Not Bad for an Old Man

Four years ago (plus two days) Randy "The Natural" Couture said this legendary phrase about himself, after decisioning Tim Sylvia at UFC 68. Today, we can safely say the same thing about Dan Henderson's inspiring performance last night against Rafael Cavalcante.

Not bad for an old man.

Actually, it was more than just "not bad". Henderson went toe to toe and knocked out one of the rising stars of the sport. Feijao is a talented fighter, who trains together with some of the best MMA fighters in the World. The Brazilian be safely labelled as the "new breed" of MMA fighters.

Last month we saw the opposite example in Fedor Emelianenko's performance against another "new breed" representative, Antonio Silva. Just like Silva, Cavalcante made his pro debut when Dan Henderson was already one of the Top 10 P4P Fighters in the World. And just like Silva, Cavalcante was looking to become a legend by beating the legend.

Fedor and Henderson fought not only to defeat their opponents, but to prove that they managed to beat the time and stay on top. And that's exactly what Henderson did last night. His victory proved he's still relevant at the age of 40 and managed to successfully adjust himself to the neverending evolution of MMA.

And again back to Randy Couture.

Victory over Tim Sylvia solidified Couture's status as a legend. Dan Henderson did the same thing last night against Cavalcante. Everyone knew Hendo is one of the all-time greats. We just needed that one little reminder. A heroic performance, that just like in Randy Couture's case, truly defines what makes a legend.

Henderson will now look to add another chapter to his book by facing the winner of April 9th Mousasi-Kyle match-up. Dan Henderson never defended any of his titles, and will surely try to to break "the curse" this time. In sport like MMA there's always plenty to fight for, and there's always something to prove. Especially when you're 40 years old.