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Amid all the excitement left from UFC’s debut on Fox, fight fans may have forgotten about this upcoming weekend’s UFC 139 card, which is set to come to us from the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California. This card has the potential to be a really interesting one, as stars of the sport are present up and down the show.
Of course, you must start with the main event, as legends of MMA Dan Henderson and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua are set to face off. Henderson is coming off an exciting knockout of Fedor Emelianenko in Strikeforce, and is looking to show fans that he can still get the job done in the UFC. With a victory in this event he stakes his claim to being a contender in either the middleweight or light heavyweight division, as Henderson has already gone on record saying that he wants a rematch against current 185-pound champion Anderson Silva.
Rua is also coming off a big victory, as he was able to get revenge against Forrest Griffin by knocking him out at UFC Rio. Before that bout, some had wondered if Rua would be able to mentally recover from the vicious beating he suffered when he lost his title to Jon Jones earlier in the year. He answered that question in less than five minutes in his native country.
Looking at this fight, it is very hard to see who holds a clear advantage over his opponent. Henderson’s right hand has laid many people to rest in the cage, and his wrestling is some of the best in the sport. Rua, on the other hand, is well-known as a very aggressive fighter who attacks in ways that overwhelms his opponents. The true question in this fight is whether that aggression will leave him open for a thudding blow by Henderson, or if it will be able to overwhelm the former Pride two-division champion.
Not to be left out of the spotlight, bantamweight contenders Urijah Faber and Brian Bowles will square off to determine the next man to face Dominick Cruz. Both fighters are have lost to the current champion but have stayed within reach of rematches based on the quality of their performances.
Faber is a dynamo who pushes the pace non-stop, and attacks his opponents from many different angles. Along with that, he has shown the ability to use his wrestling to take a fight to the ground to control his way to a submission or decision victory.
Bowles is a striker who knows only one direction and that is straight forward. It was that skill set that led to him holding the bantamweight title from 2009 until the loss to Cruz. The problem, though, is that Bowles has suffered chronic hand injuries that keep reappearing each time he fights. At UFC 132 he broke his hand once again while fighting against Takeya Mizugaki. With such an injury you have to wonder if Bowles will be able to suffer through and take a victory from the overactive Faber.
If that wasn’t enough, we will also get a matchup between Wanderlei Silva and Cung Le. Mainstream fight fans will be familiar with the future Hall of Famer Silva, whose aggressive fight style has become the stuff of legend. However, these fans may not know about Le, who is a former Strikeforce champion. Le hasn’t competed since 2010, but jumped at the opportunity to compete in the Octagon. His striking, derived from Sanshou, is sure to impress the crowd, and put Silva in dangerous spots. But will Le be able to deal with the straight forward pressure that Silva will bring at him in his first appearance for the UFC?
Along with these fights we will also get important matchups in Rick Story versus Martin Kampmann, and Gleison Tibau versus Rafael dos Anjos. Ryan Bader and Stephan Bonnar are also slated for action during the event. UFC 139 may have fallen under the radar in recent weeks, but the card is sure to provide some exciting fights.
