(Update: UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs. Henderson 2 will take place at the Nelio Dias Gymnasium in Natal, and will be aired live on FOX Sports 1. By the way, March 23rd is a Sunday. The event isn’t happening on Saturday because FS1 is airing a motocross event that day. Seriously.)
Rua has gone 2-2 since that night, including savage knockouts of Brandon Vera and James Te-Huna (“The Old Shogun is back! PRIDE neva die!”) and losses to Alexander Gustafsson and Chael Sonnen (“Shogun is finished! PRIDE die, maybe!”). Meanwhile, Henderson has only tasted defeat over the past two years, eating three straight losses against Lyoto Machida, Rashad Evans, and Vitor Belfort. Hendo’s losing streak led the UFC to make him a borderline-insulting lowball offer during his recent contract negotiations, but apparently the two sides have come to terms.
So are you psyched to see these two living legends do battle once again? Or did you satisfy your PRIDE fanboy fix the first time?
(2011′s Slobberknocker of the Year is getting a sequel. / Photo via MMAFighting.com)
(Update: UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs. Henderson 2 will take place at the Nelio Dias Gymnasium in Natal, and will be aired live on FOX Sports 1. By the way, March 23rd is a Sunday. The event isn’t happening on Saturday because FS1 is airing a motocross event that day. Seriously.)
Rua has gone 2-2 since that night, including savage knockouts of Brandon Vera and James Te-Huna (“The Old Shogun is back! PRIDE neva die!”) and losses to Alexander Gustafsson and Chael Sonnen (“Shogun is finished! PRIDE die, maybe!”). Meanwhile, Henderson has only tasted defeat over the past two years, eating three straight losses against Lyoto Machida, Rashad Evans, and Vitor Belfort. Hendo’s losing streak led the UFC to make him a borderline-insulting lowball offer during his recent contract negotiations, but apparently the two sides have come to terms.
So are you psyched to see these two living legends do battle once again? Or did you satisfy your PRIDE fanboy fix the first time?
Pride will never die! Prepare for more flashbacks and highlights as two of MMA’s legendary fighters in Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Dan Henderson are set to square off in a rematch.
That’s according to a report coming from Eduardo Ferreira at&nb…
Pride will never die! Prepare for more flashbacks and highlights as two of MMA‘s legendary fighters in Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Dan Henderson are set to square off in a rematch.
That’s according to a report coming from Eduardo Ferreira at Tatame (via Bloody Elbow). The fight hasn’t yet been confirmed by the UFC, but it very well could be.
The report states the two will square off on a UFC Fight Night card from Brazil on March 23.
Rua recently ended a two-fight skid by knocking James Te Huna out of his senses. Shogun not only looked like his old self with a devastating KO, but also looked to be in much better shape than his recent outings.
The same can not be said of Henderson. The former Pride champion is on a three-fight losing streak, although two of those bouts were closely fought (even if they were less than action-packed) decisions. However, it’s his most recent outing that has fans worried.
Henderson was knocked out for the first time in his career by VitorBelfort at UFC Fight Night 32. Although there’s no shame in being knocked out by Belfort, it is concerning that a guy who has taken so many shots and shown to be durable was knocked out so early in the fight.
Although both men clearly aren’t what they once were, it’s shocking to see two established names fighting on a UFC Fight Night card from Brazil. It’s also shocking since the rematch between these two has been in high demand since their initial meeting.
Both Rua and Henderson faced one another at UFC 139 in what can only be described as one of the greatest fights in MMA history. It won Fight of the Year on many websites, and fans immediately craved a rematch.
Henderson and Rua needed time to recover and eventually went their separate ways—that is, until March 23.
After taking the fight on less than a month’s notice, Urijah Faber will step into the main event of UFC 169 (February 1st, Newark) against Renan Barao, who took a definitive and dominant five-round decision over the former WEC stalwart at UFC 149, for what was then supposed to be an interim title in the bantamweight division. With Dominick Cruz vacating his title due to yet another injury, Faber will have his third opportunity to win UFC gold. Unfortunately, he doesn’t have much time to prepare for Barao, who’s become one of the toughest outs in all of MMA.
