Machida v Henderson UFC 157

Machida and Henderson are fighting this weekend at UFC 157, a fight I am presuming will be to determine the No.1 contender to Jones after his fight with Sonnen. According to the new UFC rankings Henderson is No.1 & Machida No.2 in the LHW division. The rankings are based on a voting system by members of the media. I'm guessing Henderson is No.1 based on his achievements in Pride & Strikeforce as his most recent win against Shogan surely couldn't have catapulted him there seeing as Rua is 7th in the top 10. Machida is an interesting case too as he's only won 2 of his last 5, albeit it one of those losses was against Jones. Should he beat Henderson I expect him to get his rematch with Jones, a rematch that would be warrented considering he managed to trouble Jones in their first fight and it wasn't a totally lopsided defeat. Henderson would also be a big scalp to have in his W column as well.

As to the fight itself, it looks as if its going to be a case of power v speed. Machida having the speed and Henderson bringing the power. Obviously Machida possess KO power but his style is based on evasion and counter striking. This fight has me excited - both fighters are capable of beating the other, stylistically it should be entertaining and it opens up many questions, such as will Henderson's cardio play a factor, especially if Machida is elusive? Will 3 rounds favour Henderson or Machida? Will Henderson utilize his wrestling and go for the G&P? Is Machida's BJJ up to the challenge of a Henderson G&P? Will Machida catch Henderson with one of his famous kicks? Will it go the distance? This is a very intriguing fight!

I'm a fan of Machida and would love to see him win but his head and feet movement are going to have to be superb to avoid the iron fists of Henderson, after all Machida has lost to some heavy hitters in the past.

fancy machida for this one, hendo is an old man and not the quickest. expect machida to stay out of range and take it on points.

also its pretty harsh on rousey that she has to face faber for the female title!!

compelling and rich wrote:fancy machida for this one, hendo is an old man and not the quickest. expect machida to stay out of range and take it on points.

also its pretty harsh on rousey that she has to face faber for the female title!!

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Well there were no fireworks but Machida got a well earned victory imo. Henderson was always going to be hard to KO as he has a tough chin and you don't want to stand and trade strikes with him. Machida fought his fight and frustrated Henderson in every round. That is the mark of a great fighter, when you can fight your fight and take your opponent out of their comfort zone. Machida remained elusive and even though he never overcommitted himself or showed aggression, his movement and timing ensured he landed the more significant strikes in every round. I did fear for him in the third once Henderson had him on the ground, but Machida kept a very tight guard and smothered Henderson from working his G&P. The boos he received after the fight were just misguided patriotism if you ask me. Glad Machida won, not sure off the back of a decision victory whether Dana will give him a rematch against Jones but theoretically he should now move up to No.1 contender in the rankings since beating Hendo.

yeah machida easily won for me, dont know how it was a split decision. hendo barely landed anything clean the whole fight, easy two rounds to 1 for me. was also glad he won to shut the crowd up, not sure what these people are going for, they boo as soon as any fight hits the ground and scream fix anytime an amercian loses. they realy are a pretty clueless lot. always take a Brazilian over a yank

also thought the ufc wanted a hendo win so they could line up the jones fight, he's fast running out of realistic competitors he's not already beaten

yeah agree, Henderson is perhaps the only big name in the LHW division he's not already fought. I think Machida may do better than he did in his first fight but ultimately I can't see him beating Jones.

Take it no one wants to talk about the Rousey fight

I actually quite enjoyed it, I thought she was in trouble when Carmouche took her back and had her locked in a face crank. I don't think I would fair too well against either of them two and I've got a good 4 stone on them

I know it was historic but I'm just not into female MMA, saying that I did watch the fight and agree Rousey was in trouble. It would have been a huge upset and she did well to recover. I wish the other Judoka in the UFC would learn from her because she has proven just how underrated Judo is in MMA. That being said, I'd like to see her against a BJJ blackbelt (has she faced any yet?) and how they would defend or counter the armbar.

