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Elephant in the room: Dan Henderson’s win over Fedor builds momentum for TRT usage/acceptance

By Zach Arnold | August 2, 2011

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I’m not here to debate the usage of Testosterone Replacement Therapy in MMA. My thoughts on the issue have long been loud & clear. However, for anyone in the media to ignore the issue of TRT after Dan Henderson’s over Fedor last Saturday night in Strikeforce would be a mistake.

Testerone Replacement Therapy doesn’t help you become an automatic winner. If there was a TRT MMA Hall of Fame for the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, Dan Henderson would be considered by many fans to be in the ‘good’ category. (Nate Marquardt & Chael Sonnen would respectively be in the ‘bad’ & ‘ugly’ categories.) Henderson is still a successful fighter at a high level in his 40s. That is an anomaly in the MMA business where plenty of young stars flame out in a few years and fans debate on just how long top MMA names/legends can last in the business (see: the 9-year rule).

When I use terms like ‘momentous’ or ‘momentum’ for TRT usage/acceptance in MMA, I’m not referring to the fans. I’m referring to administrators (regulars), fighters, & promoters.

Whether you support the allowance of TRT by MMA fighters or not, the truth is that it has the capability of altering the MMA landscape in both good and bad ways. For fighters like Dan Henderson, TRT has a positive impact because it allows older fighters to not only hang around and not retire early but to also maintain physical strength that simply would not happen if someone was not on Testosterone. The longer someone is on TRT, the more experience they gain if they are able to fight more frequently. This will most certainly alter the way we look at veteran MMA fighters in the near future.

The bad, of course, is that testosterone is, well… testosterone and plenty of steroid users who have damaged their endocrine systems now see a very easy loophole to exploit in order to stick around a while longer as an active MMA fighter. TRT will also give some hope to fighters who should actually retire due to injuries, concussions/head trauma, and overall general body health. Fighting is still a young man’s game and older fighters accumulating brain injuries is not a good trend to see in this sport.

TRT usage, just like steroid & other PED usage, does not guarantee victory for any fighter. What it does do, however, is leave the door open for some fighters who simply wouldn’t be around the business today to be active. Whether you think that’s a good or bad development, that’s up to you.

There seemingly is an increasing amount of momentum to go all-in for TRT acceptance. The landscape of the business as we know it is going to be altered in a significant manner. Dan Henderson’s victory over Fedor last Saturday was not only a victory for himself but a victory for proponents of TRT usage in the sport. For us in the media to ignore this big-picture development is rather short-sighted.

YAHOO! SPORTS’ Iole and Cofield talk Fedor’s future from Steve Cofield on Vimeo.

Earlier in this post, I wrote about brain trauma/concussions. Here’s Steve Cofield & Kevin Iole from Cagewriter.com/Yahoo Sports talking about why the referee stoppage in the Fedor/Henderson fight was appropriate & why Dana White celebrates Fedor losing.

STEVE COFIELD: “The fight itself, did you think the stoppage was warranted?”

KEVIN IOLE: “No question, 100%. Here’s the thing that I think people forget. You know, the argument that people are making in favor of allowing it to continue was that Fedor has great recuperative powers and in fights in the past he’s come back after being in a lot of trouble. The problem is that we’ve learned more about the brain and concussions and injuries in the last 10 years and so we understand that there’s something called the Second Impact Syndrome and it’s potentially fatal. It’s like your brain get wracked around inside your head the first time and if you take another big shot immediately after that, it potentially could be fatal and that’s what we don’t want in this sport. And I’m not saying that Fedor was on the verge of going but that’s what happens when you allow fights to go on. You know, he went limp and whenever a guy goes limp, he went face-first to the mat and he went limp, and Henderson undoubtedly woke him back up with one of the ground-and-pound shots that he hit him with. But you have to think of the fighter’s safety and you can’t say, well, because Fedor is a great fighter we’re going to allow him to take more shots because the fight’s more important. Safety is safety and when the fighter is out, the fight is over, period.”

STEVE COFIELD: “Where does Fedor go from here?”

