Excellent striking
World class BJJ
Amazing takedown defense
.... And now rededicated champion
All these can describe BJ Penn as a martial artist. The question to ask yourself now is who is going to beat this guy? When you think dominant champion, GSP or Anderson Silva usually come to mind. But with both fighters pondering a change in weight class, the MMA fans out there will see that at the end of the day BJ Penn could very possibly be more dominant then either Silva or St Pierre. Days after thrashing Kenny Florian to retain his belt, the BJ Penn we all saw fight is not someone who looks like he can be beat. We all know this man has the skill set very few possess and was able to make a name for himself on talent alone. Now that he has gotten serious about his conditioning program there really are no weaknesses to his game. Many were quick to write him off after his last loss to St Pierre, but he showed us all that he is back and doesn't appear to be going anywhere soon. Lets take a look at a few fighters that can be considered contenders to his belt, and the chances they stand.
1. Diego Sanchez- An excellent wrestler and Penn's next opponent, Diego Sanchez has the skills to make this a much closer fight then Penn's beatdown of Kenny Florian. If he is able to take Penn down ( which no one at 155 can consistently do ) he will have to stay out of the web that is BJ Penn's guard and avoid the slew of submissions that can be thrown at him. He has the standup ability to hang with Penn, but is definitly disadvantaged in that aspect too. He has to gameplan perfectly and hope he doesn't make the first mistake. When you fight someone as dominating and skilled as BJ, you need to have almost a perfect fight to even make it competitive. The fight has all the makings of a classic, and Sanchez's chance of victory banks on him being able to do what only GSP could, which is using smart ground striking to smother BJ and neutralize his guard.
2. Frankie Edgar- Edgar showed good standup and smart gameplanning in his last fight, a win over Sean Sherk. At this point in his young career, expecting him to be able to take on a veteran like Penn might be a little to ambitious. The reason he is considered is simply because he has exceeded expectations and done very well in his UFC career. His only loss comes to Gray Maynard in a decision, and he has all the potential to be a force in this division. Anything can happen once those octagon doors close ( Matt Serra anyone?) but at this time most would agree Edgar is a little too green to take on Penn. His shot at the title is likely a little down the road, but if he continues to pile up wins it may be sooner then later we see these two square off.
3. Gray Maynard- Maynard will be on display soon, as he takes on Roger Huerta at a UFC fight night next month. So far in his undefeated career, he has won in dominant fashion, with his last 4 wins coming by way of unanimous decision. He holds wins over Frankie Edgar, Jim Miller, and Rich Clementi, all solid fighters at 155. His title hopes depend on how he fares in his next bout, along with how Frankie Edgar does in the coming months. Assuming Penn defends his belt against Sanchez, Edgar and Maynard will arguably be the top two contenders in this division. Maynard's wrestling can be a problem, but against the takedown defense of Penn, it will take more then that to beat him.
4. Sean Sherk- Sherk is a great fighter who has proven himself countless times in the UFC. That being said, his last fight was a lackluster loss to Frankie Edgar at UFC 98 which left many wondering how much he has left in the tank. During the fight he made almost no attempt to implement his style into the fight. His usual lightning fast takedowns and brutal ground and pound were no where to be seen against the relatively inexperienced Edgar. His next fight comes at UFC 103 against Gleison Tibau. A win does by no means get him a title shot, but a loss can put him into obscurity in this division. You also have to take into account that when Sherk and Penn met at UFC 84, Sherk was soundly beaten and battered in spectacular fashion. Sean Sherk will go down as one of the greatest fighters at 155 pounds, but unless he gets back to his winning ways, the career may be over for the Muscle Shark.
I feel that after the four fighters mentioned, there really is no one at the time that can challenge Penn. All four of these great fighters have a mountain to climb if they even want to make this fight competitive. It is no slight on their ability but they are engaging into a battle with a man who seemingly has no flaws. After looking at the fighters who could potentially fight for the title, it is easy to see how Penn can build up several title defenses here, where he can then move up in weight or retire as the greatest 155 pound fighter the UFC has ever seen.