Faber’s year-round commitment to being in near peak condition — a Team Alpha Male requirement, it seems — affords him this luxury of taking a fight on short notice. Over 18 months have passed since the California Kid walked out of the cage against Barao on the losing side, and what could have been Faber’s last UFC title fight has turned into something else entirely. With four wins (and three submission finishes) over highly ranked opponents marking a stellar 2013 campaign, Faber willed himself into title contention one more time by running roughshod over the UFC’s 135-pound division.
With the rematch set, and Faber looking ahead to what could (once again) be his last shot at a UFC belt, one imagines that the Duane “Bang” Ludwig-led Team Alpha Male squad has a much different game plan in mind for Faber against the Brazilian champion. Ludwig, who has spoke of his fondness for watching fight video in preparation, should have five UFC title rematches on his mind while preparing his fighter for next month’s bout. Each of these fights contain profound lessons that could help Faber become the first Team Alpha Male member to hold a UFC championship belt. Let’s begin…
After taking the fight on less than a month’s notice, Urijah Faber will step into the main event of UFC 169 (February 1st, Newark) against Renan Barao, who took a definitive and dominant five-round decision over the former WEC stalwart at UFC 149, for what was then supposed to be an interim title in the bantamweight division. With Dominick Cruz vacating his title due to yet another injury, Faber will have his third opportunity to win UFC gold. Unfortunately, he doesn’t have much time to prepare for Barao, who’s become one of the toughest outs in all of MMA.
Faber’s year-round commitment to being in near peak condition — a Team Alpha Male requirement, it seems — affords him this luxury of taking a fight on short notice. Over 18 months have passed since the California Kid walked out of the cage against Barao on the losing side, and what could have been Faber’s last UFC title fight has turned into something else entirely. With four wins (and three submission finishes) over highly ranked opponents marking a stellar 2013 campaign, Faber willed himself into title contention one more time by running roughshod over the UFC’s 135-pound division.
With the rematch set, and Faber looking ahead to what could (once again) be his last shot at a UFC belt, one imagines that the Duane “Bang” Ludwig-led Team Alpha Male squad has a much different game plan in mind for Faber against the Brazilian champion. Ludwig, who has spoke of his fondness for watching fight video in preparation, should have five UFC title rematches on his mind while preparing his fighter for next month’s bout. Each of these fights contain profound lessons that could help Faber become the first Team Alpha Male member to hold a UFC championship belt. Let’s begin…
Considering he probably shouldn’t have been fighting anyway, it wasn’t all that much of a surprise that Cain Velasquez would come out wanting to exchange with Junior Dos Santos during their first meeting at UFC on FOX 1 in November 2011. JDS made him pay for it, giving the champion his first loss and taking his title.
In their rematch a year later, Velasquez came out and pushed a hard pace on Dos Santos from the first minute on. He never let Dos Santos get his footing square or push forward with his boxing-focused game. He kept the champion on his toes and then brutalized him for 25 minutes, imposing his will on the Brazilian and not giving him an inch.
How Faber can apply this: Barao thrives in space and the one thing Faber has to do is cut off the cage, make it close and make it ugly. He has to add a little bit of a grind to this fight, at a minimum, and refuse to give Barao space to utilize his leg kicking game. Faber is excellent in scrambles and grappling exchanges; this is where he’ll win the fight. His strength is on the mat and he needs to make Barao fight here, not on his feet where Barao’s striking ability will trump Faber’s. Faber suffered a broken rib from Barao the first time they fought and Faber is well aware of how hard he throws.
The one marked difference between the first Hughes/Penn fight at UFC 46 and their second fight is that Hughes came out significantly less tentative the second time around. Hughes was noticeably cautious in their first meeting because of Penn’s explosiveness and Penn was able to dictate the fight early. Hughes was on his heels, moving backward, and Penn exploited that into one of the biggest upsets in UFC history to that point. The 2006 rematch was marked by Hughes and his top-position mauling of Penn, which ended in a third-round TKO. Hughes was far more aggressive the second time around, and didn’t let BJ dictate the terms.
How Faber can apply this: Don’t let Barao dictate the striking exchanges. Faber was tentative in their first fight, as Barao pushed the pace and established the tenor of the fight. Faber needs to let his hands go and impose his will, not letting Barao set up his striking game. It’s why Faber lost; he couldn’t get off first and took a ton of damage in the process. He has to tighten up space and impose his skillset, making Barao counter and use movement. Faber’s at his best when he’s able to control where the fight goes, and that’ll be a factor in a Faber victory.
