The UFC returns to action for their first fight card of 2009 as UFC 93: Franklin vs Henderson takes place this Saturday in Dublin, Ireland. The Pay-Per-View portion of the fight card has an excellent lineup of fights and should be a great event to watch.

Rich Franklin vs. Dan Henderson – While not technically a title fight, this main event matchup features two former title holders and should be an excellent battle. The fight will take place at light heavyweight, as Rich Franklin recently moved up from middleweight and Dan Henderson prefers fighting at 205 lbs. However, the winner of the fight will move on and be the coach of Season 9 of The Ultimate Fighter which means a matchup with Michael Bisping awaits. That fight will most likely take place at 185 lbs. as Bisping just recently dropped done from the light heavyweight division. Confused yet? Well, none of that matters for this fight so let’s break it down a bit.

After it became apparent that Anderson Silva is Rich Franklin’s kryptonite, Franklin decided to move back to light heavyweight where he began his career. Franklin looked good in his return to 205 lbs., as he easily defeated Matt Hamill at UFC 88 last August. Franklin has always had solid striking and appears to have added an excellent kicking game to his repertoire. What still remains to be sene is how strong Franklin’s ground game will be against a solid wrestler. Franklin easily handled Travis Lutter, who is a strong grappler, at UFC 83, but Travis Lutter is no Dan Henderson. Franklin should look to use his jab and body kicks to keep Henderson at a distance and avoid going to the ground.

Dan Henderson received sort of a raw deal when he joined the UFC in 2007. Henderson had just knocked off Wanderlei Silva to become only the second person to hold the PrideFC middleweight belt and the first person to hold two PrideFC titles simultaneously. Henderson’s first UFC fight was against Quinton Jackson where he lost his light heavyweight title via decision and followed that up with a disappointing showing against Anderson Silva where he lost his middleweight title via submission. Going from two belts to none in a matter of six months can’t be easy, but there is no shame in losing to two of the best fighters in the world.

Hendo bounced back with a strong, decisive victory over Rousimar Palhares at UFC 88 and now looks to right the ship and take out one of the UFC’ best. Henderson was known for his devastating overhand right in PrideFC and seemed to begin too rely to heavily on his striking. Look for Henderson to return to his roots in this fight and utilize more of his wrestling background in an attempt to control Franklin from start to finish. Henderson has the striking ability needed to bang with Franklin, but a smart fight would be to get in close and take the fight to the mat if possible. This fight very likely could go the distance and should be a close battle all the way through, but if Henderson can control the fight on the mat I think he wins the decision via points. Winner: Dan Henderson

Mark Coleman vs. Mauricio Rua – Mock me if you must, but I think this rematch fight between Mark Coleman and Mauricio Rua will be closer than many critics are predicting. Right off the bat I’m going to say I’m picking “Shogun” Rua to win via TKO in the second round, but I also think there is a strong possibility of Coleman pulling off the upset victory for the second time.

For all the hype and excitement that won Mauricio Rua “Fighter of the Year” honors in 2005, a lot of that awe clearly has waned. Rua followed up his elbow-injury loss to Coleman in 2006 with four straight victories before joining the UFC in 2007. Rua’s debut fight in the UFC was, to put it nicely, less than stellar as he was submitted by Forrest Griffin in the third round. Rua was clearly out of shape in that fight and has not fought since, a full 15-month layoff. During that time, Rua has undergone multiple knee surgeries and there is no telling how the time off has affected him and how healed his damaged knee and ACL really are.

For Mark Coleman, age and conditioning will clearly be the biggest factor as the “Hammer” has not fought since October of 2006 when he lost to Fedor Emelianenko via submission. At 44 years of age, endurance and condition will really determine how well Coleman can perform against Rua. If Coleman can find the magic that Randy Couture seems to posses, his cage experience could play a huge factor in this fight. Coleman’s fighting style and wrestling will allow him to use the Octagon walls as a huge advantage in allowing him to clinch and prevent Shogun’s striking and knee barrages.

All that being said, I don’t think Coleman will be in the kind of shape he needs to be in to win a victory over Rua. The Hammer House team has never been known for their conditioning, and Coleman’s age will only magnify that reality. No matter what the outcome, I’m looking forward to seeing where this fight goes. Winner: Mauricio Rua

Denis Kang vs. Alan Belcher – Following a rough patch where he lost three out of four fights, Denis Kang’s stock in the MMA middleweight division seemed to take quite a dip. Kang was once regarded as a top five middleweight but now probably wouldnt make most critics top 15 list. I am not one of those critics however, and I think Kang is still one of the best middleweights in MMA today and is a huge addition to the UFC’s weakest division. Kang possess excellent striking and grappling skills and should be able to handle a fighter like Alan Belcher without problem. The only question for Kang is how he will handle fighting in a cage instead of a ring.

Alan Belcher brings pure athleticism and an long background in Muay Thai fighing. Belcher currently has a 4-3 record in the UFC and really needs a solid win over a fighter like Kang to establish his place in the middleweight division. What Belcher brings in pace and athleticism is lost in technical skill and defensive technique however. Look for Kang to take the first round to get used to his new surroundings, and then turn on the heat to take a TKO victory in the second round. Winner: Denis Kang

Jeremy Horn vs. Rousimar Palhares – It’s amazing to me that Jeremy Horn is still with the UFC and still fighting in 2009. Horn had “retired” from competition in 2006 to focus on coaching, only to quickly return to competition in 2007 and finally returning to the UFC in 2008. Horn’s UFC return hasn’t been a rosy one however as he lost both his fights in 2008 via submission. This is most likely a “win or go home” match for Horn, and in my estimation, Horn will be getting the pink-slip after UFC 93.

Rousimar Palhares will be making his third UFC appearance and should finally be getting comfortable with the “bright lights” of the Octagon. Palhares put up a good fight against Dan Henderson at UFC 88 but was just overmatched by the former PrideFC champion. While Horn clearly has the edge in fight experience, Palhares has the edge in conditioning and grappling. “Gumby” has always been known as an excellent submission player, but he hasn’t won a fight via submission since defeating Chael Sonnen at UFC 60. In fact, Horn has shown a noticeable drop in his submission defense in his last few fights and that should make this fight somewhat easier for Palhares. Look for Palhares to be aggressive on the feet but ultimately take the fight to the mat and work submissions and ground-and-pound on Horn. Winner: Rousimar Palhares

Marcus Davis vs. Chris Lytle – It seems like any time Chris Lytle has fought recently I’ve said the fight could end up being fight of the night. Put Chris Lytle together with Marcus Davis and you definitely have an early favorite for fight of the night honors. We all know Chris Lytle’s game: he can stand in and take a punch from anyone and he plans on dishing out quite a few serious bombs of his own.

Marcus Davis also has an excellent striking game due to his past experience in professional boxing. Davis has spent significant time training at Sityodtong with Mark DelleGrotte and Co. and should be in excellent shape for this fight. I don’t think either fighter has a decisive advantage on the mat, and I don’t really think either fighter wants to bring the fight to the ground. I look for Davis’ hand speed and striking accuracy to be better than Lytle’s defenses and win him the decision victory. Winner: Marcus Davis

Martin Kampmann vs. Alexandre Barros – Winner: Martin Kampmann
Eric Shafer vs. Antonio Mendes – Winner: Eric Shafer
Tomasz Drwal vs. Ivan Serati – Winner: Tomasz Drwal
Tom Egan vs. John Hathaway – Winner: John Hathaway
Dennis Siver vs. Nate Mohr – Winner: Nate Mohr