2009 MMA FIGHTER OF THE YEAR
December 27, 2009 by Matt
There are a lot of big names being nominated for MMA Fighter of the Year, but in the end, I think it’s a fairly easy call. I made my decision based on a few factors: quantity of fights, quality of opponents, type of fights (title bouts weigh more) and overall dominance. First, the runners-up…
B.J. Penn
No fighter looked more dominant than “The Prodigy” did in his wins against Diego Sanchez and Kenny Florian. But Penn was throttled soundly by GSP back in January.
Fedor Emelianenko
Fedor fought only twice and won both times. He beat Arlovski and Rogers, but it’s not enough for FOY.
Gegard Mousasi
Mousasi will get a lot of mentions for FOY, but his 2008 was actually more impressive than his 2009. He beat Mark Hunt, who was on a 4-fight losing streak. He needed just one minute to KO Babalu. And he finished the year with a TKO win over Sokoudjou here in Chicago.
Anderson Silva
“The Spider” probably was the most bored fighter of the year. The Forrest Griffin fight was nonsense and Thales Leites is no longer in the UFC. The UFC needs to challenge him more in 2010.
Georges St. Pierre
GSP dominated B.J. Penn and Thiago Alves, but it’s not enough for the FOY.
Lyoto Machida
Machida beat Thiago Silva, then Rashad Evans for the LHW belt. But it is the opinion of many that Shogun Rua should be the champion after their UFC 104 fight. I agree. So I can’t give Machida FOY.
There’s just one man left that could be the “FOY”. Read more
UFC 107 POST-FIGHT PRESSER: B.J. PENN
B.J. Penn is still the man at 155 in the UFC after he battered Diego Sanchez at UFC 107. Here is his post-fight press conference.
UFC 107: PENN VS. SANCHEZ PREVIEW VIDEO
UFC 107 will take place on Saturday Dec. 12th, live from the Fedex Forum in Memphis, Tennessee. Diego “Nightmare” Sanchez will do battle for the lightweight championship against B.J. Penn. Frank Mir looks to get back on track for a title shot by taking on striking specialist Cheick Kongo. And of course, Chicago’s MMA favorite Clay Guida gets a shot at Kenny Florian.
Could “Nightmare” be the one to finally beat BJ at 155? Will Mir be able to beat Kongo and make one more run at a title? Does Guida have enough to beat Ken-Flo?
UFC 101 POST-FIGHT PRESS CONFERENCE
August 9, 2009 by Matt
Dominant performance by B.J. Penn. Here is the post-fight press conference from UFC 101.
BJ PENN THINKS GSP DOES STEROIDS
August 6, 2009 by Matt
This isn’t exactly what BJ Penn needed with a title fight right around the corner. A huge uproar has just begun over inflammatory comments Penn made during an interview with Kevin Iole of Yahoo. Penn said he believes Georges St. Pierre uses steroids.
Penn said he believes St. Pierre uses steroids, though he concedes he has no proof. St. Pierre is arguably the sport’s most popular fighter and Penn knows that making such allegations isn’t going to win him any friends.
Penn, though, isn’t the type to be shy about offering his opinion though it may be unpopular.
“It’s just my opinion that he uses steroids,” Penn said. “That’s it. My opinion. I do believe it. I can’t hand you any proof, but that’s my opinion.”
In an earlier conversation on the topic, Penn said, “In my opinion, he doesn’t play by the rules when it comes to steroids and growth hormones and that stuff. Look at him. He’s the worst. He looks like that every day. That’s cheating. There is a reason why there are rules against using steroids. The rest of us, we get fat, then we train and get skinny and the cycle goes over and over again. He looks the same way all the time. Come on.”
B.J. then added these 2 video responses at his website.
B.J. seems like he’s trying to be apologetic. But how can he make those comments and then say that he didn’t know Iole would make the article about that? He just accused GSP of roiding, based on his “opinion”. Of course Iole is going to jump on that. Those are harsh accusations.
VIDEO: PENN AND FLORIAN PREVIEW THEIR UFC 101 FIGHT
July 28, 2009 by searstapper
B.J. Penn defends his lightweight title against Kenny Florian. Penn did not perform well in his last fight, a loss to Georges St. Pierre for the welterweight belt. Florian is looking to give “The Prodigy” his second loss in a row, which would also give him the championship. This is the main event for UFC 101: Declaration, which takes place at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia.
“NEVER SURRENDER” DVD GIVEAWAY
April 28, 2009 by Matt
Chicago’s MMA is giving away a new copy of “Never Surrender” on DVD. To win, all you have to do is send an e-mail with your name to contest@chicagosmma.com. We will allow entries until 11:59pm on Monday, May 4th. We’ll announce the winner right here Tuesday morning.
Head over to the “Never Surrender” official website to check out a very cool action widget where you can upload your face into a fight scene. You can also enter the sweepstakes to win a trip to Hawaii for a private lesson with B.J. Penn! The DVD is in stores today.
