Tag: Mauricio Rua

Dan Henderson Destroyed Shogun Rua’s Nose

Warning: Image of a graphic injury below
“Does it look broken?”
After two strong rounds, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua walked away from UFC Fight Night 39 with a crooked nose and a ninth loss under his belt.
Dan Henderson caught the Bra…

Warning: Image of a graphic injury below

“Does it look broken?”

After two strong rounds, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua walked away from UFC Fight Night 39 with a crooked nose and a ninth loss under his belt.

Dan Henderson caught the Brazilian light heavyweight with a devastating series of punches in the third round, two of which appeared to turn Rua’s nose sideways.

That brand of ugly might have to be handled by a specialist. You can’t always Steve Nash your nasal septum back into place.

The injury comes as no surprise, considering the three flavors of hell Henderson unleashed on the Brazilian’s sinuses before referee Herb Dean called the match. Robert Littal of BlackSportsOnline.com crafted a GIF of Henderson’s face-mashing flurry:

Fox analyst Brian Stann foreshadowed the match-ending punches, according to Mike Chiappetta of Fox Sports: “Henderson appeared to be living a nightmare against Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua when UFC on FOX analyst Brian Stann presciently noted that all was not lost for the 43-year-old. ‘As we all know, Henderson holds a big stick of dynamite in that right hand.’ Ten seconds later, the…main event was all over.”

Indeed, Henderson throws bricks with his right, and they’ll break a few windows if they land true.

As someone who has had his nose broken (headbutt, don’t ask), I harbor a deep and abiding respect for fighters like Rua who stand in the ring post-fight like their nose wasn’t just forcibly turned into lasagna. He grimaced through the end-of-match formalities, looking grim but undaunted.

He wasn’t alone in his pain. Henderson claimed Rua hurt him early in the going, per Chiappetta.

“He definitely dung me, he rang my bell a tad in the first round and then the second, too,” Henderson said. “I decided to be patient, too patient. I wasn’t very offensive. In the third round we decided to get after it and pick it up where we left off the last fight.”

Noses break, but we must not break with them. As for Rua, he’ll be icing that nose for a while.

Surgery is generally the only fix for a break this bad, but it’s nothing he can’t handle. He’ll go through the motions, ice the swelling and live to fight another day. Rua is 32, and judging by Henderson’s performance, he could be breaking young bucks’ noses more than a decade from now.

 

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‘UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs. Henderson 2? — Fight Highlights, Bonuses, And Event Recap

(Shogun vs. Henderson 2 highlights via Fox Sports)

Dan Henderson and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua fought for the second time last night in Natal, Brazil, and though we weren’t treated to another five-round dogfight, the rematch turned out to be nearly as incredible as their first meeting. This time, it was Henderson who was getting beaten up in the early rounds, as an energized Shogun Rua came close to finishing the American legend on more than one occasion. It seemed like Henderson’s heart, experience, and still-solid chin were the only things keeping him alive going into round three. And then…boo-yah.

All it took was one right hand directly across the chin to snap Shogun’s head back and send him into a backwards somersault across the mat. Arguably, referee Herb Dean could have stopped the fight as soon as Shogun went ass-over-teakettle, but he allowed Hendo to follow up the knockdown with some controversial blows to the back of the head, as Shogun groggily clung to Henderson’s leg. To those of you who expected Herb Dean to penalize Henderson during the finishing sequence: You haven’t been watching MMA for very long, have you?

Henderson and Rua each earned $50,000 Fight of the Night bonuses for their headlining battle, and Dan Henderson also scored a $50,000 Performance of the Night award. (The unofficial Broken Nose of the Night award went to Shogun.) The other Performance of the Night bonus went to Godofredo “Pepey” Castro, who wrecked Israeli UFC newcomer Noad Lahat with a flying knee in the first fight of the night.

