Fedor vs. Hendo: The Emperor's Last Stand

Yeah, you heard us right. We here at Fan Fight, with our reputed focus on the UFC, are covering a Strikeforce event. Why? Well it helps that Henderson is a former UFC fighter and that Strikeforce is now owned by Zuffa, the UFC's parent company. But mainly we're covering it because its freakin' Fedor Emelianenko vs. Dan Henderson. I mean, do you need more of a reason than that?

Nope. No more reason than that.

This super fight between two of the greatest legends of our sport is set for July 30th, 10:00 PM ET at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. There are also going to be a lot of other really good fighters in the middle of some very interesting match ups at this event, but we don't really care about them right now. Why? Because none of them are named Fedor Emelianenko or Dan Henderson, that's why.

Dan "Hendo" Henderson, is a true legend of the sport. And with a record of 27/8 spread across four weight divisions its easy to see why. He held both the final Welterweight and Middleweight championships concurrently for the now defunct Pride FC organization, he won the UFC 17 Middleweight tournament, the 1997 Brazil open lightweight tournament, the 1999 RINGS King of Kings tournament, and the Pride 2005 welterweight Grand Prix. This is all in addition to being the current Strikeforce light heavyweight champion, and his numerous wrestling accolades. He is currently ranked as the #10 light heavyweight in the world by Sherdog.com, and #2 by Fight! Magazine.

Did we mention that he is turning forty years old, has a cast iron jaw, regularly beats up much younger fighters, still wins championships and that his right hand is called the "H-Bomb"? No? Well maybe we should have, because that just goes to show you how incredibly awesome Dan Henderson is.

The only things bigger than those belts are the size of the lumps on his opponents' faces.

And on the other side of the ring we have the one and only, the legendary, "The Last Emperor" Fedor Emelianenko. Who is he? What have you been living under a rock for the past decade? Because Fedor Emelianenko is arguably the most important heavyweight fighter in the history of mixed martial arts.

Why is he so important? Well lets look at his record, it's currently 31/3/1. Yes, that's right, out of the thirty-five fights that this man has fought, he only lost three of them. That means he averages about a ten-to-one win/loss ratio. It also means he was undefeated for nearly a DECADE. He has wins over such notables as Brett Rogers, Andrei Arlovski, Tim Sylvia, Matt Lindland, Mark Hunt, Mark Coleman (x2), Mirko Filipovic, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (x2), Kevin Randleman, Gary Goodridge, Heath Herring, Semmy Schilt, and Renato Sobral.

During his reign of terror he fought across numerous organizations and was the greatest heavyweight in the world, and many argued the greatest mixed-martial artist of all time. His accomplishments both in mma (five separate major championships), and in Judo and Sambo are literally just too numerous to mention. So we'll cover just the major mma accomplishments, and if you want to see a more complete list of what he has done we suggest you check out the list of his accomplishments on Wikipedia.

Of course with just what we are covering we still have a lot to say because he's the RINGS Open-Weight Tournament Champion; the 2001 RINGS Heavyweight Class Tournament Winner; the 2002 RINGS Absolute Class Tournament Winner; the PRIDE World Heavyweight Champion; the 2004 PRIDE Heavyweight Grand Prix Champion; and the WAMMA World Heavyweight Champion. Sherdog.com currently ranks him as the #8 Heavyweight in the world.

Why just number eight you ask? Well because the legend that is the Last Emperor has been on a decline of late. The nigh unstoppable Russian wrecking machine pulled up short in his last two bouts. Losing first by submission to Fabricio Werdum in the first round, and then to Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva by TKO (Doctor's Stoppage) from swelling around the eye. Because of these losses many fans are now crying out that his reign is over, and that Emelianenko should retire. Something he seriously considered doing after his loss to Silva, and which he may consider again after this bout with Henderson. Either way, we know that his career will hinge entirely around this upcoming fight.

Another reason why he is no longer listed as number one is that his competition of late has been slowing, before his last two fights his notable opponents had been few and far between. In addition the once powerful Russian was not focusing on his training as much as he once had. Why? Well for years he could beat anyone anytime without training as hard he did in his early career. When you are that good, you can gain a few extra pounds and still beat everyone.

