Age is definitely a concern and this is no sport to just dabble in.
HW already holds a 5th degree black belt in Tae Kwan Doe so he is no stranger to combat sports or martial arts. That's how he still looks like he does today.
Lyoto Machida the current title holder at 205 in the UFC has a strong back ground in karate that he combined with MMA training and he has a style that confuses and punishes opponents.