The choice is his
World class BJJ
Amazing takedown defense
.... And now rededicated champion
All these can describe BJ Penn as a martial artist. The question to ask yourself now is who is going to beat this guy? When you think dominant champion, GSP or Anderson Silva usually come to mind. But with both fighters pondering a change in weight class, the MMA fans out there will see that at the end of the day BJ Penn could very possibly be more dominant then either Silva or St Pierre. Days after thrashing Kenny Florian to retain his belt, the BJ Penn we all saw fight is not someone who looks like he can be beat. We all know this man has the skill set very few possess and was able to make a name for himself on talent alone. Now that he has gotten serious about his conditioning program there really are no weaknesses to his game. Many were quick to write him off after his last loss to St Pierre, but he showed us all that he is back and doesn't appear to be going anywhere soon. Lets take a look at a few fighters that can be considered contenders to his belt, and the chances they stand.
1. Diego Sanchez- An excellent wrestler and Penn's next opponent, Diego Sanchez has the skills to make this a much closer fight then Penn's beatdown of Kenny Florian. If he is able to take Penn down ( which no one at 155 can consistently do ) he will have to stay out of the web that is BJ Penn's guard and avoid the slew of submissions that can be thrown at him. He has the standup ability to hang with Penn, but is definitly disadvantaged in that aspect too. He has to gameplan perfectly and hope he doesn't make the first mistake. When you fight someone as dominating and skilled as BJ, you need to have almost a perfect fight to even make it competitive. The fight has all the makings of a classic, and Sanchez's chance of victory banks on him being able to do what only GSP could, which is using smart ground striking to smother BJ and neutralize his guard.
2. Frankie Edgar- Edgar showed good standup and smart gameplanning in his last fight, a win over Sean Sherk. At this point in his young career, expecting him to be able to take on a veteran like Penn might be a little to ambitious. The reason he is considered is simply because he has exceeded expectations and done very well in his UFC career. His only loss comes to Gray Maynard in a decision, and he has all the potential to be a force in this division. Anything can happen once those octagon doors close ( Matt Serra anyone?) but at this time most would agree Edgar is a little too green to take on Penn. His shot at the title is likely a little down the road, but if he continues to pile up wins it may be sooner then later we see these two square off.
3. Gray Maynard- Maynard will be on display soon, as he takes on Roger Huerta at a UFC fight night next month. So far in his undefeated career, he has won in dominant fashion, with his last 4 wins coming by way of unanimous decision. He holds wins over Frankie Edgar, Jim Miller, and Rich Clementi, all solid fighters at 155. His title hopes depend on how he fares in his next bout, along with how Frankie Edgar does in the coming months. Assuming Penn defends his belt against Sanchez, Edgar and Maynard will arguably be the top two contenders in this division. Maynard's wrestling can be a problem, but against the takedown defense of Penn, it will take more then that to beat him.
4. Sean Sherk- Sherk is a great fighter who has proven himself countless times in the UFC. That being said, his last fight was a lackluster loss to Frankie Edgar at UFC 98 which left many wondering how much he has left in the tank. During the fight he made almost no attempt to implement his style into the fight. His usual lightning fast takedowns and brutal ground and pound were no where to be seen against the relatively inexperienced Edgar. His next fight comes at UFC 103 against Gleison Tibau. A win does by no means get him a title shot, but a loss can put him into obscurity in this division. You also have to take into account that when Sherk and Penn met at UFC 84, Sherk was soundly beaten and battered in spectacular fashion. Sean Sherk will go down as one of the greatest fighters at 155 pounds, but unless he gets back to his winning ways, the career may be over for the Muscle Shark.
I feel that after the four fighters mentioned, there really is no one at the time that can challenge Penn. All four of these great fighters have a mountain to climb if they even want to make this fight competitive. It is no slight on their ability but they are engaging into a battle with a man who seemingly has no flaws. After looking at the fighters who could potentially fight for the title, it is easy to see how Penn can build up several title defenses here, where he can then move up in weight or retire as the greatest 155 pound fighter the UFC has ever seen.
The choice is his
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