What you don't see in this picture is the ice cream vendor with a broken arm who tried to charge Fedor.

So what we have here is a catch-weight match-up between two of the greatest legends of all time, with Henderson fighting at about 205 lbs and Emelianenko at around 230 lbs. Henderson should be in decline but isn't, and Emelianenko should have more years ahead of him but is now looking at possible retirement if he doesn't win the upcoming match.

Ladies and gentlemen, this is a fan boy's wet dream. And we are here to provide you with our complete breakdown of the fight. So get ready, because Fan Fight is going to lay down the law all over this place.

Darn straight we are.

Striking: The stand up in this match won't be one of flying high kicks, or roundhouse elbows. No, instead it will feature two of the greatest boxers in mma history. Emelianenko is well known for his powerful hits, precision, and highly technical counter-boxing. Henderson is known for his super powerful strikes, many of his wins coming by KO.

Both men have notoriously strong jaws, neither have ever been knocked out. Although Emelianenko does tend to get cut on his face fairly easily which can result in swelling around the eyes, something that cost him dearly in the Silva fight.

But when we compare who will have more weight behind their punches, and who has gotten hit and stayed standing from more hard strikers we begin to see who will have the advantage in this department. And since we know from experience that technical boxing usually beats power boxing that advantage becomes clearer.

Advantage to Fedor Emelianenko.


Grappling: Another tough choice for who has the advantage. One is a Judo and Sambo world champion, the other is an Olympic level wrestler. Emelianenko will come into the fight weighing nearly twenty-five to thirty pounds more than Henderson, who doesn't use his wrestling nearly as often as he should. Henderson instead prefers to use his heavy hands, and then uses his wrestling if he gets into deep waters or to keep the fight standing. But when he does use it look out, because this Greco-Roman master doesn't take any prisoners.

Emelianenko is a master of sweeps and tosses and possesses an incredible sense of balance. Henderson on the other hand has incredible wrestling, beautiful takedowns, and a true gift at control in a clinch.

Hendo on his day off.

Their two skills-sets nearly cancel each other out but Emelianenko's craft assists in grappling while Henderson's is designed for it.

Slight advantage to Dan Henderson.


Submissions: The advantage here is obvious. Remember where we pointed out that Emelianenko's craft only assists in grappling? Well that's because its designed to let him dominate at submissions. Particularly his trademark move, the armbar.

To show how big an advantage Emelianenko has in this department we suggest that you look at it this way: out of his thirty-one victories eighteen are by submission. Whereas Henderson, who has twenty-seven wins, has only won via submission twice. And one of them was a submission due to blows from Henderson. In addition he was shown to have some weaknesses in his submission defense in his bout against Jake Shields.

Advantage to Fedor Emelianenko

Is there anything that Fedor CAN'T submit?

Athleticism: Emelianenko does get props in this area as he fights as a heavyweight against much bigger opponents than his mere 235 lbs. This is a testament to his strength and power. But, his training has been somewhat lacking of late. While Henderson, the elder, is nearly always in tip-top shape, and has the personal training and discipline necessary to let him fight in multiple divisions. His strength and explosive power are also legendary.

Both men have more than enough endurance to last through a full fight so cardio is not an issue. So with all the cards on the table we have to say that Henderson takes the lead on this one.

Advantage to Dan Henderson.


Experience: A tough one to call. Both have fought quality opponents, both have fought extensively. Emelianenko has been in the spotlight much more, and has fought more big name opponents. Henderson has experience in what it takes to come off of a severe loss and win, something Emelianenko has never really had to go through.

Push. No advantage to either party.


Mental Toughness: This is where this game will truly be fought. Make no mistake, this is a game of wills and concentration. You can expect solemn expressions and plenty of inner fire because both men are world renowned for their mental fortitude.

What makes this aspect really interesting though is that Henderson has perhaps a few more chinks in his mental armor than Emelianenko. Henderson has been known to get a bit frustrated in a few fights, notably against Anderson "The Spider" Silva and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. And on the reverse side Emelianenko is having to deal with the blows to his confidence from his recent back to back losses. Something the humble Russian has never really had to face in his mma career.

