He's baaaaaack ....

Only this time, Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion Dan Henderson won't receive back-to-back title unification bout opportunities. In fact, he won't even get one.

The former Pride FC two-division champion, who recently knocked out Fedor Emelianenko, will most likely be returning to the Octagon to face fellow knockout machine Mauricio Rua at UFC 139, which is scheduled for the HP Pavillion in San Jose, Calif., on Nov. 19, 2011.

MMAWeekly.com reports that the 205-pound clash will likely serve as the main event, replacing the heavyweight tilt between division champion Cain Velasquez and number one contender, Junior dos Santos, which will headline the first-ever UFC on FOX event. If accurate that means that "Shogun" and "Hendo" could be a five-round, non-title bout with major implications on the light heavyweight contender picture.

Will it ever.

Henderson originally left the UFC because contract disputes after knocking Michael Bisping somewhere into the Andromeda galaxy back in 2009. He proceeded to lose his first fight under the Strikeforce banner, as Jake Shields rallied back from near-unconsciousness in the first round to defeat "Hendo" via unanimous decision.

Henderson has posted three consecutive knockouts since that time, taking out "Babalu" Sobral, then-champion Rafael Cavalcante, and the aforementioned Fedor.

Shogun, who lost his UFC title to Jon Jones at UFC 128, is also coming off a nasty knockout, as he crushed former conqueror Forrest Griffin with a relentless barrage of hammerfists in his home country. Rua, regarded by some as the greatest light-heavyweight to ever live, is on the warpath to regain his title.

He'll have to get through Henderson.

UFC 139 will also feature a middleweight tilt between Vitor Belfort and the returning Cung Le, not to mention a bantamweight scrap between Urijah Faber and Brian Bowles. To check out the latest UFC 139 fight card and rumors click here.

Photo via www.canada.com