B.J. Penn Wins for His Home, Not for Himself to Finish Hughes Trilogy
by Jonathan Snowden on Nov 21, 2010 12:54 AM EST
in UFC Editorial
Email
Print
B.J. Penn looked like the Penn of old, rushing out of the corner and swarming Matt Hughes with an attack reminiscent of his UFC 34 battle with Caol Uno. Penn dropped Hughes with a right hand and then savaged him with shots on the ground. After the fight, over in seconds, an amped up Penn attempted to run to the back, finally corralled by his corner and forced to endure the formalities of the postfight interview.
Penn was emotional, and with good reason. This win was about something bigger than B.J. Penn. This win was for Hawaii. Penn is one of the state's few athletic heroes. Hawaiians are a proud people but like many native populations, they are struggling. Poverty rules the island with an iron fist. There is little to be excited about, little hope for many kids who feel locked in a cycle of ruin.
B.J. Penn is one of the native sons Hawaians can be proud of. Those close to him say he is routinely stopped on the streets with a simple message: thank you for doing this for our people. It's been a rough time for Hawaii's athletic icons. Surfer Andy Irons passed away earlier this month and football star Colt Brennan was seriously injured in an accident. Hawaii needed a win and B.J. Penn gave it to them. He should be very proud.
What's next for Penn is anyone's guess. But if he's motivated to fight, no opponent is out of the question, no goal too lofty. As he prepares to celebrate his 32nd birthday, has Penn finally figured things out? If so, the sky is still the limit for MMA's most enigmatic fighter.
60 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
PENN vs FITCH
do it joe silva. If penn is truly serious about the WW division, and if dana still wants to deny fitch another shot, then why not set up this fight.
Because it makes no sense
First of all, who wants to watch that. Of all the great potential matches at LW and WW, Fitch is the least fun to watch and probably has the least fans. The fight would draw no buys.
Second, is BJ really high enough on the WW ladder to fight Fitch(the reneged #1 contender) ?
Nope.
Honestly, I’d rather see B.J. fight someone lower on the ladder. Mike Pyle would be a much better fight. Or even Carlos Condit.
Can the Bloods shot you with a WATER GUN attack? NO. Pokemon, N****.
by The MMA Noob on Nov 21, 2010 1:27 AM EST up reply actions
It doesn't matter.
BJ is dangerous, and the UFC want Fitch to lose. So do the fans. The UFC will waste no time feeding Fitch to dangerous WW contenders so they can try to bury him in the undercard.
BJ!!!
F the haters, I am so happy.
2 to 1 Penn owns Matt forever.
"From the womb to the tomb, spit sick lyrics like MF Doom"
Semper Fi'
Pain don't hurt...
Only reason Matt won the second fight was...
…because Penn came in underprepared and had a freak injury happen when he was trying to take Hughes’ back in the second round. He’s always had Matt Hughes number.
by Daniel Humire on Nov 21, 2010 1:06 AM EST up reply actions
I'm with you
and I said to my non mma buddies that when B.J. came out in the non vale tudo shorts, shit was going down. Sorry if my punctuation is off, i’ve been drinking, but I think Penn will wreck Fitch. Also, I said after he ran out of the cage, I screamed Caol Uno and nobody knew what I was talking about and it upset me to a certain degree. BTW thanks for serving and I always enjoy your posts(my dad was in Vietnam, so I always respect the military at all costs.)
Twitter:@BlindDolphin
I wouldn't waste your time unless you want to see two tweets every 8 months.
"Attention campers. Lunch has been cancelled due to lack of hustle. Deal with it."-Tony Perkis
by NaciremaDream on Nov 21, 2010 5:42 AM EST up reply actions
wow...
that was amazing!!
… after the post fighter interview with hughes though, i felt a bit empathic i gotta say…
I have to disagree...
Penn needed to stalk/attack Edgar, especially due to the speed issue. I believe if Penn shouldve done this he wouldve won or it wouldve been a very close decision.
by A K I R A on Nov 21, 2010 1:06 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
Yeah he needs to attack Edgar this is true...