Because of those losses Fedor Emelianenko's mental state is up for debate right now. Unfortunately for all of us fight fans, his mental fortitude is so great that it is next to impossible to tell if he is frustrated, angry, happy, or sad. So we the fans are left to conjecture while acknowledging that the man is some sort of Russian robot and that any mental weakness he possesses probably won't be revealed until after the fight is over and we're all looking back in retrospect.

The Soviet Union's ultimate weapon.

Slight advantage to Fedor Emelianenko. It could easily be a slight advantage to Henderson though.


Conclusion: A lot of people are calling out Fedor Emelianenko right now. They are saying he has been on a hype train for the past ten years and that he hasn't really fought anyone of worth. And we at Fan Fight agree that some of that is true, while Emelianenko is arguably the most successful heavyweight mma fighter of all time the claims that he is the greatest fighter period are over the top. And his competition has been slowing of late.

Does that mean he doesn't really have it? That he is all show? No definitely not.  He is a great fighter. This battle isn't for his legacy, but how well his legacy will be remembered. Now that he is under the Zuffa banner for the first time he will have to show to a whole new generation of fans and fighters just how good he really is. This truly is his last stand, if he doesn't make it here he loses relevancy in the modern fast paced world of mixed-martial arts.

Henderson may be in the twilight of his career, but the funny thing is that it doesn't matter with him. Why? 'Cause he's the energizer bunny and he just keeps going and going. Due to his UFC connections and that he is now once again under the Zuffa banner it seems likely that he will one day end up in the UFC Hall of Fame. A win over Fedor Emelianenko will cement those chances and his place as one of the best fighters ever.

What does it all add up to? Well it adds up to one seriously tough match to call.

That said, Henderson has shown some problems against elite submission specialists before and will have to overcome a pretty big size disadvantage. With that in mind we at Fan Fight are going to call a win for Fedor Emelianenko via armbar in the second round. While this fight could easily go to Henderson, we think that there are just better odds of the Last Emperor pulling this off.

We have so much respect for both of these fighters, and no matter what, we are looking forward to this bout. Ladies and gentlemen, be sure to watch it this Saturday because this is going to be one for the record books.

Faaaaaalcon PUNCH!

Injuries in the UFC: Why They're Getting Hurt

2011 may go down in history as the year with the worst streak of last-minute injuries to fighters in the UFC since the dawn of time. Main events, co-main events, preliminaries, and even last minute fights that got thrown together to replace injured fighters have been cut from cards or had fighters on them replaced due to injuries across the board.

The injuries range from busted up knees, to torn up hand ligaments, to diverticulitis, to a rather large share of shoulder injuries. But why is this happening? Is there something new in the air? Is someone gunning for the UFC's fighters and purposefully injuring them? Have the Fertitta brothers been cursed with the malocchio, the evil eye?

Ack! Frank, turn it right side up darn you!

But, while we at Fan Fight are open to the possibility of an evil Italian curse we also believe there is in fact a secret reason as to why so many injuries are occurring of late. In fact it is a combination of three different things, with all three resulting in what has been one of the unluckiest fighting seasons in recent memory.

How do we know what is causing this while countless others are left speculating and asking "Why is this happening?". Well it might be because we keep all our copies of interesting mma articles in a folder so we can reference them quickly and easily. But we like to think its because we're so awesome.

This is our seal. Isn't it beautiful? No, you can't touch it.

1. Unprecedented Athleticism: Yep, you heard us right, one of the main reasons why so many fighters are being cut from the fight cards of UFC events is due to their nearly unprecedented training to achieve the highest levels of athleticism. But in reality this is one particular aspect that is easily predicted. Why? Because the demands for better, more perfect fighters, and the athleticism that is expected of them has been increasing constantly since day one of the UFC.

It is just a fact that there is more pressure on fighters to be stronger, faster, and fitter than ever before. And that those who don't strive for such physical perfection are often left in the dust, never to gain a name or a reputation for themselves. With of course a few notable exceptions.

Allow me to present the former IFL Heavyweight champ and the Season 10 winner of The Ultimate Fighter

#2 Weight-cuts and gains: This one is pretty much a spin off of the first. With everyone striving to be the best; fighters are cutting more and more weight to enter divisions that they feel they would have an advantage in, or they are adding on the pounds to get into the shallower upper weight divisions.