Thought it was a good fight but totally understand those that wern't so happy. I was always thinking would Hendo land a big punch or Machida a hard kick that would've turned things around. Fair play to Machida he fought a tactful fight & did what he needed to get the win.

Koschek vs Lawler was good while it lasted, I think the ref was right to stop it when he did, Kos was stunned for a second & was never going to be able to defend that let alone sub or ko Lawler, I don't know what Rogan was on about, poor call from him.

Uriah Faber looked pretty good in his fight, he meant business, good ground & pound and then the sub. A much needed win what with the current cutting of fighters.

Johnson vs Schaub (?) was ok but Schaub again showed all that is wrong with wrestlers in mma, lay & pray, glad the ref kept standing them but johnson just didn't have to takedown defence to avoid it, outside of his brute strength not much cop on the ground full stop.

Not seen the Rousey fight yet, heard it was tough for her, may watch it later, no problems with female mma.

Anyone see Grice vs Bermudez in the prelims

Absolute War!

I'll give it a go later if its still up

sohotnot wrote:Thought it was a good fight but totally understand those that wern't so happy. I was always thinking would Hendo land a big punch or Machida a hard kick that would've turned things around. Fair play to Machida he fought a tactful fight & did what he needed to get the win.

Koschek vs Lawler was good while it lasted, I think the ref was right to stop it when he did, Kos was stunned for a second & was never going to be able to defend that let alone sub or ko Lawler, I don't know what Rogan was on about, poor call from him.

Uriah Faber looked pretty good in his fight, he meant business, good ground & pound and then the sub. A much needed win what with the current cutting of fighters.

Johnson vs Schaub (?) was ok but Schaub again showed all that is wrong with wrestlers in mma, lay & pray, glad the ref kept standing them but johnson just didn't have to takedown defence to avoid it, outside of his brute strength not much cop on the ground full stop.

Not seen the Rousey fight yet, heard it was tough for her, may watch it later, no problems with female mma.

I actually agreed with Rogan, thought it was a premature call by Herb, the fact that Koscheck was immediately up protesting the decision proved he still had his senses...should have given it another 3 seconds for one or two more punches to have connected!

A great win for Faber, it's hard not to like the California Kid but I don't think he's an elite fighter anymore; a top fighter for sure but don't think he'll ever hold the belt again.

Interesting that in the UFC 157 musings article on ufc.com the author wants Machida to move down to Middleweight as he won't beat Jones. Er, and he's going to have a better chance against Silva?! Machida may like the idea of moving down if or when Silva loses the title. It annoys me when fans moan about counterstrikers being timid or cowardly - Machida wasn't afraid, he just knew what he was doing and came with the right gameplan to expose Henderson's weaknesses. I've noticed older fighters like Hendo and Rampage with big KO power seem less able to adapt their gameplan and are too single minded. Machida is a very skilled fighter...besides Silva often likes to counter strike and he's considered the GOAT.

Ronda is the perfect poster girl for the UFC, an olympic Judoka, a skilled martial artist and good looking too! Beautiful and dangerous the perfect combination for the trail blazer of women's MMA in the UFC.

talkingpoint wrote:

sohotnot wrote:Thought it was a good fight but totally understand those that wern't so happy. I was always thinking would Hendo land a big punch or Machida a hard kick that would've turned things around. Fair play to Machida he fought a tactful fight & did what he needed to get the win.

Koschek vs Lawler was good while it lasted, I think the ref was right to stop it when he did, Kos was stunned for a second & was never going to be able to defend that let alone sub or ko Lawler, I don't know what Rogan was on about, poor call from him.

Uriah Faber looked pretty good in his fight, he meant business, good ground & pound and then the sub. A much needed win what with the current cutting of fighters.

Johnson vs Schaub (?) was ok but Schaub again showed all that is wrong with wrestlers in mma, lay & pray, glad the ref kept standing them but johnson just didn't have to takedown defence to avoid it, outside of his brute strength not much cop on the ground full stop.

Not seen the Rousey fight yet, heard it was tough for her, may watch it later, no problems with female mma.