The Pepey/Lahat KO was just one of five matches at UFC Fight Night 38 that ended in the first round. Notably, middleweight vet CB Dollaway TKO’d TUF Brazil 1 winner Cezar “Mutante” Ferreira in just 39 seconds with an impressive display of counter-punching, which you can watch below…


(Shogun vs. Henderson 2 highlights via Fox Sports)

Dan Henderson and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua fought for the second time last night in Natal, Brazil, and though we weren’t treated to another five-round dogfight, the rematch turned out to be nearly as incredible as their first meeting. This time, it was Henderson who was getting beaten up in the early rounds, as an energized Shogun Rua came close to finishing the American legend on more than one occasion. It seemed like Henderson’s heart, experience, and still-solid chin were the only things keeping him alive going into round three. And then…boo-yah.

All it took was one right hand directly across the chin to snap Shogun’s head back and send him into a backwards somersault across the mat. Arguably, referee Herb Dean could have stopped the fight as soon as Shogun went ass-over-teakettle, but he allowed Hendo to follow up the knockdown with some controversial blows to the back of the head, as Shogun groggily clung to Henderson’s leg. To those of you who expected Herb Dean to penalize Henderson during the finishing sequence: You haven’t been watching MMA for very long, have you?

Henderson and Rua each earned $50,000 Fight of the Night bonuses for their headlining battle, and Dan Henderson also scored a $50,000 Performance of the Night award. (The unofficial Broken Nose of the Night award went to Shogun.) The other Performance of the Night bonus went to Godofredo “Pepey” Castro, who wrecked Israeli UFC newcomer Noad Lahat with a flying knee in the first fight of the night.

The Pepey/Lahat KO was just one of five matches at UFC Fight Night 38 that ended in the first round. Notably, middleweight vet CB Dollaway TKO’d TUF Brazil 1 winner Cezar “Mutante” Ferreira in just 39 seconds with an impressive display of counter-punching, which you can watch below…

Speaking of fights that lasted less than a minute, Thiago Santos TKO’d Ronny Markes in 53 seconds during the prelims, thanks to a well-placed body-kick. Considering that Markes missed weight by five pounds for the match, and he was already coming off a loss to Yoel Romero, his days in the promotion might be numbered.

“Possibly Early Stoppage of the Night” goes to the Steven Siler vs. Rony “Jason” Bezerra main card fight, which Jason won by first-round TKO after knocking Siler down with punches. The ref jumped in as soon as Siler hit the mat, drawing an immediate protest from the American featherweight. Not that Siler wasn’t hurt — but clearly there was some inconsistency in the officiating last night, when you consider how many opportunities Dan Henderson was given to recover after being rocked.

Speaking of controversial endings, Scott Jorgensen succumbed to a first-round rear-naked choke in his latest appearance at flyweight against Jussier Formiga. Jorgensen thought he was dropped by a head-butt. Formiga denies it. It doesn’t really matter because the ref didn’t see it. Jorgensen has now lost five of his last six fights.

As for fights that went the distance, Norman Parke cost himself a victory against Leonardo Santos by getting a point deducted for shorts grabbing during their main card fight. Instead, the match ended in a majority draw. And in other point-deduction news, prelim fighter Mairbek Taisumov became just the second UFC fighter to have two separate point-deductions in a fight that went to the judges. (Taisumov was docked points for an illegal head-kick in round one and fence-grabbing in round two.) As a result, he lost a unanimous decision with scores of 30-25 across the board.

And finally, Will Chope — the guy who was kicked off the card at the last minute when his history of domestic violence was uncovered — will fight for ProFC on May 25th in Taiwan.

Once again, here are the complete results from UFC Fight Night 38: Shogun vs. Henderson 2…

Main Card
– Dan Henderson def. Shogun Rua via TKO (punches), 1:31 of round 3
– C.B. Dolloway def. Cezar Ferreira via TKO (punches), 0:39 of round 1
– Leonardo Santos vs. Norman Parke ends in majority Draw (29-27, 28-28, 28-28)
– Fabio Maldonado def. Gian Villante via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-28, 29-28)
– Michel Prazeres def. Mairbek Taisumov via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-25, 30-35)
– Rony Jason def. Steven Siler via TKO (punches), 1:17 of round 1

Preliminary Card
– Thiago Santos def. Ronny Markes via TKO (body kick and punches), 0:53 of round 1
– Jussier Formiga def. Scott Jorgensen via submission (rear naked choke), 3:07 of round 1
– Kenny Roberston def. Thiago Perpetuo via submission (rear naked choke), 1:45 of round 1
– Hans Stringer def. Francimar Barroso via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
– Godofredo Castro def. Noad Lahat via KO (flying knee), 2:39 of round 1

UFC Fight Night 38: Video Highlights from the Shogun vs. Henderson 2 Main Event

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Dan Henderson make magic inside the Octagon, a point showcased previously at UFC 139 and again Sunday evening at UFC Fight Night 38 in Brazil. 
These two hard-hitting veterans match up perfectly, and both of their bouts w…

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Dan Henderson make magic inside the Octagon, a point showcased previously at UFC 139 and again Sunday evening at UFC Fight Night 38 in Brazil. 