Here's the thing though, weight cuts and gains are tough on the body. Its like stripping down a car and then building it back up, repeatedly. Eventually all the nuts and bolts will get worn out and the body will be damaged.

Fighters are anxious to gain any advantage they can, with so many pressures its easy to see why hormone and steroid abuse is on the rise. Its also easy to see how fighters are getting injured easier, they're burning out their bodies too quickly.


#3 The Insurance: We at Fan Fight love to save the best for last. And that is what we did this time. This is the big one, the real hidden reason, the silent elephant in the room that is the world of mma. All that other stuff is really just icing on the cake, effective, realistic, but in the end not enough to make a whole meal or argument in and of itself.

Because lets face it, yes the weight-cuts and training are more extreme but they were extreme in 2010 also. There must be some new factor that has been added to the equation. Something that has tipped the scales from some injuries, to lots of injuries.

There is only one real answer. The new UFC health insurance plan.

Bah! Health insurance! What kind of fighter would need that?

Doesn't it seem like an interesting coincidence that all of these fighters are declaring their injuries AFTER the new UFC health care insurance plan was announced by Dana White and the gang? But surely that was just some brief ploy to gain news coverage and make the UFC look good in front of the New York legislature to get mma legalized in New York State, right?

Wrong. Actually the insurance plan covers a fair amount, a surprising amount in fact. And it is given to all 350 fighters under the Zuffa banner which includes both the UFC and Strikeforce promotions. Here are just some of the insurance's highlights as reported by MiddleEasy.com (here)

"Each fighter will have $50,000 USD in annual coverage.

Coverage will be in any type of accident (slipping on ice, automobile accident...etc.) Full coverage.

Separate from if the fighter is injured in an event. Actually, fighters now have two separate policies protecting them.

It doesn't cover if someone gets a cold, flu...etc.

They didn't want there to be any disputes from insurance companies, so they covered every accident.

Very narrow group of insurance companies that wanted to participate.

As long as fighters under contract, they have insurance.

The health plan is for UFC and Strikeforce fighters.

They wanted a full coverage insurance company since day one of acquiring UFC.

Dana White wanted to announce the new insurance policy when Chuck Liddell retired, but the details weren't quite ironed out.

If a fighter is cut after a fight, all damage sustained in the fight will be covered.

Staph infections will probably not be covered.

Name of the insurance company is called 'Houston Casualty'.

No restrictions on what fighters can't do (skiing, bungee jumping...etc).

Ground breaking stuff, never been done in the history of combat sports."

So, what does all that mean? It means that if you break a leg training, you have more options than (a) Tough it out, and (b) go without a paycheck for a LONG time.

All in all, it makes perfect sense that fighters will be taking more downtime. Yeah, many of them will still tough out some injuries, but when it comes to injuries that if they aren't healed correctly may derail their career? Nah-uh, not gonna happen. Now the fighters have the option of playing it safe.

And we the fans are the ones that have to suffer for it. We ask you, is that fair?

Well, yeah. Actually it is. We aren't the ones whose livelihoods depends on being able to get the crap beaten out of us once every six to nine months. Nor are we the ones putting in the time and energy at the gym. All in all, we can't blame the fighters for taking advantage of the insurance. That's why it was built, to help give this sport and its athletes longevity. And you can bet your bottom dollar that because of this plan the shelf-life of all of the fighters with the UFC has been extended considerably.

You can also expect more injuries to keep on getting announced. But, we should also see the amount of injuries we are seeing now begin to trickle back down to manageable levels. Why? One word, overload.

You see that train? That's a UFC fighter. You see those people? Those are accumulated injuries. Get the picture?

You see for the longest time the idea of a health insurance plan specifically designed for combat sports was laughable. Why? Because who was going to risk money on guys not getting hurt in a combat sport? So fighters dealt with, all those little bruises, scratches, sprains, pains, and small muscle tears were ignored. Or largely ignored. They were only dealt with when they couldn't fight anymore.

Overtime those injuries build up. Thus at this time most fighters in the UFC (particularly in the more shallow divisions i.e. light heavyweight) are running with at least a few nagging pains in their limbs and sides. But now with this insurance, they can afford to heal and recover.