I actually agreed with Rogan, thought it was a premature call by Herb, the fact that Koscheck was immediately up protesting the decision proved he still had his senses...should have given it another 3 seconds for one or two more punches to have connected!

A great win for Faber, it's hard not to like the California Kid but I don't think he's an elite fighter anymore; a top fighter for sure but don't think he'll ever hold the belt again.

Interesting that in the UFC 157 musings article on ufc.com the author wants Machida to move down to Middleweight as he won't beat Jones. Er, and he's going to have a better chance against Silva?! Machida may like the idea of moving down if or when Silva loses the title. It annoys me when fans moan about counterstrikers being timid or cowardly - Machida wasn't afraid, he just knew what he was doing and came with the right gameplan to expose Henderson's weaknesses. I've noticed older fighters like Hendo and Rampage with big KO power seem less able to adapt their gameplan and are too single minded. Machida is a very skilled fighter...besides Silva often likes to counter strike and he's considered the GOAT.

Ronda is the perfect poster girl for the UFC, an olympic Judoka, a skilled martial artist and good looking too! Beautiful and dangerous the perfect combination for the trail blazer of women's MMA in the UFC.

Yes Fabers defo a likeable guy, on TUF he came across well, pretty down to earth guy where as I felt Cruz is a bit creepy. Hard to judge where Faber goes from here, maybe a fight against Macdonald or maybe If Cruz fights again the rubber match can happen.

I had read before the fight and it was mentioned during the fight that Machida wants to fight at 185 but also he may not want to fight Silva as they are friends. I don't think he'll turn the Jones fight down though.

Fans that diss counterstrikers are not real fans of the sport, they're just dumb, takedown ground & pound fanboys. I have to say thats one of my real bugbears in mma, the wrestlers that just look to takedown their opponent and ground & pound or failing that lay & pray. There's always something for these types to moan about. I think the fact Hendo is American & a fan favorite played a part in the booing over Machida's style & his win.

can you imagine if Machida was to fight Silva what would Seagal do then?! Whose corner would he take? LOL

interesting i've just checked the rankings and Machida hasn't moved - he stays at No.2 behind Henderson even though he beat him on Saturday yet Henderson has been knocked off the top 10 P4P list!? Got a feeling Dana isn't just going to throw another title fight Machida's way despite beating Bader supposedly for a title shot then having to face a returning Henderson as Sonnen was given the shot (for what reason idk).

A part of me thinks Sonnen knows he's not championship material and is overachieving deliberately to milk his career for all its worth. Jones is a big LHW, one of the most gifted athletes in MMA and a superb wrestler to boot. It's going to be interesting seeing Jones stuff Sonnen's takedown attempts and see what he does then when he's forced to keep the fight standing. I really can't see this fight being competitive unless Sonnen puts pressure on Jones early before he can find his rhythm and range.

[quote="talkingpoint"]interesting i've just checked the rankings and Machida hasn't moved - he stays at No.2 behind Henderson even though he beat him on Saturday yet Henderson has been knocked off the top 10 P4P list!? Got a feeling Dana isn't just going to throw another title fight Machida's way despite beating Bader supposedly for a title shot then having to face a returning Henderson as Sonnen was given the shot (for what reason idk).

The ranking systems in both boxing & mma seem to be pretty confusing with know real consistency or method. If you sell tickets or are promoted by the right promoter or signed to the right broadcaster you tend to move up the ranks pretty quickly providing you keep winning if not its a long way to the top!

Only just got round to watching this.

Feel sorry for Henderson not getting his shot, but I thought Machida was very good. I just love watching him fight and cannot wait for a rematch with Jones. Out of all the contenders I still think he poses the biggest threat to Jones.

I was impressed with the main event. I had no real expectation of it but it was a good advertisement for womens MMA.

Group Cpt Lionel Mandrake wrote:Anyone see Grice vs Bermudez in the prelims

Absolute War!

Yeah that was a great fight.

Bermudez can certainly take a punch, (saw that in season 14).

I actually wanted Rousey to lose
Not really a big fan of hers, find her a bit arrogant.