Henderson vs Edgar: Bendo Has the Tools to Have Long Title Reign

Not only does Benson Henderson have what it takes to best Frankie Edgar once again, the talent is there for him to dominate the lightweight division like no one since B.J. Penn held the belt for nearly three years in 2008-2010.

Make no mistake, lightweight is one of the deepest divisions in all of the UFC, but Bendo is no ordinary fighter. Much like Liam Neeson in Taken, Bendo has a very unique set of skills that makes him a matchup nightmare for just about everyone. 

Here's what gives Bendo the advantage in his rematch with Frankie Edgar and beyond.

Size Advantage

First things first, Bendo is a massive lightweight. When he and Edgar fought for the first time, it literally looked like a welterweight was fighting a featherweight. Some might argue that those are the weight classes each fighter actually belongs in. 

That being said, Henderson has had no issues cutting the weight in his career and seems rather comfortable at 155. One advantage that he has is his build. Looking at Bendo, his upper body looks like a lightweight but his legs are built like an NFL running back's. That gives him a nice base that helps him with his takedowns and his takedown defense.

Edgar has toppled bigger fighters before—he's one of few fighters in the UFC that walks around at his actual fight weight, but Henderson is even bigger than most lightweights and sometimes heart can't even compete with that.

Creative Striking

When it comes to striking, the more unpredictable the better and outside of Jon Jones, Bendo is among the best at finding odd angles to punish his opponents from. 

Henderson often uses an interesting array of kicks, punches and elbows to soften up his opponent for the takedown. Once he's got someone on the mat, he generally doesn't give up the advantage. If he happens to be going against someone equally as impressive as himself on the mat, he's able to beat them in a stand-up bout.

Bendo comes from a wrestling background but it is his striking that sets up his dominance on the ground.

Submission Defense

An underrated skill in MMA is the ability to defend submissions. The advantages of surviving a deep submission attempt are obvious—your opponent is likely to gas from trying to finish the submission and the fight goes on.

Bendo has some of the best submission defense in MMA and his ability to get out of deep chokes and submission attempts has bailed him out of a few fights over the years. The fact that Bendo is nearly immune to submissions is not only demoralizing to opponents, but allows him more freedom on the ground as he can escape if his opponent latches on to one.

Cardio

This may be Bendo's greatest advantage in his rematch with Edgar. He is one of the lightweights that can keep up with Edgar's cardio.

Unlike former champion B.J. Penn, the thought that Bendo could gas out is a non-factor. Bendo has been to decision in his last four victories and his offensive output didn't see a major decline as those fights wore on.

With Bendo's combination of strength, size and cardio, he's able to slowly wear down his opponents and come away with the advantage as the fight goes on.

Bendo's skill set is among the best in all of MMA. His combination of size, striking, ground game and cardio make him a tough matchup and the favorite against any fighter in the lightweight division. Bendo is a very dangerous fighter and he will prove that his victory over Frankie Edgar wasn't a fluke on his way to dominating the division for quite some time.