KEVIN IOLE: “I tell you, if I’m advising Fedor and unless he’s really in financial difficulty, I say retire because, you know, he’s one of the great fighters in the early days of Mixed Martial Arts, clearly not at that point right now. If he’s in the Top 10, it’s right at the bottom of the Top 10 and I have to think after losing three in a row to three guys, none of whom would be in the Top 5 Heavyweights, I don’t think anybody would consider Werdum or Henderson or Bigfoot Silva Top 5, you know maybe Bigfoot Silva #5. You know, Fedor got beat pretty handily by all three of those guys, so where is he as a heavyweight right now? I just don’t see him beating the top guys. Are you just going to hang around to fight and collect paychecks?”

(later on)

STEVE COFIELD: “How do you think [Dana White] feels in this whole thing? Yeah, I mean, is he really rooting against [Fedor]? Does this kind of go to the argument that he had the last couple of years and prove him right?”

KEVIN IOLE: “Dana just, I think, is very frustrated by people who will not give Anderson Silva credit. You know, he came out starting in probably 2008, 2007, 2008 saying Anderson Silva’s the best fighter in the world and he was looking at the guys Fedor was fighting at that time, the Mark Colemans and the Mark Hunts and those kinds of people and he’s comparing that to the people that Anderson Silva was fighting. I think tit’s interesting, Steve, that if you take 2001 through 2006 Fedor and then 2006 through 2011 Anderson Silva and there’s a lot of similarities. They both fought all the top contenders, they both beat them most of the time in dominating fashion. But, you know, Fedor is living off that 2001-2006 run until now and that’s bothering Dana who’s trying to promote the modern guys who are now fighting the elite guys and I think that’s where his frustration is from and he’s never shy about sharing his opinions, as we know.”

Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 54 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |

54 Responses to “Elephant in the room: Dan Henderson’s win over Fedor builds momentum for TRT usage/acceptance”

  1. david m says:

    Several things: This 9 year hoax is kinda funny given that Henderson had his first bout in 1997.

    It isn’t a great insight to realize that fighters get old and that their chins and reflexes fade away. Each fighter is different in that regard though.

    45 always likes to say that steroids have no impact on winning, which everyone with a brain here laughs off. I am waiting to hear him explain how Henderson has not been helped by roiding, or Sonnen, or Nate, or all the other guys who are clearly doing the same thing.

    Does anyone here involved with the fight game know if the “normal” T range changes by age? If not, it is a pretty big loophole for a 40 yr old man to be normal with the T levels of an 18 yr old.

    • 45 Huddle says:

      I made a list one time…. About a year back…. And if you take away fights like Sherk/Franca where both guys pop up for steroids….

      I believe it was close to 2 to 1 that fighters who got caught for steroids lost the fight.

      It might have changed since then…. But the numbers didn’t support what you are saying….

      The thing with TRT is that for it to really be used in MMA without controversy…. It should be done so with monthly testing…..

      • edub says:

        And the thing a lot of people argued back then, is a lot of people were not getting caught and still winning. That is why the list you made was faulty.

        • 45 Huddle says:

          So this magical unknown number of winning users is somehow valid…

          Yet the KNOWN busted users who are using and losing more often is somehow not valid?

          Now that’s funny.

        • edub says:

          Oh, magical eh….

          Kinda like the thought process that the commissions are catching a high number of steroid users right?

          Or the fact that the sport wasn’t regulated until 2002, and still isn’t in most of the world doesn’t havbe any impact either?

          Yes I’m sure you weighed those things into your quest to find the truth (be in the right)…

        • 45 Huddle says:

          Once again, you have zero proof of steroid use in MMA. It’s all hearsay. Some fighters have said 80% of guys are on PED’s. Others say it is 50%. Others say it’s not even close to that much and it’s overblown.

          There is no proof at all for your side of the argument….

          At least what I am providing are facts….

