MMA Worldwide

The Greatest Lightweight Ever

Posted by RJ Clifford on the 28 January 2010 | View Comments

This article appeared in Issue 19 of MMA Worldwide.

Alright, I give up. It’s true. I tried fighting it, I tried denying it and I ignored all the signs. I told myself everyone has lost it and I was the only one seeing clearly. People get caught up in the hype, right? Fads come and go.

But this fad never went away. It could have been considered a fluke at UFC 34 when I personally witnessed the one-sided beating at the MGM Grand. I told myself anyone could have a good day after the mauling at Rumble on the Rock in Honolulu, Hawaii. But three months later when he went up a weight and dethroned a legend at UFC 46, this “fad” started to gain steam.

He beat two Gracies. He avenged his only loss at 155. He won the belt and has never lost a round since. He is in shape, motivated and has only been getting better as he gets older.

I am talking, of course, about BJ Penn. And he is the best lightweight in the history of MMA.

It took me a while to be completely sold on this guy. Jens Pulver kept the first UFC lightweight belt off his hips. He lost three out of four fights to bigger opposition in Lyoto Machida (205), Georges St. Pierre (170) and Matt Hughes (170). Just when he started gaining steam at 155, he jumps up in weight again only to get mauled by the powerhouse that is St. Pierre. All the while, a little Japanese guy named Takanori Gomi was picking off lightweights like they were low-hanging fruit.

I was thwarted by the sight of a bulging gut and heavy breathing in the third round. The confidence and swagger were replaced by gasps of air and chants from the stands yelling, “Buy a treadmill.” I was telling everyone who would listen—there were not many of them—that he was not motivated. He did not diet; he was not committed to his conditioning. He was not focused at lightweight and he never would be.

And then, all that changed.

Penn dropped back to 155, and low and behold, he stayed there. He hired NFL trainer Marv Marinovich and ACTUALLY DID WHAT HE SAID! In the cage he always had the look of predator over prey, but now it was different. Now it’s all business. He’s not beating up neighborhood bullies behind liquor stores in Hawaii anymore. Now he is a professional mixed martial artist.

Now we have the BJ Penn everyone has hoped to see. The case has been building for years that he is the best ever at MMA’s most breakout weight class, but it always felt like something was missing. Now that feeling is gone and replaced with a far different, yet equally-disturbing reaction. Who will he fight next?

UFC matchmaker Joe Silva has thrown the bulk of the lightweight division at him: Joe Stevenson, Sean Sherk, Kenny Florian and Diego Sanchez. All previous top ten fighters, all finished by “The Prodigy”.

It’s time to think outside the box.

I’d like to see him fight a guy like Shinya Aoki, someone as slippery and flexible as he is on the ground. He’s someone who can tie him in knots, and even though he probably cannot submit him, he’d put Penn on the defensive for a change.

What about Josh Thomson? The American Kickboxing Academy standout has the sprawl and striking that could give the Hawaiian fits. He would avoid the takedown, move around the cage, and start punching and kicking the much smaller fella.

Could Penn’s hand speed keep up with Eddie Alvarez’s? Another sprawl and brawler, Alvarez has the punching power and chin to stand toe to toe with Penn and possibly put him where he has never been before: the ass-end of a boxing match.

I could write all day about his accomplishments. He choked out a 13-fight winning streak Matt Hughes, hog tied and smashed Takanori Gomi, treated Diego Sanchez like he stole his Spam and defeated every lightweight he has ever faced. But all of that would be a waste of ink because BJ Penn is entering the best phase of his career. That’s a scary thought my friends.

rj@mmaworldwide.com

Twitter -- @rjclifford2