UFC 103 takes place Sept. 19 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, and the Franklin (25-4) vs. Henderson (25-7) bout was announced as the event’s headliner in June.
But the booking was born more out of necessity than marketability. Many of the sport’s top pay-per-view draws were already secured for other slots on the UFC’s busy late-summer/fall pay-per-view schedule, so Franklin vs. Henderson was one of only a few viable options.
The bout would actually be a rematch of the duo’s original meeting in January at UFC 93, when Henderson won a controversial split decision with baffling judges’ scores of 29-28, 27-30 and 29-28. Franklin was slowed by a seemingly accidental head butt in the first round and a deep eye poke in the third that delayed a late-fight rally.
But last week, the UFC announced a new signee – former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort (18-8) – who would return to the organization and replace Henderson at UFC 103.
Belfort, who set a (since-broken) record by winning his first UFC fight at the age of 19, briefly held the UFC’s 205-pound title in 2004 before leaving the promotion to fight for overseas organizations such as PRIDE and Cage Rage.
“When we announced that Rich Franklin was fighting Dan Henderson, there was some backlash, and people didn’t like it,” White stated. “We changed it.”
The announcement was met warmly by most in the industry, especially fans. But at least one person preferred the original meeting.
“Rich really wanted the Henderson rematch because he really thought he won the first one,” said J.T. Stewart, Franklin’s manager. “He really wanted to avenge that loss and looked forward to it.”
But, Franklin knows he’s getting a similarly high-profile fight against a surging fighter who’s posted five wins in his past six fights. The fight takes place at a catch-weight of 195 pounds (Belfort recently dropped to 185 pounds), but it could greatly help Franklin’s standing in the 205-pound division and his aspirations of fighting for a title at least one more time before retiring.
“At this stage of his career, Rich is just looking for big fights for the fans,” Stewart said. “Belfort is definitely a big fight. It’s a step forward.”
Dann Stupp is editor-in-chief of MMAjunkie.com, a content partner site of Yahoo! Sports. For the latest mixed-martial-arts news, go to www.mmajunkie.com.
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