Henderson vs. Edgar 2 Results: The Answer Gets Screwed, Smooth Retains Title

Frankie Edgar fought well and deserved to win back the UFC lightweight title at UFC 150. Benson Henderson, with some controversy involved, retained his title after a split decision, winning 48-47 on two cards and losing 49-46 on the third.

Yes, it was a great and close fight, an exciting back-and-forth main event that didn’t disappoint.

But then there is that pesky little detail about how Frankie “The Answer” Edgar controlled the fight for most of the bout. Henderson himself didn’t know whether or not he was the winner until the announcement was made.

"Of course, you always have concern when it goes to the judges," Henderson said, according to Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports.

After another five rounds, it is even harder to tell who the better fighter between the two is.

For a fight that Henderson was outmatched in for most of, he should have been concerned.

According to FightMetric’s fight stats, Edgar landed 66 significant strikes to Henderson's 62 and 70 total strikes Henderson's 65. He also took down Henderson two times to his single takedown, had the edge in grappling and attempted two submissions to the lone attempt by Henderson.

The analysis tool scored the fight with a 48-48 draw. However, it narrowly gave the win to Frankie Edgar.

Oddly, the figures displayed by the UFC calculations indicated Henderson was the aggressor and landed more punches. This is the information the judges were working with to make their decision.

If their information was incorrect, was their split decision also incorrect?

MMATorch Editor-in-Chief Jamie Penick claims that this decision is one of the worst title fight decisions in UFC history. He also said, “No one had this fight for Henderson.”

How does Henderson still have the title if the metrics of the fight appear to favor Edgar and the look of the fight clearly favored him three rounds to two?

It doesn’t make sense.

And it isn’t going to get any better for Edgar any time soon.

Heading into UFC 150 Dana White promised Nate Diaz would be the next up for a lightweight championship fight, regardless of who came out on top. No more rematches was the message White was sending, according to Damon Martin of MMAWeekly.com.

That’s unfortunate for Edgar’s hopes of retaining the lightweight title any time soon. It’s especially discouraging for him after coming so close in both of his last bouts with Henderson.

The Answer got screwed and will not get another shot anytime soon. Next time, if there is a next time, he needs to take that power away from the judges and knock out Henderson, leaving all doubt out the window.

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