In a way, this is a battle of the dinosaurs. Shogun and Henderson both have long, storied histories in the sport, with many victories in various promotions, and both have held various championships over time.
Their first fight was one for the ages, just a great knock-down drag out brawl. There are several reasons why this upcoming fight may or may not live up to its predecessor.
Henderson's well publicized use of TRT comes to mind, as I believe he will have to fight this time without the medication. At 43 years old, with all the wear and tear and hard miles Dan has run over the years, I can't imagine it won't have an impact if he has to come off of testosterone replacement.
Henderson is also coming off three losses for the first time in his career, so I'm wondering if he's finally reached the end of his performance envelope.
Shogun has been up and down over the past few years, with his peak the win over Machida for the title, and several tough losses in there, but probably his low was the inglorious loss to Chael Sonnen. I know there have been multiple injuries, and he's talked about lapses in motivation.
Thinking this fight depends heavily on which version of these two venerable warriors shows up, and how they decide to attack one another. It is a main event, so I'm assuming this will be a five round fight, giving these champions the opportunity to go deep once again. I guess we'll see who can last, who can connect, and who wants it more...
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