Dan Henderson Outlasts Shogun Rua at UFC 139

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Henderson and Rua both gave it all they had for all five rounds, and the story of the fight was that Henderson built up a big enough lead on the judges' scorecards early that he was able to hold on and win the fight despite being dominated in the fourth and fifth rounds. All three judges scored it 48-47 for Henderson.

as its light heavyweight champion and is now a winner inside the Octagon again.

"That guy can take an F-ing punch," Henderson said afterward.

Henderson got off to a great start, first sinking a standing front choke in, and then letting go of the choke and teeing off with punches. By the time Shogun finally got away, his left eye was badly bloodied. Henderson seemed to be in control of the fight for the first three and a half minutes, but Shogun landed a big overhand right that hurt Henderson, then several hammer fists on the ground before Henderson could get back to his feet safely.

In the second round the pace slowed as both men tired out, but Shogun was the more tired, while Henderson was more fresh. Henderson connected with some hard punches as Shogun gasped for air, and Henderson was up two rounds to none.

In the third Henderson landed a huge punch that knocked Rua down, and then Henderson pounced and started pounding Rua on the ground so hard that it appeared that referee Josh Rosenthal would step in and stop the fight. But Rosenthal let it go, and Rua amazingly managed to not just survive but actually put Henderson in some trouble by attempting a heel hook. Henderson eventually pulled his leg free, but Rua got back up and kept fighting and did a nice job of pressing Henderson against the cage and connecting with hard shots late in the round, although Henderson had done enough early in the round that he clearly won the third.

At the start of the fourth Rua went for a takedown and got the fight to the ground, but it was Henderson who got into a dominant position, first controlling Rua in a crucifix and then mounting Rua. And then they scrambled up to their feet, and we saw one of the craziest rounds in UFC history: Both men were so exhausted and so hurt that they could barely fight, but they kept going with everything they could muster, and Rua got the better of the exchanges, battering Henderson with hard punches and getting on top of him on the ground, winning the round.

In the fifth it was more of the same, with both men just trying to survive after 20-plus minutes of brutal action. Rua got on top of Henderson on the ground and battered away, but Henderson managed to survive the round despite being mounted multiple times. Both men were bloody messes by the time this classic fight ended.

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• UFC 139 Photos

  Danny Castillo stays on top of Shamar Bailey at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.

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• UFC 139 Photos

  Danny Castillo ground and pounds Shamar Bailey at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.

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• UFC 139 Photos Danny Castillo finishes Shamar Bailey via first-round TKO at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
• UFC 139 Photos Danny Castillo def. Shamar Bailey via first-round TKO at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
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• UFC 139 Photos Seth Baczynski taps out Matt Brown with a guillotine at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
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• UFC 139 Photos

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• UFC 139 Photos Michael McDonald punches Alex Soto at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
• UFC 139 Photos Michael McDonald punches Alex Soto at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
• UFC 139 Photos Michael McDonald tries to finish Alex Soto at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
• UFC 139 Photos Michael McDonald goes after Alex Soto at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
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• UFC 139 Photos Ryan Bader celebrates after knocking out Jason Brilz at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
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• UFC 139 Photos Stephan Bonnar controls Kyle Kingsbury at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
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• UFC 139 Photos

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• UFC 139 Photos

  Dan Henderson def. Mauricio "Shogun" Rua via unanimous decision at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.

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• UFC 139 Photos Maurico "Shogun" Rua ground and pounds Dan Henderson at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
• UFC 139 Photos Maurico "Shogun" Rua mounts Dan Henderson at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
• UFC 139 Photos Maurico "Shogun" Rua ground and pounds Dan Henderson at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
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• UFC 139 Photos

  Dan Henderson punches Mauricio "Shogun" Rua at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.

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• UFC 139 Photos

  Dan Henderson punches Mauricio "Shogun" Rua at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.

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• UFC 139 Photos

  Dan Henderson controls Mauricio "Shogun" Rua at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.

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• UFC 139 Photos

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• UFC 139 Photos Dan Henderson ground and pounds Mauricio "Shogun" Rua at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
• UFC 139 Photos Dan Henderson ground and pounds Mauricio "Shogun" Rua at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
• UFC 139 Photos Mauricio "Shogun" Rua kicks Dan Henderson at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
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• UFC 139 Photos Mauricio "Shogun" Rua punches Dan Henderson at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
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• UFC 139 Photos Wanderlei Silva charges after Cung Le at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
• UFC 139 Photos Cung Le kicks Wanderlei Silva at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
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• UFC 139 Photos Wanderlei Silva blocks one of Cung Le's strikes at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
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• UFC 139 Photos Wanderlei Silva kicks Cung Le at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
• UFC 139 Photos Wanderlei Silva and Cung Le clash at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
• UFC 139 Photos Cung Le throws a kick at Wanderlei Silva at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
• UFC 139 Photos Cung Le tries a spinning backfist on Wanderlei Silva at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
• UFC 139 Photos Cung Le throws a kick at Wanderlei Silva at UFC 139 on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Esther Lin, MMA Fighting