Matt Hughes: BJ Penn Should Fight An Old & Out Of Shape Brazilian
Matt Hughes thinks BJ Penn needs to pick better opponents if he’s going to continue fighting inside the Octagon.
The pair have fought on three separate occasions; Penn winning their first meeting back in 2004 at UFC 46 via first round submission, Hughes getting the better of the Hawaiian at UFC 63 two years later via round three TKO, and Penn winning their third and final encounter at UFC 123 in 2010 with a knockout in just 21 seconds.
Now that their days of battle inside the Octagon are done, Penn and Hughes have actually developed quite the friendship. Hughes recently joined The MMA Hour to talk about Penn’s recent return to Octagon action, and stated that he’d wish his friend would pick opponents a little more on his level at this point in his career (quotes via MMA Fighting):
“I wish he would just find the right opponent, you know?” Hughes said. “I’ve always told him, ‘hey B.J., you’re so good on the ground, find an older Brazilian that’s not going to have’ … typically Brazilians don’t have the best cardio, ‘find an old Brazilian who’s not in shape who’s going to want to be on the ground, and kind of get your hand in the air, go out that way.’”
Penn recently returned this past January and suffered a nasty second round knockout loss to Yair Rodriguez in Phoenix. It marked “The Prodigy’s” fourth consecutive loss, as his win over Hughes in 2010 remains his last:
“BJ is such a competitor that he wants to fight the best out there,” Hughes said. “That’s just the way he’s always been. My hat goes off to him for being that way, but I wish he would just be kind of a little smarter about it and really really choose a right opponent.”
Currently, Penn is scheduled to take on Dennis Siver on June 25th from Oklahoma City. The match-up seems much more fitting seeing as both men are 38-years-old:
“BJ is not quite as quick as he used to be with his hands,” Hughes said. “He used to counter so hard with that hook, and that hook just doesn’t seem to be there anymore. So I do like this match-up. It’s an older guy. It could be better but definitely could be a lot worse.”