        • edub says:

          Yes your providing facts from a broken system, and lower in th page you cite the olympics as a corrupt sanctioning body (when the olympics is easily the best body to look at when it comes to drug testing). Yea you’re doing a great job…

          BTW genius: “Or the fact that the sport wasn’t regulated until 2002, and still isn’t in most of the world doesn’t havbe any impact either?”

          None of that is hearsay. You’re using broken numbers to continue to support an argument that has the laughable task of pointing out steroids don’t help fighters win. It’s sad.

      • david m says:

        Getting caught and using are 2 entirely different things.

        This sport is plagued by PEDs, be it testosterone injections or by HGH. The fact that Hendo has been in the normal range is a terrible counterpoint; he gets a shot, his levels go up, he gets the benefit, and then he fights “clean”.

        I have heard Hughes got a TRT exemption too; Wanderlei was clearly on roids, Arona probably as well, Ryan Gracie, Sylvia, Sherk, Hendo, Chael, Leben, Vitor (look at his body now compared to when he was young), Randy, Franca, Mirko in Pride, Nog now (go look at the picture of him next to Bigfoot Silva that was posted online like a week ago–Nog’s T levels have clearly gone through the floor so he put on 30 pounds of muscle), Marquardt, Bonnar, etc. The list is endless.

        • 45 Huddle says:

          Doctor’s say that as long as the TRT keeps them within the normal limits, it does NOt provide a competitive advantage.

          Listen to the doctor’s, not what you THINK is the right answer.

        • Kalle says:

          Doctors say? Like Marquardt’s doctor? The one he won’t even name?

        • 45 Huddle says:

          There are bad people in every profession. That has nothing to do with the effectiveness of drugs….

      • spacedog says:

        Key words there “got caught” there is a very good chance that in many cases the winner of the fight in which the loser was popped was himself on ‘roids.

        Not to mention, there are surely many, many cases where no one was busted and yet the winning (and sometimes loosing) fighter was using.

        Steroids work, that’s why people use them.

  2. 45 Huddle says:

    1) Fedor vs. Henderson is more of a story about a fighter unwilling to train properly then it is about TRT. Fedor’s own brother is saying his coaches are to blame.

    2) There are only a handleful of Top 10 fighters in this sport who are are in the wrong weight class. And none of them are as chubby or as blatantly obvious as Fedor Emelianenko.

    3) Henderson has NEVER ONCE been caught for being above the normal limits. TRT, done within the limits, creates no unfair advantage for the athlete.

    4) The stoppahe was of course good. The 2nd Fedor was out, the fight was over. just because he woke up afterwards is irrelevent. It’s funny to read all of the Fedor fanboys online crying about this one. The thing is that he has been STOPPED 3 times in a row now. It’s getting to be a joke….

    • edub says:

      “3) Henderson has NEVER ONCE been caught for being above the normal limits. TRT, done within the limits, creates no unfair advantage for the athlete.”

      Completely wrong.

      The use of TRT can keep your Testosterone level at correct levels. However, even if it is not inflating the test amount, a fighter still receives the benefits in training of injecting testosterone in their system. Inflating your testosterone levels is no where near the only advantage a fighter can gain from TRT use.

      “1) Fedor vs. Henderson is more of a story about a fighter unwilling to train properly then it is about TRT. Fedor’s own brother is saying his coaches are to blame.

      2) There are only a handleful of Top 10 fighters in this sport who are are in the wrong weight class. And none of them are as chubby or as blatantly obvious as Fedor Emelianenko.”

      Agree with all of this. WHen a fighter does nothing but come forward throwing sloppy punches, then when he has side control use no wrestling to keep his opponent down, he deserves to lose.

      Honestly, the fight was entertaining. But IMO there was very little technique used by either (except the back door escape to uppercut by Hendo, that was a thing of beauty). It was sloppy as all hell, and Fedor looked like nothing more than a brawler.

      “4) The stoppahe was of course good. The 2nd Fedor was out, the fight was over. just because he woke up afterwards is irrelevent. It’s funny to read all of the Fedor fanboys online crying about this one. The thing is that he has been STOPPED 3 times in a row now. It’s getting to be a joke….”