These two hard-hitting veterans match up perfectly, and both of their bouts were sensational displays of the heart, power, grit and determination seen in the sport of MMA. 

Henderson earned a unanimous decision victory over Rua in November 2011 at UFC 139, but the fight was ultra competitive, and each man came close to ending the fight on numerous occasions. 

The two fighters turned back the clocks in an attempt to recreate the drama of this first encounter, and the results were equally fantastic. 

While Henderson enjoy a dominant start at UFC 139, Rua roared out of the gates in the rematch, clipping Henderson with a ferocious combo at the end of Round 1 and sending him tumbling to the canvas. 

Rua followed up with some powerful ground-and-pound, but the Brazilian ran out of time, and “Hendo” brushed himself off for Round 2. 

Again, Rua looked to be in total control in the second frame.

He caught Hendo again—this time with a clean uppercut—and the Californian dropped to his knees a second time. Shogun had difficulty sealing the deal, though, and Henderson survived once more. 

In Round 3, it became Henderson’s time to dish out some punishment. 

As the two broke from a clinch near the center of the Octagon, Hendo smashed Rua with a massive right hand, and Shogun went somersaulting backward across the cage floor. 

Hendo followed this attack with some hammerfists from top position, and referee Herb Dean had no choice but to stop the contest. Shogun was turtled and doing nothing to improve his position, and Henderson again walked away the victor. 

With such lofty expectations to live up to, Henderson and Shogun delivered everything fans could have wanted and more. The fact that we got one back-and-forth, rock-em’, sock-em’ fight from these two legends is amazing; the fact that we got two is utter perfection. 

Check out the highlights of this epic clash above. 

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UFC Fight Night 38: Dan Henderson Beats Back Time with Comeback KO of Shogun Rua

After two rounds on Sunday at UFC Fight Night 38, we were all struggling to write eulogies for Dan Henderson’s legendary MMA career.
Then, a minute into the third, Hendo penned one for Mauricio “Shogun” Rua using just one punch.
It wa…

After two rounds on Sunday at UFC Fight Night 38, we were all struggling to write eulogies for Dan Henderson’s legendary MMA career.

Then, a minute into the third, Hendo penned one for Mauricio “Shogun” Rua using just one punch.

It was a right hook, and Henderson landed it flush on Rua’s nose as the 32-year-old crowd favorite dropped his hands to defend a takedown. Rua somersaulted backward, and Hendo charged in to land another right, followed by a series of hammerfists that prompted referee Herb Dean to stop the action.

Just like that, Hendo changed the balance of the discussion. Suddenly, it was the 43-year-old who was back in the mix of the light heavyweight division and Rua whose storied tenure in the sport seemed on its last legs.

Six-and-a-half minutes earlier, it appeared as though Dean would have to step in to save Henderson. With 41 seconds on the clock in the opening stanza, Henderson stunned Shogun with a left hook, but in his hurry to press the action against the fence, he was floored by a two-punch counter.

Rua swarmed him with hard shots, but as Dean hovered a step away, Hendo managed to survive to the end of the round. Later, with just under three minutes left in the second, Shogun dropped him with an uppercut, but Henderson again weathered the storm.

And so it went until the opening stages of the third, when—after 10 minutes of looking entirely pedestrian—Hendo reminded us that he only needed one bullet and that he still possessed the cold, exacting heart of a sniper.

“I think he’d rung my bell just a tad in the first round and then again in the second,” he told UFC play-by-play man Jon Anik in the cage after the fight. “I just decided to be patient. I think I was a little bit too patient in the first two rounds. I wasn’t very offensive. That third round I think we both decided to get after it and leave things where we left the last fight.”