…and use his natural size advantage to slow him down and beat him down. BJ was stalking Edgar in all three fights but he had difficulty even getting in punching range because of Edgar’s movement. Edgar would hit him from all kinds of angles. BJ just kept trying to be faster than him and land first. He needed to just clinch with him and grind him up against the fence. Of course he needs to attack Edgar more but attack differently. Not try and use finesse and outbox him but just bully him and use his size advantage to slow him down. BJ keeps trying to fight a fast man’s fight against Edgar which is in his nature because his whole life he’s been the faster fighter.
by Daniel Humire on Nov 21, 2010 1:32 AM EST up reply actions
Penn needs to do this in all his fights...
Good chin, great td defense, great bjj, great boxing, etc. He needs to walk down and stalk/attack his opponents, especially if they’re faster than him like Edgar.
by A K I R A on Nov 21, 2010 1:03 AM EST via mobile reply actions
Nah...
It only works when he’s much faster than his opponent and that opponent isn’t tying him up or trying to take him down. Hughes was FAR too overconfident in his stand up. I don’t remember him trying for a takedown at all, not even threatening for one.
by Daniel Humire on Nov 21, 2010 1:05 AM EST up reply actions
Yeah, that'd be due to it being 21 seconds long haha
Hughes didn’t even have the opportunity
by A K I R A on Nov 21, 2010 1:07 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
Hughes went for a takedown immediately in the second fight...
…After the first exchange with Penn, Hughes still didn’t shoot for a takedown. He was content to try and stand and trade with Penn. It was pretty similar to the first fight where Hughes underestimated him. Except this time Hughes overestimated his recent striking success.
by Daniel Humire on Nov 21, 2010 1:19 AM EST up reply actions
That BJ Penn sure is overrated...
I mean, doesn’t everyone in the UFC finish Matt Hughes with a KO in 27 seconds? Penn sure is a choker!
Good thing Penn had his excuses built in
When he mentioned weighing 165 pounds.
THANK YOU BJ PENN!
I’ve got no problems with Hughes, but I picked against him 3 times in a row, and was wrong 3 times in a row. BJ Penn inflicted the most beautiful 21 seconds of beatdown I have seen in a while.
CPG
i missed the live finish. i stood up and turned away to fart on my buddy in the chair next to me, and missed it. good thing the whole fight fit in one replay.
a life: it's the shit that happens while you're waiting for moments that never come -Lester Freamon
Haha, that's why I ne'er look away during a fight
When both Silva and Lesnar got rocked, I was sadly looking away haha.
by A K I R A on Nov 21, 2010 1:09 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
I'd like to see Diaz vs Penn
Great match up on the ground and the feet between two guys who don’t give a fuck and came to scrap.
I don’t know if they would fight each other, I think they’ve trained together a lot.
Holy crap
I predicted a Snowden flip flop article on BJ, but I was just joking. Thank god Snowden is as predictable as a fart after a meal of beans and broccoli.
by Ironbuddha on Nov 21, 2010 1:15 AM EST via mobile reply actions
I had a great conversation with one of B.J.’s close friends who explained what this meant to him. It was touching.
by Jonathan Snowden on Nov 21, 2010 1:19 AM EST up reply actions
Really?
Are there actually people in this world that think Edgar would beat a MOTIVATED PENN?
"He wants to get in close to use that reach advantage." - Goldie
Penn claimed to be motivated in his last two fights.
And he still lost when it counted – pretty badly the second time.
Can the Bloods shot you with a WATER GUN attack? NO. Pokemon, N****.
by The MMA Noob on Nov 21, 2010 1:24 AM EST up reply actions
Touche.
Actually, you do have a point there.
Can the Bloods shot you with a WATER GUN attack? NO. Pokemon, N****.
by The MMA Noob on Nov 21, 2010 1:29 AM EST up reply actions
Only if Edgar could
slap him to death.
"From the womb to the tomb, spit sick lyrics like MF Doom"
Semper Fi'
Pain don't hurt...
Jonathan, do you still think B.J. Penn is overrated?
Genuinely curious.
If it’s the start of a new B.J. Penn, that’s great — but that’s a story that all we’ve heard before. At best, he’ll have a handful of great fights against welterweight contenders, but I’d rather see him drop down to featherweight (unlikely, but not impossible). At worst, he’d probably be murdered by Fitch, Kos, or GSP.