      I both disagree, and agree with this. Fedor was out for a split second after the uppercut landed. That is without a doubt, true. But, Herb dean didn’t stop it then (something even Herb seems to be lying to himself about):

      The uppercut landed, Fedor went limp. Herb Dean then moved in like he was going to stop the fight, but he didn’t. While this went on Dan Henderson hit Fedor drectly to the back of the head once, and borderline to the back of the head. By rule (because Fedor was moving afterward) the fight should be paused and Fedor should be given 5 minutes to recover. It doesn’t matter if it was a flash knockout, no situation in MMA gives a fighter the right to hit the back of the head. After the second shot Dan was continuing to throw punches, and Herb intervened (still almost half-heartedly). If Herb would have dove in right away, or as Dan was releasing the first punch after the knockout blow, it would have been completely correct. However, that’s not what happened.

      And no, I’m not a Fedor nuthugger. Pretty far from it (even though I picked him to win).

      • 45 Huddle says:

        Doesn’t matter if Herb Dean delayed for a split second…

        He was out and therefore the correct call is to end the fight. It’s really that simple.

        Everything that happens afterwards is 100% irrelevent. being out, even in MMA…. and in this case it was more then a split second… means the fight is over.

        • edub says:

          That is right in theory, but in practice is not usually the case. Nick Diaz in his last fight went face first into the mat, arms out, and legs straight. And the fight wasn’t called. Pat Runez did the same thing against Jon Dodson a couple of years back in a smaller show in Fairfax, VA.

          It’s happened before, and will happen again.

          As I said, I disagreed and agreed with your assesment. I agree that calling the fight when Fedor goes out is the right move. That just wasn’t the case, and after when an illegal shot is landed (especially one that is thrown with that much force) it has to be taken into account.

      • 45 Huddle says:

        “However, even if it is not inflating the test amount, a fighter still recieves the benefits in training of injecting testosterone in their system. Inflating your testosterone levels is no where near the only advantage a fighter can gain from TRT use.”

        And yet that is not what doctor’s say. TRT, if used properly, gives no advantage to the fighter using them. All it does is allows their body to have the normal levels they are supposed to have.

        Which is why it is LEGAL for the AC’s.

        The problem has never been in TRT itself. It’s in regulating it and testing it enough to make sure it doesn’t turn into abuse.

        • edub says:

          Oh, the same mark doctors that are prescribing it to guys like Todd Duffee because his ranges are low.

          It’s legal for ACs, but illegal in every other major sport in the world including the big boy, the Olympics.

          Using the doctors who prescribe it, or the Athletic commissions who allow it as some type of point to show your logic is asinine. Sorry but your going to have to come up with something different.

        • 45 Huddle says:

          Who cares if the Olympics bans it. The Olympics is corrupt and have their own drug problems. They know exactly what tests they can run to specifically test for certain substances and they don’t always do it. Instead they have general tests that look for levels. Real Sports had a great piece on how bad it was a few years ago.

          So the Olympics is not an organization worth emulating.

          There are bad people in every profession, including doctors. That doesn’t mean something should be illegal because of those fools.

          Even if there are bad doctors, as long as TRT is tested monthly to make sure the levels are not too high, then there is no problem. Nothing the doctors can do.

  3. bluerosekiller says:

    Absolutely agree with 45.
    Henderson scored a clean KO win. Whether Fedor was out for a split second or 10 full mins, is beside the point.
    Dean saw that the fighter was clearly unconscious & was 110% correct in moving in to stop it. It’s not his fault that the fighter was woke up by a follow up shot as he was doing so.
    By that point it was physically impossible for him to have put the breaks on.
    Besides, we’ve all seen what Hendo’s follow up shots look like once he’s has an opponent splayed out, dazed in front of him.
    It could have been ugly.

  4. Stel says:

    It was a rare quick call by Herb, now Herbs the best and he did his job well but he needed to recognize the position a bit better maybe. That uppercut was a flash ko and dan was pushing forward with his weight on Fedor so you can’t fault Fedor with 205 pounds of virility on his back for taking a whole second to actually start turning into Dan. If Herb was perfect he would have yelled at Dan “don’t hit the back of the head” when he saw them rather than stop the fight it would have giving Fedor that extra 1/2 second he needed.