Lyoto Machida was a riddle no one had been able to solve until Shogun Rua. Their first fight at UFC 104, insanely controversial, necessitated an immediate rematch and Rua went from being one round away from a title win to an emphatic KO at UFC 113 because of the 25 minutes they spent together the first time.
Machida’s style is such that it’s nearly impossible to duplicate in training unless you have Machida himself to train with. Rua got the best possible primer for a fight with Machida the first time, having to figure out his movement and timing on the fly. When they fought for the second time, Rua knew how Machida moved and was able to adjust from the first minute on. He wasn’t going to be baffled or confused by Machida’s ability to counter.
Look at the way Rua’s movement changed from the middle of the first fight to the first round of the second. This is someone who has figured out the mystery and knows how to counter it. Rua knew he couldn’t rush in blind and over commit; he needed to cut the cage off and make Machida fight in a smaller area. It’s what led to the KO in the second fight as well.
Rua knew what to expect. The Dragon was no mystery the second time around.
How Faber can apply this: Barao doesn’t fight anything like Machida, but Faber spent 25 minutes with him. He knows how hard the Brazilian phenom punches, kicks, his instinctual movements when defending takedowns, the type of sprawl Barao used on him, etc., in a way that you can only learn from fighting another human being.
There won’t be anything Barao does that will be new to Faber. Faber and Barao know each other fairly well at this point, as 25 minutes locked inside a cage with another person gives you a familiarity with one another that most training experiences can’t provide. It may have been 18 months ago but we’re looking at improved versions of both fighters, not completely new versions of the same fighters. If Faber has an edge coming in it is that Barao has spent a training camp preparing for Dominick Cruz and has to change course with less than a month out.
You can change course this close to a fight and not miss a beat, but a completely different fighter will mean a different game plan, which will be tough to install this close to a fight. Barao may have fought Faber before but he’s spent a camp preparing to take on Cruz. That could mean something. Faber gets to come in and face someone who he’s prepared for once already. He has to cram his planning into a short window but it’s a familiar one.
On the next page: The Spider returns to devastating form, and Frankie Edgar proves it wasn’t a fluke.
Tomorrow night in Georgia, former Strikeforce middleweight champion Luke Rockhold returns to the Octagon for the first time since having his face kicked into space by Vitor Belfort at UFC on FX 8 last May. Although Belfort was coming off a blistering head kick KO of Michael Bisping at UFC on FX 7, many were still picking and betting on Rockhold to defeat “The Phenom” in his UFC debut, and the betting line surprisingly closed as a pick ‘em.
Things didn’t go Rockhold’s way that night, to say the least. In hindsight it’s not such a bad loss considering what Belfort did to iron-chinned Dan Henderson in his next bout, but it was still incredibly disappointing for the highly-touted Californian to be knocked out in less than five minutes when — on paper at least — the fight with Belfort should have been much more competitive.
Of course, Rockhold isn’t the first UFC fighter who fell short of expectations in his Octagon debut. The question is, will he rebound in his second fight, or fall deeper into “bust” territory? Read on for our list of eight other fighters who didn’t live up to the hype in their first UFC appearances, and let us know if we’ve left out any notable disappointments.
After the IFL collapsed, the promotion’s former heavyweight champion Ben Rothwell made his way over to the UFC and debuted against fast-rising contender Cain Velasquez at UFC 104. Although Rothwell’s aura of invincibility had been cracked by Andrei Arlovski’s limbs at Affliction: Banned the previous summer, there was still hope that he could get back to his winning ways and make a run for the UFC heavyweight title.
But against Velasquez, it was clear that Rothwell was thoroughly outclassed by a far superior mixed martial artist, and “Big Ben” suffered the second true knockout loss of his career. In hindsight, it’s not surprising that Rothwell couldn’t hang with Velasquez, the current UFC heavyweight champion, but at the time it was a harsh reality check for those hardcore MMA fans who believed in Rothwell after his IFL run.
Tomorrow night in Georgia, former Strikeforce middleweight champion Luke Rockhold returns to the Octagon for the first time since having his face kicked into space by Vitor Belfort at UFC on FX 8 last May. Although Belfort was coming off a blistering head kick KO of Michael Bisping at UFC on FX 7, many were still picking and betting on Rockhold to defeat “The Phenom” in his UFC debut, and the betting line surprisingly closed as a pick ‘em.