Their last fight this one was not, but Henderson’s come-from-behind KO at least made a thrilling ending to a bout between two aging superstars who both badly needed a win.

The loss dropped Rua to 1-3 in his last four Octagon appearances. After a 12-year career and multiple knee surgeries, he appeared on the brink of the end before defeating James Te Huna in December of 2013. Now, he suddenly finds himself back at that same fork in the road.

Henderson came in 0-3 since his classic against Rua at UFC 139, though the UFC broadcast team took pains to tell us each of those losses came at the hands of a former light heavyweight champion.

Now, he’s back. Back in the win column, if nothing else.

It might not be entirely accurate to say Hendo looked great throughout this fight, but he looked great at the end, and that’s what counts.

Even with his losing streak snapped, however, Henderson faces an uncertain future in MMA. For years he’d been supplementing his traditional training with testosterone replacement therapy—a practice banned by the Nevada Athletic Commission and the UFC in February.

Due to the proximity of this event in Natal, Brazil, and the fact Henderson had already been approved for a therapeutic use exemption for testosterone, he was allowed to remain on TRT for one last fight. Now, he’ll have to transition away from the controversial treatment.

Leading up to this fight, he said he planned to carry on with his MMA career, but said he wasn’t really going to consider his options until after facing Rua.

“I don’t need to make any decisions now,” he told Fox Sport’s Damon Martin last week. “I’m going to have to do some research and see what’s out there.”

It’s thought that TRT patients who must suddenly leave the stuff behind could face a rough road and myriad health issues associated with going cold turkey. Already 43 years old, it remains to be seen how Henderson will deal with weaning himself off synthetic testosterone.

As of now, we’re left to believe he’ll fight again.

In the wake of this victory, it’ll likely be against someone else in the 205-pound Top 10.

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UFC Fight Night 38 Results: Grades for Every Main Card Fighter

The UFC hit Brazil for the second time in early 2014, dropping Fight Night 38 on the city of Natal. After a raucous preliminary card that was full of finishes and whipped the crowd into a frenzy, Shogun Rua and Dan Henderson met in a rematch&…

The UFC hit Brazil for the second time in early 2014, dropping Fight Night 38 on the city of Natal. After a raucous preliminary card that was full of finishes and whipped the crowd into a frenzy, Shogun Rua and Dan Henderson met in a rematch of their iconic 2011 tilt.

Henderson ended up on top in surprising and explosive fashion, the successful headliner on a main card of six fights. Here are the grades for the combatants.

Begin Slideshow

Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua vs. Dan Henderson: Twitter Reacts to Main Event

UFC Fight Night 38 featured the rematch of one of the best MMA fights of all time. Dan Henderson and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua met in Natal, Brazil, for another scrap.
Henderson moves to 2-0 in the series with a third-round TKO, but it didn’t come easy.
Tw…

UFC Fight Night 38 featured the rematch of one of the best MMA fights of all time. Dan Henderson and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua met in Natal, Brazil, for another scrap.

Henderson moves to 2-0 in the series with a third-round TKO, but it didn’t come easy.

Twitter was alive for the fight on a Sunday night. Here is a look at how the Twitterverse perceived the amazing fight.

 

Pre-Fight

 

Round 1

Shogun works the leg kicks early. Henderson loads up on his right hand, but he can’t find a home for it. Henderson hits Shogun hard with a left, but Shogun nearly finishes Henderson with strikes of his own. Henderson dropped, and Shogun was all over him. He barely survived the first five minutes.

 

Round 2

Shogun goes back to leg kicks, and he is landing more punches early on as well. Henderson still recovering from the end of the first. Shogun plasters Henderson with an uppercut, but he can’t finish. Henderson sticks him in his guard. Herb Dean stands them up, but the round closes shortly after.

 

Round 3

A scramble occurs off a Henderson takedown attempt, and he clips Shogun in the process. Shogun is hurt badly. A follow-up punch destroys Shogun. Hammerfists follow until Dean stops the fight at 1:31 of the round.

 

Post-Fight

It is tough to see where either man goes after this fight. The division has its fill of contenders, and the aging stars are nowhere near that level right now. Time will tell, but a third fight does make plenty of sense.

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