    Hendo capitalized on Fedor’s known weak points namely he stuck him to the fence with underhooks, and caught Fedor when he was getting up with all 4 points on the ground, and ducked and countered the big right hand earlier in the fight. Nowadays everyone like Bigfoot Rogers Dan can get the underhooks on Fedor, some can get some shots in while hes getting up like Hunt did, but Dan’s has been the only one to take it to Fedor on the feet due to Dan’s speed.
    Everyone can exploit his robotic style, so he needs to change his style and add strategy.
    I said it before Fedor needs to phone Hume.

    • edub says:

      Great points.

      “I said it before Fedor needs to phone Hume.”

      AKA is the first place that came to my mind.

    • david m says:

      I lol’d at “205 pounds of virility”

      I saw that Fedor’s bro was ripping his trainers; at some point he has to take responsibility for himself. It sounds like he doesn’t really care about fighting much anymore; I saw pictures of him in a movie (I guess a Russian movie?) and in his post-fight interview all he talked about was his family. God bless him he was the best in the world for a long time and has earned the right to leave, but as a fan I want to see him go to train in America, clean up his diet, train with top level guys, learn the meaning of the word “strategy” and see how he does at 205.

  5. edub says:

    Ratings figures are 570,000 for Fedor-Henderson card (fourth all time). Success or failure? I’m thinking somewhere in the middle.

  6. EJ says:

    The only Elephant in the room I see when it comes to Hendo and TRT is hypocrisy by the media and fans. I mean the double standards that Hendo is held in as opposed to others would be funny if it wasn’t so much crap.

    Like i’ve said in the past I have zero problem with TRT, if AC’s want to have stricter protocols for it cool. Just make sure they actually know what they are doing because in the end the PED issue is as much a problem with the AC’s than it is with the fighter.

    But just make sure that if people are going to be throwing around the words cheater to descride some figthers, then don’t be a hypocrite when it comes to Hendo who’s the poster boy for TRT.

    • edub says:

      Not trying to be confrontational with you here or anything, but are you saying people are being too hard on Hendo or not hard enough?

      • Chuck says:

        I think he’s getting at is that Hendo is being less scrutinized than Marquardt and Sonnen.

        • EJ says:

          Basically Hendo has been doing this for years and where was the mma media to report it. Yet Sonnen comes out that he’s been using TRT and there’s a firestorm and all sorts of accusations are being made about him that don’t seem to apply to Hendo. That’s my biggest problem not TRT but the blantant hypocrisy that comes from fans and some writers on the topic it which has made Hendo escape the crapstorm that Sonnen and Nate came into.

        • edub says:

          You know I think that’s a great point.

          I would always add a caveat along the lines of “Hendo has been on this stuff forever too” when arguing against TRT usage. And people seemed to just turn a blind eye to it.

  7. darkmader says:

    Most of you already know the site, as we are all fight fans here, but BLH did one hell of an article: http://www.badlefthook.com/2011/8/2/2310781/pacquiao-vs-mayweather-who-has-the-better-record

    I never really post here, but thought that would be of interest of some lurkers and maybe some regulars here.

  8. 45 Huddle says:

    Golder Glory has been let go by Zuffa….. Valentijn Overeem, Marloes Coenen, & Jon Olav Einemo…. All cut.

    1) This is no doubt a result of the problems Zuffa has had with Golden Glory while trying to negotiate for Alistair Overeem. Overeem & GG tried to bully Zuffa because he wasn’t signed until the end of the Grand Prix…. And obviously it was not the right tactic…

    2) None of those fighters cut really mean anything. Overeem & Einemo were not UFC level Heavyweights. And Coenen is part of a division that is going away once the Showtime contract is over.

    I might get blasted for this…. But I don’t think this is such a bad thing. We all have known for a while that Golden Glory was just a slight step up from M-1 in terms of being shady.

