The rematch between Benson Henderson and Frankie Edgar was supposed to erase any doubts about the decision at UFC 144, but instead, fans left UFC 150 more puzzled than ever before.
After another epic five-round battle Henderson was awarded another decision over Edgar, but things were much closer this time around.
The former lightweight champ pushed the fight for all five rounds and even landed more significant strikes, according to FightMetric.com. In the end, two of the three judges weren’t convinced and handed “Smooth” the controversial split-decision.
A clearly disappointed Edgar looked on in complete shock and disappointment as Henderson walked away with his title for quite possibly the last time.
“It don’t matter. I thought I brought it to him, but congrats to Ben,” Edgar told UFC commentator Joe Rogan after the fight. “I’m upset, man. What are you going to do? I did [think I won]. I thought I brought it to him.”
In comparison to UFC 144, all UFC 150 did was further the fact that Henderson and Edgar are evenly matched.
People will likely scoff at the decision, but the fight really could’ve gone either way.
Edgar landed a few more strikes and dictated the pace of the entire fight. Henderson landed the heavier strikes and did more damage.
At UFC 144, Henderson did more damage and landed the most overall strikes.
The Henderson-Edgar rivalry closely mirrors the WEC title bouts between Dominick Cruz and Joseph Benavidez.
The first bout was closely contested, but the second fight was marred with a controversial split-decision.
MMA fans tend to have a short attention span.
Henderson already has back-to-back wins over Edgar. It’s hard to argue controversy when faced with consecutive defeats.
UFC 150 may not have delivered the desired conclusion, but it should be enough to close the chapter on an endless slew of rematches in the lightweight division. Amidst adversity in his last two fights, Henderson has proven to be a worthy UFC champion and lightweight king.
The road to the title is a long and tedious journey.
It can’t all be so smooth.
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