Granted, he won a fight over a Matt Hughes, someone who isn’t exactly a pushover, but Hughes hasn’t been in his prime in ages.
Can the Bloods shot you with a WATER GUN attack? NO. Pokemon, N****.
I don’t think it changes Penn’s position historically, no. But maybe it is the start of a run that will? I certainly hope so.
by Jonathan Snowden on Nov 21, 2010 1:24 AM EST up reply actions
As do I.
Assuming that he can make it past the murder’s row of the WW division, I wouldn’t be disinterested in match-ups against Jon Fitch, Kos, or GSP.
But first, I would like to see him beat at least a few people along the lines of Mike Pyle, Dan Hardy, Martin Kampmann. B.J. is frustrating when he loses interest in fighting. Here’s hoping he doesn’t get fast-tracked to a title shot against GSP, assuming that Kos doesn’t win. Hmm, that’s interesting.
If GSP loses his belt, do you think that would diminish the prospect of a rubber match?
Can the Bloods shot you with a WATER GUN attack? NO. Pokemon, N****.
by The MMA Noob on Nov 21, 2010 1:35 AM EST up reply actions
Actually, that's a dumb question.
Without the title belt, there’s really no point in a rubber match, is there?
Can the Bloods shot you with a WATER GUN attack? NO. Pokemon, N****.
by The MMA Noob on Nov 21, 2010 1:36 AM EST up reply actions
GSP is a bad match up for BJ
Very bad.
by Daniel Humire on Nov 21, 2010 1:44 AM EST up reply actions
I don't get the overrated talk...
…To whom? When we hear BJ nut huggers talk about him, sure he is overrated only because we are hearing about him from borderline delusional fans. They think he’s the best thing since Hawaiian bread. But to MMA fandom at large how can anyone think he is the greatest when he’s lost so many critical match ups? He lost to GSP, he’s lost twice to Edgar, he’s lost to Machida, he’s not the best in the LW or WW division and he is beatable. But that’s not to say he isn’t a great fighter that can put your lights out in two different (maybe even three different) weight classes. He is a great fighter but the greatest ever? Of course not we’ve seen him get crushed almost put into retirement at UFC 94. The only people that think he’s the best ever are his nut huggers. But to the average MMA fan, he’s simply a very exciting fighter that can beat just about anyone in (at least) two different weight classes. Also, if we’re talking P4P, at least Penn has literally tried to prove his placement on a P4P list instead of the theoretical lists MMA Media cobble together with limited empirical evidence proving that the fighters on that list should be on that list.
So to whom was all this talk directed toward? BJ’s hardcore fanbase? Because otherwise no one in their right mind thought he was the greatest ever and haven’t thought that since UFC 94.
by Daniel Humire on Nov 21, 2010 1:41 AM EST up reply actions
Did you see thses fights?
GSP 1, Edgar 1, and Machida were all really close fights that could have gone either way. Did I mention Machida came in at 215 to fight the 178lb Penn?
The claims of Penn being overrated only apply if you are arguing he is the greatest ever
Which no one has made that argument since UFC 94 except for his hardcore fans.
by Daniel Humire on Nov 21, 2010 1:46 AM EST up reply actions
Greatest LW ever, by far IMO.
But that’s about as far as it goes. He’s definitely one of the best ever, but who’s counting?
He's by far the greatest LW fighter ever,
thats for damn sure. The first fight with Edgar, i think BJ won but that doesnt cahnge anything, Edgar still got the W. The 2nd fight, Edgar just outworked BJ. BJ was never seriously in trouble or taking a lot of damage, just a pepper here, pepper there in the stand up and mixing in some takedowns. His TD Slam and his one right hand in BJs guard was the most significant damage that whole fight.
BJ is one of the best, and you must just be a BJ hater if you think that he is nowhere near one of the greatest. Im a BJ fan, GSP fan, Edgar Fan, and an “AVERAGE MMA FAN” and still know one of the best fighters in the world when i see one and BJ Penn is one. If your denying that, than your the delusional one.
