UFC 139: Dan Henderson vs. Shogun Rua, Early Head-to-Toe Breakdown

UFC 139 will mark the return of former Pride champion and current Strikeforce champion Dan Henderson to the UFC.

Welcoming him back to the Octagon will be former UFC champion Shogun Rua, who is coming off a dominant knockout win over Forrest Griffin at UFC 134.

This highly anticipated bout between former Pride stars will mark the first time these two legends will have faced each other and, more importantly, the matchup will be a battle for the top contender spot in the light-heavyweight division.

Here's how these two fighters stack up against each other in this head-to-toe breakdown.  

Striking

Shogun is known for his world-class striking, possessing crisp punches and powerful kicks.

Known for his lethal kicks, Shogun also has some of the most hard-hitting hands in the division, with his last three wins all being knockout punches against top former champions Forrest Griffin, Lyoto Machida and Chuck Liddell.

Henderson also has a solid striking game epitomized in his famed right hand.  His most recent technical knockout of Fedor Emelianenko was his third straight finish via strikes.

Shogun, however, is the much more versatile and skillful striker who should be able to control the fight on the feet.

Advantage: Shogun

Wrestling

A former Olympic wrestler, Henderson is one of the best in a division filled with high-level wrestlers.

Henderson is a decorated Greco-Roman wrestler and has effectively utilized his Olympic-level skill to dominate opponents on the mats.

Shogun has no wrestling to speak of and has a propensity to be taken down by high-level wrestlers, as seen in his title loss to Jon Jones at UFC 128.

It's clear who has the advantage here.

Advantage: Henderson

Submissions

Looking over both fighters' resumes, neither has had a significant amount of submission wins. 

In fact, both fighters have only three submission wins combined. 

Shogun is, however, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt and has shown a great amount of skill from off his back.  His submission win over Kevin Randleman was one of the most vicious kneebars in MMA history.

Henderson has only been finished via submission but has shown an improved defense on the ground, not allowing Jake Shields to finish him, despite taking the loss.

Because of his grappling background, the edge has to go to Shogun.

Advantage: Shogun

Strength

Henderson, who has competed at middleweight, light-heavyweight and heavyweight, knows how to maximize his strength in the cage.

Deriving his power from his wrestling base, Henderson has the ability to push around his opponents regardless of their size.

Shogun is no slouch, either, possessing a powerful clinch, but Henderson is just the bigger, stronger man in this fight.

Advantage: Henderson

Cardio

In the past, cardio has been a major factor for Shogun, as seen in his first match against Forrest Griffin in 2007, where he gassed hard before getting submitted.  

Since bouncing back from multiple knee injuries, he has improved this area of his game, but his conditioning is usually reliant on how motivated he is for the fight.

Henderson has never really had a problem with cardio and might have a huge advantage in this aspect. If Henderson keeps the pressure on Shogun like Jon Jones did, he will pick away at Shogun's stamina.

Advantage: Henderson 

Experience

At 41 years of age, Henderson has been in the fight game for a long time. 

Not only does he have Olympic experience, but he's also faced some of the best in the game in almost every promotion.  He's also faced nearly everyone, from the Nogueira brothers and Wanderlei Silva to Rich Franklin and Fedor Emelianenko.

Shogun also has a wealth of experience, having started his professional career in 2002.  Shogun has also faced nearly every top 205er in the game and owns wins over Rampage Jackson, Lyoto Machida and Alistair Overeem.

Although Henderson might have a few more years of experience, both guys have consistently faced the best of the best and had immense success.

Advantage: Even

Variables

Shogun

 Two factors will play a part in Shogun's success at UFC 139: health and motivation. Shogun has a history with an injured knee that has only recently become less of hindrance on his career.

Also, if he stays motivated and comes out lean and mean like he did against Forrest Griffin at UFC 134, this might be the most dangerous Shogun we've seen, especially since it's for another shot at Jon Jones.

As long as he stays healthy and motivated, Shogun should have no problem standing and banging with Henderson.

Henderson

Henderson has looked really good in his last three fights, albeit against competition that has name recognition but not the same level of competition as in the UFC.  It will be interesting to see how he can handle a striker so decorated and lethal as Shogun.

Another factor is his age, but to a lesser extent. Henderson, like Randy Couture, seems to be one of those guys that is getting better with age.  As long as he can go out there and implement his game plan, he should do fine.

Prediction

When pitting such experienced and skilled opponents against each other, it is hard to choose a victor.

Henderson is a multiple-time champion and has a great wrestling background mixed with powerful hands. He can take the fight to the mat and grind away at Shogun and has a real shot of TKOing him.

On the other hand, Shogun is the younger and possibly hungrier fighter. His striking is at such an advanced level that he can just pick Henderson apart from a distance.  

Neither fighter has been knocked out—although they've dealt out plenty of KOs—making it even harder to predict the outcome.

Because of Shogun's striking, age and apparent hunger for taking the belt again, I am inclined to go with Shogun.

Prediction: Shogun via unanimous decision