    It is certain that Zuffa is not willing to deal with management that is not willing to play within the parameters of their organization.

    And after seeing all of the issues boxing has had through the years, this is a necessary step….

    I should also add…

    Golden Glory is also a fight promotion. They have already signed on their own fighter, Alistair Overeem to compete in October.

    They are COMPETITION. Why would Zuffa sign on fighters from competition?

    And from the best source on the UG today…. HH….

    “hammers hamil – They are all now formally banned from zuffa…. They tried to hold the title hostage as leverage for bigger paydays with allistar.. Zuffa wont be doing business with matijn dejong as he tried alot of shady tactics and threats to get more money for golden glory…. Zuffa wont be negoiating anymore with golden glory all talks have ceasesd they where very unprofessional…”

    Another quote from HH…

    ” whole thing stems from gg saying allistar will defend his title late january / febuary but would be open to defending it sooner for rediculous amount of money im told and this ignited the war… This is not a dana white move lorenzo fertitta made this move..”

    Which just shows when push comes to shove, Lorenzo is the power guy of the company…

    • Zach Arnold says:

      http://mmafighting.com/2011/08/03/marloes-coenen-among-3-golden-glory-fighters-released

      Your assessment is on target. I do think it’s a sobering message to those left who thought that Zuffa would be interested in promoting a full-time women’s MMA division.

      • 45 Huddle says:

        Female MMA’s only future should be on HDNet with their own league. When they are ready for Primetime, then I wouldn’t mind the UFC either bringing them back or starting a WUFC. Until then, the UFC doesn’t even have spots available on the main cards for the Feather and Bantam top guys. I don’t want to see even more spots taken away for these inferior athletes.

        Also, Lorenzo Fertitts means business. If you try and blackmail them and hold their title hostage, he is going to cut you at the throat….. Which is exactly what he did here.

        As much as it stinks that these things are still happening in this sport, I think it’s a necessary evil to cut the entire team. Eventually these bad teams will be weeded out and a lot of the problems in boxing won’t be present in MMA.

        Imagine owning your own fight promotion and having some manager playing the games GG is playing with the UFC….

        • edub says:

          It’s sad to say, but it was always a pipe dream thinking women’s MMA was going to blow up. All you have to do is look at our country. Women’s soccer leagues consistently fail. The only reason the WNBA is still in business is because it is backed by the NBA. Women’s boxing had the perfect break out star in Leila Ali (a name, attractive, and dominant), and still there was little interest ever created beyond her.

          Honestly I think a WUFC would be spectacular bust.

          And I don’t want to seem like I’m hating here either because I like watching the top girs go at it. They’re entertaining. There is just very little interest outside of a few women in the sport. And the biggest star doesn’t even seem like she wants to fight anymore.

  9. larrycraig says:

    I like how Zach ‘fixes’ 45’s posts by putting them all in one post…How nice of you.. What is he your brother or something? Thats the only explanation for how much you put up with from him..

    • Zach Arnold says:

      Well, I’m not interested in inflated comment counts. Do I wish everyone here would post content in one comment? Yeah, but it’s not just one person who is guilty of it (or of not using italics for quote formatting or the ‘del’ HTML command for strikethrough of cursing).

      But I don’t edit actual quotes or change words.

    • 45 Huddle says:

      He has done that for a bunch of people.

      He even has asked in the past that people keep their comments to one if it’s a single thought.

      I’m just a scatter brain and have a hard time doing that. I type something and then think of something else…. Or read something else that needs to be added….

  10. edub says:

    http://www.mmabay.co.uk/2011/08/03/golden-glory-making-moves-to-promote-mma-shows-in-the-u-s-the-likely-reason-for-zuffa-llc-fallout/

    Take this for what you will because MMAbay has been known to print false or misleading info in the past, but it sems GG was looking to start promoting shows in the US.

    If that’s the case then it was obviously the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back.

  11. larrycraig says:

    In my opinion, TRT=Doping.