Things didn’t go Rockhold’s way that night, to say the least. In hindsight it’s not such a bad loss considering what Belfort did to iron-chinned Dan Henderson in his next bout, but it was still incredibly disappointing for the highly-touted Californian to be knocked out in less than five minutes when — on paper at least — the fight with Belfort should have been much more competitive.
Of course, Rockhold isn’t the first UFC fighter who fell short of expectations in his Octagon debut. The question is, will he rebound in his second fight, or fall deeper into “bust” territory? Read on for our list of eight other fighters who didn’t live up to the hype in their first UFC appearances, and let us know if we’ve left out any notable disappointments.
After the IFL collapsed, the promotion’s former heavyweight champion Ben Rothwell made his way over to the UFC and debuted against fast-rising contender Cain Velasquez at UFC 104. Although Rothwell’s aura of invincibility had been cracked by Andrei Arlovski’s limbs at Affliction: Banned the previous summer, there was still hope that he could get back to his winning ways and make a run for the UFC heavyweight title.
But against Velasquez, it was clear that Rothwell was thoroughly outclassed by a far superior mixed martial artist, and “Big Ben” suffered the second true knockout loss of his career. In hindsight, it’s not surprising that Rothwell couldn’t hang with Velasquez, the current UFC heavyweight champion, but at the time it was a harsh reality check for those hardcore MMA fans who believed in Rothwell after his IFL run.
For years, North American fans were hoping and praying for Norifumi “KID” Yamamoto to make his way over to the WEC and fight the other top bantamweights in the world. “KID” never fought in the WEC, but after the UFC swallowed up the promotion and transferred their fighters over to the Octagon, the Japanese superstar got his shot at the big show and took on Demetrious Johnson at UFC 126.
But although Yamamoto was a 2-to-1 favorite over Johnson, he was outwrestled by Johnson and ended up losing a very disappointing three-round decision. Yamamoto then followed that up with two more losses to Darren Uyenoyama and Vaughan Lee, and when you think about how bad he looked in all three bouts, it’s clear Yamamoto wasn’t the same guy who was knocking dudes out left, right and center in Japan. Not even close.
Anthony Pettis had just won the last-ever WEC championship with his highlight-reel showtime kick against Benson Henderson at WEC 53 and had earned his way into a UFC title fight against the winner of UFC 125’s Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard II. But when Edgar and Maynard fought to a draw, UFC president Dana White told Pettis to take another fight and at the TUF 13 Finale he took on veteran Clay Guida in a fight most expected him to dominate.
But despite Pettis’s flashy striking and Guida’s love of standing and banging with his opponents, “The Carpenter” was able to use a smart wrestling gameplan against Pettis, scoring takedowns and sitting in top control long enough to get the judges’ decision. It was a poor performance by Pettis and he had to win three more fights before he finally got his UFC title shot, but when finally got his crack at the belt he made the most of it, with a submission win over Benson Henderson at UFC 164.
Jake Shields had won 14 fights in a row and was coming off a gigantic win over Dan Henderson to retain the Strikeforce middleweight championship when the UFC decided to sign him and put him on the fast track to a title shot. For his first fight, Shields would take on top contender Martin Kampmann at UFC 121, and the winner would earn a fight against UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre.
Despite Shields being a sizeable favorite heading into the match, Kampmann and Shields grappled back-and-forth for 15 minutes, and at the end of three rounds it was tough to say who had won. Although many thought Kampmann did enough to secure the victory, Shields ended up getting his hand raised by split-decision. But while the fight went down as a win on his record, it didn’t help him win any fans in his Octagon debut, as his bout with Kampmann was a total snoozer — something that nearly all of Shields’s UFC fights have ended up being.
After his highlight-reel knockout of Michael Bisping at UFC 100, Dan Henderson and the UFC ended up with different figures of what he was worth. This led to his leaving the company in 2009 and signing with smaller promotion Strikeforce.
Now, accor…
After his highlight-reel knockout of Michael Bisping at UFC 100, Dan Henderson and the UFC ended up with different figures of what he was worth. This led to his leaving the company in 2009 and signing with smaller promotion Strikeforce.
Now, according to Henderson, who appeared on the MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani (h/t fighthubtv.com), it looks like 2009 all over again.