We at Fan Fight predict that soon all that healing and downtime will drive the fighters crazy and soon they will be back in the ring, fresh and ready to go. All our favorite fighters will get all healed up, and that nasty overload of injuries will be dealt with.

Or at least that's what we hope. We shudder to think about what would happen if we were wrong.

Hi, my name is Jon Jones. I injured my finger. Sort of. I said was going to get surgery so I pulled out of a championship fight, but then I changed my mind after it was too late to get the fight rescheduled, cause it was only a little boo-boo. Aren't I the greatest?

Suga on Top: Is Rashad a Champ?

It is time for us to look at one of the most dynamic fighters in the UFC, a figure whose polarizing image and well-rounded fighting style has lead to a highlight reel that includes just as many one-liners as it does knockouts.

That fighter is the former two-time All-State wrestler from New York, heavyweight winner of Season 2 of the Ultimate Fighter series, and former Light Heavyweight champion of the UFC. We are of course talking about one of the fighters we at Fan Fight are most fond of; "Suga" Rashad Evans.

Why are we so fond of Rashad? Well other than his bitchin' first name, we think he looks really snazzy in a suit.

Nice tie. Please don't hit me.

That said as anyone who is anyone knows, there is some controversy that surrounds this fighter. His heart has been questioned, his chin has been questioned, his wrestling skills have been questioned, his striking has been questioned, his record has been questioned, and his ability to finish opponents has been questioned along with just about anything else the posters on Sherdog can think of.

In general what people want to know is this, is Rashad Evans a true contender? Is he championship material or is his stardom a fluke? We at Fan Fight will address each of the issues above, giving you our input on it and our conclusions to help make it clear once and for all whether Evans deserves to be in the title picture.


Suga's Heart: This is one you will probably hear a lot. And personally the only criticism of Evans that we hear more about at Fan Fight is his chin, which we will get into later on. But why exactly is Evan's heart questioned?

Has he never gone the distance? Nope. Evans has been the distance several times. Winning a fair number of fights by decision. Has he never faced a challenge? Again no, Evans has gone the distance with several fighters that had him on the ropes more than once before he managed to come back and steal the show.

Does he handle defeat poorly? Well, we've only seen Evans defeated one time in his career, and that was by textbook karate knockout from former Light Heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida. The result? He completely changed his game plan. He completely reworked his fighting style, and focused more on his wrestling base against "Rampage" Jackson and Thiago Silva in his next two fights.

This wasn't the first time he had done so, after going to a close draw with Tito Ortiz in 2007 and then a split-decision against Michael Bisping, Evans also decided it was time for a change. He had gone through too many split-decisions to want to do that again so he secretly changed over to a striking based fighting style, brutally knocking out Chuck Liddell in his next fight in what eventually became Knockout of the Year.

So no, he doesn't handle the mental game poorly. In fact he is enough of a tactician to learn from his defeats, near defeats, and controversial decisions to further improve his game plan.

Conclusion, Evans has plenty of heart. And he's not so prideful as to gloss over the weak points in his skills.



Suga's Chin: This is the one you will probably hear about the most. Why? Well a certain rotated still image of Rashad Evans getting knocked out by Machida has been making almost constant rounds around the Internet. I'll give you a small hint about which one...

I dunno, was this hint too obvious?

First off let me add, that as much as we at Fan Fight like Rashad we gotta admit that picture is pretty comical. But then again, you should never judge a fighter by how they look when they are unconscious.

That floor sure looks comfy, don't it?

But lets go ahead and take a look at this. The entire claim about Evan's having a weak chin is that he got knocked out by Lyoto Machida. Now let's be honest, Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida is kind of really good at worming his way past defenses and knocking people out. Yeah, he's had more than his fair share of decisions, but you have to admit that when he knocks people out, he knocks people out.

Case in point.

Another argument against Evan's ability to take a punch is that he got rocked a few times by Thiago Silva, and Rampage Jackson. But what's funny about both of those fights is that "Suga" Rashad Evans was able to recover, he got rocked but he went about pulling himself back together, and went on to win both fights.

