Anderson Silva vs. Dan Henderson (Pictures)
Dan Henderson entered the cage first to the sounds of Red Rider's "Lunatic Fringe." The champion followed to DMX's "No Sunshine."
Round 1
Silva shook hands with Henderson during Herb Dean's instructions but refused to touch gloves once the bell rung. The fighters felt each other out for the first minute, until Dan broke the stalemate with a right hand. Silva answered with a low kick to Henderson's left leg. Henderson clinched with Henderson and took the top position on the ground in half-guard. The challenger punched the head with his right hand while Silva held him tight. Henderson covered Silva's mouth and nose with his glove and wound up on a big elbow that grazed. Henderson moved to side-control briefly until Silva got back to full guard.
Josh Gross scored the round 10-9 Henderson
TJ De Santis scored the round 10-9 Henderson
Mike Fridley scored the round 10-9 Henderson
Round 2
Dan used his footwork to stay away from the champion, but Silva landed a kick to the legs and found himself o top after Henderson slipped. Henderson got back to his feet, where he clinched with Silva against the fence. Henderson landed a right hand but was overwhelmed by Anderson's speed as he was hit with a punch and a knee. Henderson dropped to his knees in search of a takedown, which Silva stuffed and took the top in half-guard. With a minute left in the round, Henderson gave up his back, where Silva punched away with a body-triangle. Silva sunk in a rear-naked choke which forced Henderson to tap. Silva retains the middleweight crown at 4:52 of the second.  |