Mauricio “Shogun” Rua vs. Dan Henderson Rua II Fight Breakdown
Dan Henderson and Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua are just one day out from facing each other once again, but this time Rua has the home advantage. Fight Night Natal will hit our screens tomorrow night, and the MMA world eagerly awaits the second part of what was fight of the year 2011.
UFC 139 was the setting for the epic slugfest that had fans worldwide clamouring for more, and it would be great to see another war like that. Although it wouldn’t really do either guy any good health-wise. Anyway, let’s take a look at how they stack up:
Striking
Both guys have very good stand up, but for very different reasons. Shogun’s famous Muay Thai is deadly from the clinch; nasty knees and hard hooks are always on display, but Henderson is known for his one punch knockout power.
I think the difference here is predictability, but I also acknowledge that Shogun’s stand-up is progressing. His boxing is looking smoother, and the fact that Dan just wants to land that right hand will probably work against him here, just as it has in his past three fights. It’s not the size of the bomb, it’s how you get it to the target. I’m calling it 60-40 Shogun.
Wrestling/submissions
Henderson came in to the sport of MMA as a wrestler, but over the years has become a knock ‘em out, stand up fighter. It should be remembered that his wrestling is still very much in play, but Rua was actually the more dominant wrestler when they fought the first time.
Shogun scored five of ten takedown attempts, to Henderson’s mere one from four. Rua also holds a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu but has only ever scored one submission win.I’m actually going to give Rua the advantage in wrestling and submissions, by 60-40.
I actually think that this fight will be a lot different, and quicker than the first. Henderson has looked sluggish of late, and Rua could capitalize quite easily if he is in shape. The 43 year old Hendo does have the added advantage of being able to use TRT for this fight though, so don’t be surprised if he comes out looking like Dwayne Johnson and just eats Rua alive.