“I was fairly surprised that it’s as far away as what I thought I fair offer would have been,” said Henderson, who is coming off three losses in a row, including his first-ever KO/TKO loss to VitorBelfort at UFC Fight Night: Belfort vs. Henderson in Brazil in November of 2013.
“I don’t know if I’d go so far as to say I was insulted, but I know what they’re trying to accomplish and trying to get everybody for as cheap as they can. That’s what they like to do. I don’t take it personally, but it was a lot lower than I expected.”
While it might sound as if Henderson is offended by his situation, he made it clear that he wasn’t even considering fighting anywhere else.
“I think they want me to come back. I don’t want to go anywhere else, it’s not even in my mind right now and I don’t think they want me to go anywhere else either. It’s just something where we’re a little far apart, and we need to sit down and get it hashed out.”
The UFC plans on delivering more events than ever in 2014, and with big draws like Georges St-Pierre and Anderson Silva out of action, Henderson said he understood the UFC’s current situation.
“I think, from what I’ve been hearing they’re trying to lower everyone’s purses win or lose, just because pay-per-view numbers aren’t as high as they used to be,” he said. “They are having a lot more shows, a lot more pay-per-views, a lot more free cards, so obviously they’re going to do less PPVs when they’re offering so many more cards and shows. It’s just a little too watered down to get as many numbers as they used to on every pay-per-view card.”
Since his return to the UFC from Strikeforce, Henderson has only seen victory one time, against Mauricio “Shogun” Rua; a bout that won Fight of the Year for 2011.
As one of the pioneers of MMA, he has fought in nearly every significant promotion to exist and has won titles nearly everywhere except for a UFC title belt.
Henderson defeated Wanderlei Silva in February of 2007 to become the first man in a major promotion to hold titles in two different weight divisions at the same time: the Pride welterweight and middleweight belts.
After winning the UFC 17 middleweight tournament in 1998, Henderson fought twice in title bouts and was turned away by Quinton “Rampage” Jackson at light heavyweight and Anderson Silva at middleweight.
Now, at age 43, one begins to wonder just how much longer Henderson has left in a sport that saw him accomplish so much.
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua has heard the calls for him to drop to middleweight for many years. He’s still not interested.
Rua is coming off an emphatic win over James Te Huna at UFC Fight Night 33 in early December, but he’s still just 5-5 in his last 10 fi…
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua has heard the calls for him to drop to middleweight for many years. He’s still not interested.
Rua is coming off an emphatic win over James Te Huna at UFC Fight Night 33 in early December, but he’s still just 5-5 in his last 10 fights dating back to the loss to Forrest Griffin in his UFC debut at UFC 76. Rua may have issued a swift beating to Te Huna, but that hasn’t stopped fans from wishing (and often outright insisting) that he would make the drop in weight.
I’ll stay at 205. There’s no way (I can drop to 185). I spoke with my team after the fight and they said I shouldn’t (move down), so I won’t. I’ll stay at 205.
The light-heavyweight division is the toughest division. I won two world titles in this division, so I’m adapted to it. My dream is to win the title again, but I’m only thinking about my next fight. I’m not thinking about the title now.
Rua is rumored to face Antonio Rogerio Nogueira next. That’s if his fellow Brazilian fighter can stay healthy, of course. Since signing with the UFC in 2009, Nogueira has competed just six times. He was most recently booked to face Alexander Gustafsson on March 8 in London, but a lingering back injury forced him to withdraw five days after the fight was announced.
Shogun told Cruz he’s fine with the idea of facing Nogueira: “Sure, (my next fight) could be ‘Minotouro.’ He’s done great recently so this fight could happen (next).”
Can Rua make middleweight? He’s the expert on his own body, so we’ll have to defer to him when he says he can’t do it. But speculation will continue to rage on, mostly due to the fact that he is a small light heavyweight. In fact, he’s even smaller than many middleweights, and even in his best shape (at 205 pounds), he still appears to be a bit soft.
Perhaps he just doesn’t want to go through a tough weight cut this late in his career. You can’t blame him for that, and he’s earned the opportunity to do whatever he wants and fight wherever he wants. But if Shogun suffers another loss or two, Joe Silva might start making those decisions for him.
Pride will never die! Prepare for more flashbacks and highlights as two of 
