UFC FN 103: Rodriguez vs. Penn Info and Prediction Thread

[tokeweed]

Date:  Sunday, January 15th
Preliminary Card (UFC Fight Pass):  3pm PST / 6pm EST
Main Card (UFC Fight Pass):  5pm PST / 8pm EST
Live Streams:  http://firstrowus1.eu/




Main Card (Fox Sports 1)

Yair Rodriguez (9-1) vs. B.J. Penn (16-10-2) (Featherweight)
Joe Lauzon (16-5) vs. Marcin Held (22-5) (Lightweight)
Court McGee (18-5) vs. Ben Saunders (20-7-2) (Welterweight)
Jimmie Rivera (20-1) vs. Bryan Caraway (21-7) (Bantamweight)

Preliminary Card (Fox Sports 1)

John Moraga (16-5) vs. Sergio Pettis (14-2) (Flyweight)
Frankie Saenz (11-4) vs. Augusto Mendes (5-1) (Bantamweight)
Oleksiy Oliynyk (50-10-1) vs. Viktor Pesta (10-3) (Heavyweight)
Alex White (11-2) vs. Tony Martin (10-3) (Lightweight)

Preliminary Card (UFC Fight Pass)

Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger (6-3) vs. Nina Ansaroff (6-5) (Women's Strawweight)
Devin Powell (8-1) vs. Drakkar Klose (6-0-1) (Lightweight)
Walt Harris (8-5) vs. Chase Sherman (9-2) (Heavyweight)
Joachim Christensen (13-4) vs. Bojan Mihajlovic (10-4) (Lightweight)
Dmitri Smoliakov (8-1) vs. Cyril Asker (7-2) (Heavyweight)

Other

- Erik Koch was expected to face Tony Martin at the event. However, Koch pulled out of the fight on December 12 citing injury and was replaced by Alex White.

- Damian Grabowski was expected to face Viktor Pesta at the event. However, Grabowski was removed from the bout on December 21 for undisclosed reasons and was replaced by Oleksiy Oliynyk.

- On December 29, two bouts suffered alterations: Jussier Formiga pulled out from his bout against Sergio Pettis and Jordan Rinaldi from his bout against Devin Powell. They were replaced by former UFC Flyweight Championship challenger John Moraga and promotional newcomer Drakkar Klose on 17 days short notice

Thanks to the Puertorican for letting me use this content

[JANGKRIK BOSS]

The fight that I look forward to, I think this fight will be win by Rodriguez.

BJ Pen was indeed a lot of experience, but the age factor became an issue. He's been a long time not to compete, so it looks like a new fighter.

I hope this fight happens a lot stand fight.

[eaLiTy]

I am looking forward for the return of the legendary BJ Penn and that too he is from a great camp at jacksons but i do think that age has caught up with him and coming out of an retirement and sure he will be a dangerous opponent and Rodriguez is a real talent and i really like his fighting style and movement inside the ring and i am not sure how to make a prediction on this match.

[bbc.reporter]

Why did BJ Penn decide to come back fighting in the UFC? I believe he needs the money. He knows he cannot be the same as he was at his peak. But if the UFC was in the same level years ago, BJ Penn would have been earning as big as Conor. He fight in more weight divisions than anyone in the sport.

I hope Penn wins. He has my support. But the bet is only small. hehehe

[tokeweed]

Here's a clip of one of the classic B.J. Penn fights.  It's vs Kenny Florian, another legendary fighter during his time.  And to think that Penn didn't have a top training camp when he was considered the best during that time is astonishing.

Fight Night Phoenix Free Fight: BJ Penn vs Kenny Florian
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9BZIC635XVs

Enjoy the video! 

[eaLiTy]

I am looking forward for the return of the legendary BJ Penn and that too he is from a great camp at jacksons but i do think that age has caught up with him and coming out of an retirement and sure he will be a dangerous opponent and Rodriguez is a real talent and i really like his fighting style and movement inside the ring and i am not sure how to make a prediction on this match.

The legacy of BJ Penn is that he even had a fight in heavy weight division and he is the first person who said weight division is just an obstacle and he will fight at any weight divisions and he did not even had a high profile camp like AKA or Jacksons and so is the reason he retired in his early 30s because the battle he has done inside the cage has taken a toll and now with Fabricio Werdum winning his first belt at the age of 37 even Penn wanted to try it out with a good camp which made him come back .

[deadsilent]

For the main event. I think i'll go for Rodriguez. Rodriguez is more younger and stronger than Penn. I think he has a slightly edge. No offense for Penn. But i dont think he could win this fight. But he is my idol tho. Also fitness can be the issue here. I dont know if he can keep up until the last round. One thing that i really like on Penn. He has a big heart. A true legendary fighter.

[tokeweed]

Hey, just dropping by to post a video.  This is one of the more minor UFC events that I'm excited of watching only because it's B.J. Penn in the main event.  Otherwise I wouldn't bother that much in looking for updates on the internet.  Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy the video.

UFC Fight Night Countdown: Rodriguez vs. Penn
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZmxJOoh8p0

[eaLiTy]

For the main event. I think i'll go for Rodriguez. Rodriguez is more younger and stronger than Penn. I think he has a slightly edge. No offense for Penn. But i dont think he could win this fight. But he is my idol tho. Also fitness can be the issue here. I dont know if he can keep up until the last round. One thing that i really like on Penn. He has a big heart. A true legendary fighter.

