TUF 5 Finale Final Card

[pikemojo]

BJ looked good but I doubt that he will ever dominate the welterweight division. When he beat Hughes it was obvious Hughees took him too lightly. Since then Hughes has gotten much better and BJ has been beaten by St. Pierre. It will be fun to see Penn in that division again but I doubt he will be dominant and he will have to prove himself before a title shot. Beating Pulver doesn't prove much to me.

[LWPD]

BJ looked good but I doubt that he will ever dominate the welterweight division. When he beat Hughes it was obvious Hughees took him too lightly.

Matt Hughes has repeatedly said countless times over the years that he that he trained hard for that fight and just got caught. He couldn't take Penn down, was dominated on the ground and was eventually knocked semi conscious with a punch that led to BJ securing the RNC and forcing him to tap. None of this was due to 'taking BJ too lightly'...it was due to being outclassed by a superior fighter on a given day.

Since then Hughes has gotten much better

BJ took the second fight on short notice as a favor to Dana (it was supposed to be Hughes/GSP). In the rematch BJ Penn once again thoroughly dominated Matt Hughes for two rounds before a freak rib injury led to defeat in the third. In a rubber match with both men coming in healthy and prepared...the smart money would be on Penn.

and BJ has been beaten by St. Pierre.

Look at the condition of both men after that fight. Penn did far more damage to GSP than vice versa...busting him open and sending him to the hospital. Penn walked out unscathed. BJ deservedly lost a judges decision due to the scoring of 'takedowns' that led to nothing and poor conditioning. Props to GSP on the victory...but a rematch is inevitable (with Penn having the advantage in striking, clinch work and on the ground). A highly conditioned Penn would win the rematch.

[Cosmic Crippler]

Man. The 170 pund division is looking great. Having the Heat, Hughes, no-one-knew-he-could-strike-Serra, GSP, and Penn all in one division leaves some pretty exciting possible match ups.
A question for LWPD....Do you think Penn was out of condition for the fight or do you think Penn's own offense coupled with GSP's style and resilience wore him out? Just curious. As a boxer (which I know is not anywhere near as taxing as MMA) I know no matter what shape Im in certain styles of fighters and someone who can take a beating (its tiring hammering away at someone who wont back off) can get me huffing and puffing real quick. By the way this isnt a disagreement to your point. I was just curious on your take on that fight.

[LWPD]

curlig76 said:

A question for LWPD....Do you think Penn was out of condition for the fight or do you think Penn's own offense coupled with GSP's style and resilience wore him out? Just curious. As a boxer (which I know is not anywhere near as taxing as MMA) I know no matter what shape Im in certain styles of fighters and someone who can take a beating (its tiring hammering away at someone who wont back off) can get me huffing and puffing real quick. By the way this isnt a disagreement to your point. I was just curious on your take on that fight.

BJ's two biggest weaknesses have always been conditioning and failure to conserve his energy. Combined that's a big obstacle. He tends to come in with a 'two round fight' mind set...which leads to him blowing up by early. The GSP fight was a textbook example. He dominated the first round standing but then wasted all his energy. His adrenaline and will to fight was largely gone by the start of the second round.

Here's a guy with world class takedown defense...who Randy Couture says 'dominates him' with they train together from the clinch...who Matt Hughes couldn't take down on one leg...yet against GSP he wasn't even sprawling by Round 2.

I think a big part of it's mental. He comes out amped up...can and does dominate any and everyone he faces in the first round...and then there's a drop off. He himself has recognized the problem and as a fan I'm hoping he'll achieve his full potential. Look how he changed up his music in the Pulver fight and appeared much calmer and emotionally fluid. Publicly admitting this to himself was the first step...my fingers are crossed that he'll follow through.

CC...check out this excellent article on the Mental Aspects of Fighting