fitch: "if bj doesn't have the cardio…

“I’m extremely hard to finish and I have a huge gas tank and historically that’s a big problem for B.J. Penn. If he doesn’t have the cardio to keep up with my pace, there’s no way he’s going to last. If I went out there and tried to match BJ’s timing, or match BJ’s speed, it would never happen. And a lot of guys fall into that trap. It’s more about setting your pace and dictating the action, dictating what’s going on in the fight. That way you’re not reacting to things, you’re making the faster guy react to you. If you’re good enough you can set traps, make them react the wrong way.” 

Set to face BJ Penn at UFC 127, number 2 ranked welterweight Jon Fitch tells Sports Illustrated where he will have the advantage come Feb 27 when the two face off in Australia. As I pole and probe amongst industry insiders, fighters and experts in regards to this match-up the consensus is clear, BJ needs cardio to beat Fitch. The question here is, not whether or not BJ will be prepared for this fight or not, the question is really, who is going to be the better fighter come fight night. Speculation aside, there is only one way to find out…