You really cannot say Rodriguez is stronger than BJ Penn.Hope you have seen his fights.He is more athletic and is crazy inside the cage and his movements are really great .It is really interesting to see how BJ Penn would be inside the cage after retirement is the one i am looking forward to.He has lost some matches before but now he is training under Jacksons which i am sure will make a difference in his approach and BJ Penn is a quick learner.  

[bbc.reporter]

@eaLiTy. Yair Rodriguez is stronger than BJ Penn. Watch his past fights and see how good he is in both striking and on the ground. Also BJ is coming out of retirement. So how can you be not so sure that Yair is stronger than his opponent? My bet is for BJ but Yair has the higher chance to win this fight.

[tokeweed]

I love B.J. Penn but I don't think he's gonna win vs Yair Rodriguez.  But if you ask me I think it was Penn who asked for this fight in order to try and make a comeback.  If he wins here, which I don't think will happen, it could just get him back on track in his fighting career.

We'll see what happens this Sunday.  Just to give you a taste of what Rodriguez is capable of, watch this.

Fight Night Phoenix Free Fight: Yair Rodriguez vs Charles Rosa
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7F5hdDPYoAk

[lemipawa]

I'll be surprised if this fight of BJ Penn is not cancelled in the next couple of days because of injury. His last scheduled fight was here in the Philippines but UFC cancelled the entire event and using the current security reason in the Philippines as an alibi. Nevertheless If this fight pushes through I'll put my money on Yair Rodriguez.

[bbc.reporter]

@lemipawa. Can you post the link of that story? Was BJ really injured and had to pull out at the event in the Philippines? Because the story I heard was your government wanted to test all the staff and the fighters of the UFC for drug use. Maybe Dana White got offended or maybe he knows a lot of the staff use drugs in one form or another so they had to cancel the event.

We all know Joe Rogan is a marijuana user and is open about it. Maybe there are a lot more people using it in the UFC.

[tokeweed]

Check this fight out between Joe Lauzon and Diego Sanchez.  Now Lauzon isn't a particularly one of the best fighters but he fights pretty good and bloody.  He like getting in the pocket and he isn't holding anything back.  He's my bet to win this Sunday.

Fight Night Phoenix Free Fight: Joe Lauzon vs Diego Sanchez
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=js5mfmtUXIo

Here's a good breakdown of Joe Lauzon's submission of his opponent in one of his fights.  Enjoy! 

Fight Night Phoenix: Gracie Breakdown - Joe Lauzon
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODM0pFURz0s

[bbc.reporter]

Now the hype is starting. In the news it said that  the people around BJ Penn is calling Yair Rodriguez a pussy and at the other side Yair is saying that BJ is acting like an amateur. So tomorrow let us see who can back up their words with action.

Go BJ! We are behind you!

[nydiacaskey01]

Rodriguez won via TKO on the second round after hitting BJ Penn with a kick and Rodriguez follow up with punches until the 3rd man in the octagon John McCarthy stepped in to save BJ Penn for further injuries. Not really a good comeback fight for BJ Penn, even from the start of the first round you can tell already that Rodriguez will win this fight.

[tokeweed]

I really felt sorry for B.J. Penn as I was watching the event.  My friend and I were talking about it and how it all lead up to this.  I think Penn is broke and needs the money.  He took this fight to probably support his family financially more than to become a contender again.  All the hype and marketing done in this fight is all BS and the fight is totally garbage.

[eaLiTy]

I really felt sorry for B.J. Penn as I was watching the event.  My friend and I were talking about it and how it all lead up to this.  I think Penn is broke and needs the money.  He took this fight to probably support his family financially more than to become a contender again.  All the hype and marketing done in this fight is all BS and the fight is totally garbage.

BJ Penn is from a wealthy family and i am sure he is not back in the ring for the money instead he wanted to have another run in the fight game because he felt he has some fights left in him and that too from a good camp like jacksons,but Rodriguez is a really skilled striker and BJ Penn does not have a clue against his kicks as his angles from which he kicks are really awkward and you really cannot defend those unless you keep the distance but Rodriguez is really good in maintaining his striking distance .

[bbc.reporter]

Yes do not pity him. His family is rich in Hawaii. They made a gym for him to train in MMA in his early days. Maybe he decided to go back in the octagon because he was bored.

I was laughing during the last few seconds of the fight when Yair was punching him while BJ was on the ground. It was like a cat and a dog fighting. I wish the referee did not stop it for a few seconds more.

[deadsilent]

Yes do not pity him. His family is rich in Hawaii. They made a gym for him to train in MMA in his early days. Maybe he decided to go back in the octagon because he was bored.

I was laughing during the last few seconds of the fight when Yair was punching him while BJ was on the ground. It was like a cat and a dog fighting. I wish the referee did not stop it for a few seconds more.

Lol. Just like a girl on girl fight. When i saw that. I said. What is that? Is that slap or punch?
Im not gonna call it hammer punch because its to soft. Hahaha
Anyway, good job for Rodriguez. He did a great milestone of his career. He defeat the legendary BJ Penn. Now Penn should retire now because he cannot keep up with younger and stronger opponents in his division