Your idea of “one of the greatest ever” might be different from that of other people. BJ fights anyone and everyone, and he goes out there to fight. Sure he’s lost some fights and doesnt have the best of records but he is always truly testing himself in any weight class, just trying to fight the best in the world. Is your criteria of Greatest ever going off of how many wins and losses? i dont think so. Jon Fitch can win his next 30 fights and i still wouldnt consider him one of the greatest fighters in the world. BJ, even in some losses has shown what makes him one of the best in the world. Truth is, he is one of the greatest ever, definitely the greatest LW in the world to this point. If your going to deny that, your delusional.
by xMMAxTYSONxMMA on Nov 21, 2010 5:15 PM EST up reply actions
Does anyone else have a hard time believing this?
by Daniel Humire on Nov 21, 2010 1:51 AM EST up reply actions
No, its just you.
Get the hint here kiddo…
by xMMAxTYSONxMMA on Nov 21, 2010 5:17 PM EST up reply actions
I actually think this Hughes is better than his "prime"...
Hughes dominated in the earlier days, his wrestling, power, etc is still great, but I think everyone else advanced more than he did.
by A K I R A on Nov 21, 2010 1:34 AM EST via mobile up reply actions 1 recs
I sort of agree...
He’s always been limited in the past. Now he has better stand up and better submission offense. I mean not even Cote was able to drop Almeida. And who has ever been able to choke Almeida out in MMA?
Just everyone else is that much better. Agree 100%
by Daniel Humire on Nov 21, 2010 1:42 AM EST up reply actions
As he prepares to celebrate his 32nd birthday, has Penn finally figured things out? If so, the sky is still the limit for MMA’s most enigmatic fighter.
No. People say this about BJ after every one of his wins. He still loses to Edgar 10/10. I’m impressed with his performance but sometimes the quick KO says very little about a fighter mentally.
your crazy if you think
Edgar wins against Penn 10/10. Penn’s corner had the worst gameplan in both fights and still Edgar won a very close fight that many people that Penn won in the first fight, and just outworked BJ in the 2nd. IF your quick to say Edgar wins 10/10, you’re stupid. IF BJ did what he did last night, and stalked Edgar, or going for TDs early in the fight not in the 5th Round i think it would’ve been a lot different. BJ took Edgar down when he went for the TD but it being in the 5th round had no energy to keep him there. If that TD strategy had been implemented in the first couple rounds i think its a very different fight.
10/10?…..Wooooooo, crazy.
by xMMAxTYSONxMMA on Nov 21, 2010 5:22 PM EST up reply actions
bj is a big deal
here in Hawaii, but there is not exactly a dearth of role models here, and the hopeless situation you speak of only really exists in a minority of communities here. I think Penn was motivated to win for Hawaii, but you don’t really have the description of Hawaii right.
No kidding.
“Poverty rules the island with an iron fist” I don’t make nearly as much money as my mainland counterparts. But I get by just fine. Parts of this piece are a little over dramatic.
Look up statistics on native Hawaiians and then come back and “correct” me.
by Jonathan Snowden on Nov 21, 2010 10:01 AM EST up reply actions
How about actually living on the Aina
Instead of pulling “data” off the internet. Just because you googled it doesn’t make it a fact…..fucking people.
So native people in Hawaii aren’t disproportionately poor? Get a grip on yourself.
by Jonathan Snowden on Nov 21, 2010 1:00 PM EST up reply actions
This may not be the place for this but
Factor in wellfare and other social services and you see a lot of the same people driving around escalades and wearing gold bracelets up to their elbows. I’m just saying its not as bad as it may seem when you’re just looking at numbers.
Looking forward to Bj vs Fitch
Fitch won’t fight Kos and he already beat Alves twice. Shields is supposed to get the next shot at Gsp. And Kampman and Hardy are both coming of of losses. No one else really for Fitch to fight. Personally, I would’ve liked to see Bj fight Matt Sera at welterweight— a battle of two former champions, but a fight with Fitch would be awesome.
why is anyone surprised?
there was no way that hughes was going to beat penn. no way. i knew hughes would get knocked out in the first round (just not the first 30 seconds though!)
hughes is like 40 years old. did ANYONE really think he had a chance?
fitch will be a REAL test for penn.
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
Related FanPosts on Bloody Elbow
Related FanShots on Bloody Elbow
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recommended FanPosts
Recent FanPosts
MMA Rankings
