Without a doubt, BJ «The Prodigy» Penn is the best 155 pound on the planet. There isn't any one inch the division that could touch him. Most 155 pound fighters can't even touch him BUT Diego «Nightmare» Sanchez is not a 155 pound fighter.
It could be surprising to the majority of that you will choose Diego Sanchez to overpower BJ Penn but he's got issues with bigger fighters and he has difficulties with fighters that they like to press the action. That and sboarena the +220 online sports betting odds, leads me to lay my cash on the underdog with this fight.
Diego can be a slightly better wrestling and he has better striking. The real determining aspect in why he can win this fight is pace. Diego Sanchez will push the pace with the fight anf the husband will pressure the fights. BJ Penn wants to control his mixed martial arts fights however, if a fighter takes control from the pace usually they are capable to dictate and beat BJ.
Also BJ Penn has problems with fighters which can be bigger and stronger than him. Penn lost to Georges St Pierre twice because GSP was bigger and that he pushed the pace from the fight. Penn lost to Matt Hughes while he has not been in shape and at the end in the fight Hughes pushed the pace anf the husband would be a bigger fighter.
Diego Sanchez is really a big 155 pound fighter. He is normally a welterweight fighter and could even fight at middleweight if he wished to. He will cut a great deal of weigh being received by this fight and after his weight cut, Sanchez will likely be at 170 pounds fight day. He will probably be an extremely larger and much more powerful fighter and that he will pose Penn some problems as a result of Diego's size.
Size will play big role with this fight, and Penn have not done this well with fighters that are bigger than him. BJ dominates same size fighters like he did with Kenny Florian and Sean Sherk. But remember Sanchez may be the bigger fighter and that is a major factor when fighting BJ Penn.
Diego is a fighter that is always fit and that he will pressure Penn when the fight starts. He will likely be in a position to back Penn track of his aggressive pressure and confuse him together with his strikes and kicks. After the first couple of rounds Penn will probably be exhausted always keeping track of Diego's' pace. When Penn fought Matt Hughes the next time he was dominating him but by round 3 he was out of gas and Hughes turned it down. His last fight with St Pierre he was getting thrown off his game and also by round 4 he can't continue. If Diego can push the pace he will tire out Penn and go ahead and take fight inside latter rounds.
While most people need a decade or maybe more to become a black belt, Penn got his black belt with only 3 years of education. BJ Penn is acknowledged for his jiu-jitsu but if you look at his record in MMA he wins all of his fights by rear naked choke. Now if you break down his grappling game he dominates the grappling game while he is equal in weight. If Diego Sanchez were a similar weight and dimensions he probably would dominate the fight.
However, Diego is no slouch on the ground. His no gi game is superb and contains even competed in the ADCC 2005 Absolute Division championships. The Abu Dhabi could be the most prestigious grapping tournament on the planet that is something BJ Penn has not competed in before. Diego won his first fight in the ADCC and lost his second fight to Marcelo Garcia that's thought to be one of the best grapplers on the globe. That was when Diego never even competed with a gi before. In 2005, Sanchez wrestled for his senior high school in New Mexico before beginning training MMA with Greg Jackson at Jackson's Submission Fighting that is thought to be the most effective MMA trainer on the globe. Despite never employing a gi in grappling Diego carries a very tight grappling game.
Striking wise you must provide a slight edge to Diego. Diego could have the reach and power advantage inside the striking. He will probably be greater fighter and he can push off and jab his punches so BJ Penn won't to go into close. Technically BJ Penn can be a better striker with better fundamentals but he'll be wrongly identified as the sheer volume of strikes as well as the reach.
Bottom Line: Remember Diego Sanchez would have been a format member from the Greg Jackson team and Jackson was inside the corner when GSP fought Penn so Sanchez will fight the same fight that St Pierre fought. Sanchez will probably be prepared for this fight anf the husband will shock many.
I love the belief that Sanchez may be the bigger, stronger plus much more aggressive fighter. These are the three factors that BJ Penn has troubles with in fighters. UFC sports betting wise the +220 betting likelihood is perfect and I would lay a small amount on the money line for Diego to win this fight. I don't think Diego has the power to knock out Penn or even the grappling skill to sub him but he's possess the power and strength to win the stand and have the defeat points.
He also offers the skill in top position to have an effective ground and pound. If he or she is in Penn's guard, he can perform the exact same thing GSP did and use his size and power to punish Penn. The Ribeiro brothers will demonstrate him how to fight effectively in the guard. If Diego stays within the top position he can control the soil game. If Penn is onto it will probably be over. However, Penn can have a difficult time getting top position or taking Diego's back since he will be the bigger stronger fighter.
I do believe Diego does not hold the skills to beat Penn but he's got the stamina and power to hurt Penn and provide this fight late into the rounds. By the time Penn hits the forth round he'll be gassed which is when Sanchez will need over. The best bet is usually to bet for the UFC prop bet for Diego to win by decision. He will hurt and confuse Penn together with his strikes and kicks. BJ won't be in a position to close the distance while he may be the smaller fighter. BJ Penn has a lot to look out for within this fight like strikes, kicks, takedowns along with the ground and pound while Sanchez just has to fret not stopping his back or just being about the bottom.
Look for Diego Sanchez to be the New UFC Lightweight Champion using a Split Decision
Written by Stan Leung and delivered by.