Does Rashad Evans have a legendary chin? No, he isn't some Chris Leben who can take just about anything you throw at him. Does he have a bad chin? No, he can definitely hold his own as proven by his past experiences.

Conclusion, Evans has a decent chin. And its strong enough to let him compete with such heavy-hitters as Thiago Silva and Rampage Jackson.


Suga's Wrestling: Okay. This is one you don't often hear. But out of the few complaints about Rashad Evans that we at Fan Fight do hear, it is one that actually stands up to some mild scrutiny. Now at this point you are probably saying, "But Fan Fight! Rashad is a fantastic wrestler! Look at how he took down Rampage and Thiago with such ease! He was a two-time All State wrestler in the NCAA 1st Division in New York!"

We know all that. We also know that he is one of the few people to beat the legendary Greg Jones while wrestling.

That's not the issue. The issue at hand is whether or not Evan's name should be up there with the elite wrestlers of the UFC. And when I say wrestling elite I mean fighters like Mark Munoz, Phil Davis, Jon Jones, and Brock Lesnar. The criticism is that Evans is a very very good wrestler, but that he gets credited as a great wrestler. Especially by commentators who are trying to hype up a fight (i.e. Rogan and Goldman).

And it is one of the few criticisms we agree with. Evans IS a very good wrestler, but as his impressive but not legendary wrestling record of 48-34 shows he has a ways to go to earn credentials as a truly magnificent wrestling specimen.

Conclusion, Evan's is slightly overrated as a wrestler.


Suga's Striking: Do we really have to deal with this one? Seriously, we find this to be a rather ridiculous criticism. No, Evan's striking isn't as unorthodox or unique as Jon Jones or Lyoto Machida. Very few people can even come close to matching those two in striking. But Evans is a multi-dimensional striker, using both hands and feet; he is technical and works his way past defenses; and he does have knockout power.

In short, the improvement in his striking from starting out as a pure wrestler has been phenomenal. He is one of the most well-rounded strikers in the Light Heavyweight division.

Conclusion, Evan's can throw a punch. And a kick. And an elbow. And he can do it at the right time, and with enough force.


Suga's Record: This criticism says that Evans was spoon-fed the massive win-streak he held early in his career that eventually led to him becoming champion. The critics who spout this one apparently seem to think that Michael Bisping, Chuck Liddell, Stephen Bonnar, and Forrest Griffin are all walks in the park.

Well in case you didn't already realize it, allow us to be the first ones to tell you that those guys that Evan's defeated are some seriously tough dudes. And they make a living by being tougher, meaner, and badder than all the other world class talent that walks into the cage with them.

They also enjoy using those guys that get into the cage with them as target practice.

And since you didn't know that those were some seriously tough dudes, we figure you are completely new to MMA and didn't know that the two fighters pictured above are Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell and "The Huntington Beach Badboy" Tito Ortiz both former dominant champions, both very good fighters in their prime. Rashad Evans beat both of them. And his knockout of Chuck Liddell earned Knockout of the Year.

In fact it was arguably Evans' knockout of Liddell that helped to retire the "Iceman", as it was the first time Liddell had been knocked out in the ring and the beginning of a three fight losing streak that would eventually end the career of the Hall of Famer.

And since losing the title to Lyoto Machida, Evans' has gone on to face and beat two more world-class fighters; Thiago Silva and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.


Suga's Finishes: Okay so this one actually does make some sense. The criticism is that Rashad Evans doesn't like to finish opponents, and instead he grinds them down with take downs and submission attempts to take the decision. Which is exactly what he did against "Rampage" Jackson and against many other fighters earlier in his career.

So there is some truth in it. But let's be honest also, Evans doesn't do lay'n'pray. Yeah he takes guys down a lot, but he works them too. He is always trying something. Yes, he sets himself up to win the decisions, but he is also constantly looking for the finish.

Conclusion, some truth to it. But also some falsehood. We call this one a toss up.



Conclusions: The results to all this? Yeah, you guessed it. "Suga" Rashad Evans IS champion material and will likely be a fixture in the upper-echelons of the Light Heavyweight division for some time. This guy deserves to be in the title-picture despite what the naysayers would have you believe.

Our hats are off to you "Suga" Rashad, and we personally cannot wait to see you in action at UFC 133

Any questions?