    I’m not sure how anyone can see it as anyone else. Taking a substance that is either pure testosterone, or causes your body to produce more testosterone than it would naturally is called doping. Look it up in the dictionary. TRT is a euphemism for increasing testosterone (and thus performance).

    I like Dan Henderson as much as anyone, but if your body doesnt produce enough testosterone for you to be a professional athlete, then maybe you shouldnt be a professional athlete.

  12. spacedog says:

    GG, messing with the big boys now. If Fedor could not hold them hostage how in the heck did they think ‘roidereem could?

    Oh, and 45, the whole “do steroids really help that much” angle is really, really, ignorant. They do. A lot. Full stop. No intelligent argument to be had. None. Zip. Zero. Steroids area HUGE advantage as are other PEDs. That’s why people risk jail time, their reputation, and huge amounts of money, b/c they WORK.

    As for the TRT, I think it stinks. Guys are using it to cover up long term and likely continuing PED and steroid usage. Again, there is no way that these guys all have naturally low level of T. Hendo, Sonnen, Nate, these guys are all using illegal drugs to gain competitive advantage and almost surely have been for some time.

    • 45 Huddle says:

      Steroids are a benefit when they bring you above the natural levels a human body should have.

      TRT brings testosterone levels to a NORMAL level that a person should have. That is not an unfair advantage.

      • spacedog says:

        It is when it is used to mitigate the effects of steroid abuse, steroid abuse that DOES give an unfair advantage.

        Not to mention, the whole TRT thing can be used to explain an abnormal result that is due to current steroid use.

    • Jeff Mills says:

      I can’t believe that Dan Henderson is getting away with his victory over Fedor Emelianenko. Henderson’s jaw, chin and neck were so swollen from steroids, and human growth hormones it was clear Henderson was a completely different human. His victory along with big foot Silva and Werdum’s over Fedor should not count. Dan Henderson’s a cheater and a very insecure knuckle head.
      By the way Fedor didn’t lose for the first 33 fight’s and 10
      years, the fight stoppage against Kosaka was a bad decision.
      Fedor’s the greatest mma fighter ever.
      Also look at some of the fighter’s Henderson lost to.

  13. safari_punch says:

    Henderson’s “victory” is due to:

    A) an early, questionable stopppage

    and

    B) a punch from behind

    How many guys from Team Quest have hormone issues? Henderson? Sonnen? How many others?

    People seem to be giving Henderson a free pass because they like him and he doesn’t say anything derogatory about his opponents sans Bisping.

    TRT is cheating. Plain and simple.

    • 45 Huddle says:

      A) He was out.

      B) Those punches happened after he was already out, so they had nothing to do with anything.

  14. larrycraig says:

    TRT=Cheating.

    Saying its for a medical condition is like saying, my blood doesnt produce enough red blood cells so I’m going to blood dope to get normal levels. It doesnt work like that!!

  15. RST says:

    So is this covered by Obamacare?

    I want to get some murderous Hendo mongoose juice!

    I think it would be very advantageous for job interviews.

  16. […] sport is his reported usage of Testosterone Replacement Therapy. After Dan beat Fedor last Summer, I stated the following about the impact of TRT on the sport of MMA: Whether you support the allowance of TRT by MMA fighters or not, the truth is that it has the […]

  17. […] of fighters who have been discussed in the media in relation to TRT. Chael Sonnen. Nate Marquardt. Dan Henderson. And now, you can add Rampage Jackson to the list. More on this […]

  18. […] Dan Henderson beat Fedor last year, I stated that his win would start to create acceptance by power brokers in the sport for the usage of Testosterone. Don’t think that’s the […]

  19. […] Elephant in the room – Dan Henderson’s win over Fedor builds momentum for TRT usage/acce… (August 2nd, 2011) […]

  20. Jeff says:

    Dan Henderson got beat by Jake Shields a great fighter and person. With out steroids Henderson would have a 50% winning
    percentage. Cain Velazquez was using roids, after they started testing he started getting injured training.
    Wake up mma fans, Fedor Emelianenko’s the best ever.

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