UFC 107 postfight: Sanchez pays for trying to steal Penn's secrets

Clark Kent

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12-14-2009 12:45 PM:

Diego Sanchez never figured out how to attack B.J. Penn on Saturday at UFC 107. Sanchez got destroyed on the feet. He suffered what looked like a broken nose, both of his eyes were blackened and a Penn kick ripped open a huge gash on his forehead. Anytime Sanchez came forward with a flurry, Penn stepped to his side and countered with two or three punches. Sanchez couldn't score a single takedown in 16 attempts. It was clear Sanchez and his corner, which was still telling him to go for the takedown even before the fourth round, were lost against Penn.

It was satifying for the UFC lightweight champ, who thought a few years back that Sanchez was setting up a fight between them:

"I always had a feeling he wanted to fight me. I just kind of kept my mouth shut," said Penn (15-5-1, 11-4-1, UFC). "He would always ask me to train with him. I know he wants to train with me to see what I have. Just like clockwork, he starts challenging me like a year later."

Smart move on Penn's part.

During the presser, Frank Mir said Penn is going to be tough to beat because he's a great athlete, his boxing is excellent and he's very technical. He suggested Frank Edgar would make a good fight while UFC matchmaker Joe Silva piped up and said don't forget about Gray Maynard. Those two along with Tyson Griffin may be the last few real challenges for Penn sans rematches. Don't sleep on what Kenny Florian looks like in 18 months working with a new camp. After that, Penn has got to be thinking about one more shot against Georges St. Pierre back at 170 pounds. When asked how he would put on the extra weight the correct way, Penn declined to answer and said he's not thinking about it. A 31-year-old Penn is a much more composed and mature Penn as Sanchez found during his brutal beating.



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MattJ

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One of the most lop-sided beat-downs I have seen in MMA. BJ Penn is on another level. Maynard is the only other possible contender, and he won't do any better than Diego did.
 

Steve

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It's a funny thing. Diego, Florian, Sherk... all of these guys are bad asses. They're all top tier guys who battle it out for contention. Then, BJ makes them all look like amateurs. It's crazy. Personally, I see Florian as the only guy right now who can hope to compete with Penn's combination of physical intelligence and technical ability.

I was reading that GSP has gained a lot of muscle mass and may be growing right out of the 170 weight class. We may see a three way shift up in the UFC with Anderson Silva moving to 205, GSP up to 185 and then Penn to 170. That would open things up.
 

punisher73

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There's a reason why Penn is called "The Prodigy", he earned his BB in BJJ very quickly through hard and long training (also helps when the family has money to pay for it). It's also one of the reasons why Penn has lost some fights, because he didn't take his training seriously enough. When he is on, he is great to watch.






PS: Money to pay for the training and not having to work also, not paying for a belt. Just wanted to be clear on that.
 

FearlessFreep

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Sorry if I missed it somewhere around here but...any video of the fight

Guys in class were talking about it but I missed everything this weekend
 

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