https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAy5VTQrJ7A
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Hall of Famer B.J. Penn had a rough return to the Octagon this past Sunday night (Jan. 15). He took on Yair Rodriguez in the main event of a UFC Fight Night card in Phoenix, Arizona. The speed difference was glaring and “The Prodigy” was never in the fight.
“El Pantera’s” flashy kicks had Penn off balance and backing up in the first round. Even when Penn tied his opponent up against the fence momentarily, he couldn’t hold him there. At the start of the second round, Rodriguez blasted Penn with a front kick followed by a straight punch that dropped him. A series of strikes later and the fight was stopped.
Former UFC fighter and opponent of Penn’s Kenny Florian said enough is enough at the FOX Sports 1 post-fight show. The analyst made his advice to Penn clear:
“Retire, at this point. No one needs to see a legend like B.J. Penn go out like that. That was very hard to see and not to mention the last fight against Frankie Edgar was very hard to see. And now we’re seeing it again against Yair Rodriguez.”
While there have been exceptions to fighters excelling beyond their supposed prime such as Randy Couture when he won the UFC heavyweight title at the age of 43, that was the exception and not the rule. Florian said there are other money making opportunities for the 38-year-old legend.
“The sport has passed him by. This is an eventuality for every single fighter. It doesn’t matter. Eventually, you don’t move the same way. If you don’t keep up with the sport, you’re gonna get beat down like this and this sport is way too hard. There’s other ways to make money and I hope B.J. Penn finds some kind of peace in retiring finally.”