Henderson vs Shogun: A mostly enjoyable fight has quickly been elevated, courtesy of Rogan/Goldberg and some lazy journalists here, into "one of the greatest MMA fights in history." Let's do a favor to our sport and quash that.

The fight in summary: Henderson landed two and a half rounds of effective punches, gassed, then survived two rounds of Rua's tired punches. A whole lot of heart was displayed by both fighters, but little else. No varied skill-sets and tactics, no dramatic back-and-forth momentum changes (just a single one), and just a single submission attempt of note. The last two and a half rounds, with both fighters thoroughly gassed, could even be considered dull. Henderson simply laid around for two rounds, knowing he had won the previous three.

This was not unexpected. Rua's cardio, aside from Rua-Machida I (UFC 104) has been horrendous. He gassed in 7 minutes vs Griffin at UFC 76, and the Coleman fight was one of the worst in UFC history--Coleman looked like a Florida retiree getting mugged by a criminal (Shogun) who had been shot with a tranquilizer gun.

Contrast Hendo/Rua with Rua/Machida I: 5 rounds of intense action, tactics, varied skills, and momentum shifts (regardless of the dubious decision). If you're a fan of MMA, you should appreciate Rua/Machida I over Hendo/Rua. If your favorite fighter is Kimbo Slice, then you should join Goldberg and rank Hendo/Shogun as one of the greatest MMA fights of all time.

Let's appreciate Hendo/Rua for what it was--two fighters giving everything they had for us. But it doesn't even rank as one of my top 10 fights of the year.