, according to John Morgan of MMAJunkie.com:

It’s a different fight. Obviously, I have big respect for Dan Henderson. He’s a guy that hits hard and can do some damage. You’ve got to respect him. But I’m happy to have this chance because … I like challenges … Any way that I can come out with a win, I’m happy. Obviously, if I can win a fight that also pleases the fans, I’m even happier. But I’ll take the win any way I can get it.

That any-means-necessary approach should serve Shogun well, and the fact that he is fighting on home soil is a definite advantage as well. Rua isn’t in the best form of his career, but based on how poorly Henderson has performed in recent years, Shogun should take this one by unanimous decision.

 

Cezar Ferreira vs. C.B. Dollaway 

Considered by many to be one of the fastest rising stars in UFC, Cezar Ferreira has a huge opportunity in front of him. He will take on C.B. Dollaway Sunday in a middleweight encounter that will go on right before the headliner between Rua and Henderson.

Ferreira is a national superstar in Brazil after winning The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil middleweight tournament, and he is a perfect 3-0 with UFC. He is coming off a big win over Daniel Sarafian in November, although it was somewhat controversial in nature, as it was a split decision. 

Some feel as though Ferreira was able to escape that bout with a victory. Ferreira has gained a great deal of acclaim for his success on TUF, but there is a belief that he may be somewhat overrated due in part to that, according to Luca Fury of MMA Odds Cast:

While that may be true, Dollaway‘s results have been quite inconsistent as of late. He is just 2-3 over his past five fights, having been knocked out twice. He is definitely susceptible to a sudden ending, and he is facing a fighter in Ferreira who is quite versatile.

Due to Ferreira‘s ability to win in a number of different ways, the smart money is on him. Look for Ferreira to score a second-round knockout in front of a partisan crowd in Brazil.

 

Leonardo Santos vs. Norman Parke 

In what may be the toughest test of his UFC career to this point, Northern Irish star Norman Parke will lock horns with Leonardo Santos in hostile territory. The 27-year-old lightweight has an overall MMA record of 19-2, and he has yet to lose a UFC bout in three tries. Santos is 12-3, but he will have the home crowd advantage in Brazil.

Although some fighters are able to block out the atmosphere when they compete, Parke isn’t among them. According to Steven Marrocco and John Morgan of MMAJunkie.com, Parke is well aware of his surroundings in the middle of fights:

Of course you can still hear. People say you can never hear the crowd during the fight, but you can hear them. Only when you’re first starting off in your career and you’re that nervous, you’re just thinking of him. But when you can see everything clearly, that’s when you know you’re more relaxed. When you land a nice shot, you can hear the crowd.

While Parke can feel the crowd, he seems like the type of fighter who feeds off of it rather than getting rattled. That will be key Sunday since the fans will be very much in Santos’ corner.

Santos is on an impressive six-fight winning streak; however, Parke trumps that with 10 consecutive triumphs. He has seemingly mastered the art of winning on the scorecards, and he’ll do so once again at UFC Fight Night 38.

 

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Johny Hendricks Injury: Updates on UFC Champ’s Bicep Surgery and Recovery

Johny Hendricks is riding a wave of momentum after beating Robbie Lawler at UFC 171, but an injury will leave him on the shelf for the immediate future.   
According to Ariel Helwani of MMAFighting.com, the new UFC welterweight champion …

Johny Hendricks is riding a wave of momentum after beating Robbie Lawler at UFC 171, but an injury will leave him on the shelf for the immediate future.   

According to Ariel Helwani of MMAFighting.com, the new UFC welterweight champion has been diagnosed with a torn bicep, which will require surgery:

The ailment will reportedly keep him out of action for at least two months:

Hendricks was aware of the injury prior to his fight against Lawler, but he decided to go through with the bout anyway:

The fact that Hendricks was able to out-strike a quality fighter like Lawler with a serious arm injury says a lot about the 170-pound champ’s ability. Though he will need some extra time to heal up before resuming training, he shouldn’t miss a fight provided the injury heals as expected.

As for who Hendricks’ next opponent should be, Georges St-Pierre—considered to be one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world before taking a leave of absence—nominated Rory McDonald in an interview on The MMA Hour (via Shaun Al-Shatti of MMAFighting.com):

“Rory MacDonald,” St-Pierre said, referencing his longtime friend and Tristar training partner who recently rebounded with a convincing win at UFC 170.

“If (sic) very happy for Rory. He did an amazing fight against Demian Maia and he proved he’s the No. 1 contender.”

Hendricks, however, has made it clear that he is looking for a rematch with GSP after suffering a controversial split-decision loss to the former welterweight kingpin at UFC 167. 

Although Hendricks should make sure that he is 100 percent healthy before stepping back into the Octagon, he has already proven that he is willing to fight through pain in order to perform.

Following his gutsy showing at UFC 171, there is no doubt that UFC fans hope all goes well with his surgery and subsequent recovery.  

 

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