In case you missed it, Rory MacDonald asked for a fight with former UFC lightweight and welterweight champion BJ Penn and it didn’t take long for “The Prodigy” to respond this week.
Not only does Penn expect this to be a competitive fight, he essentially said he expects both himself and the 22-year-old prospect to have a stay in the hospital afterwards.
“I want to show them (Tri-Star Gym), I want to show the world that you’re not going to just walk in and kick my butt for four rounds. No way. You’re going to the hospital, too. If I go to the hospital, you’re going to the hospital, too,” Penn said in an interview with “Just Scrap” radio Thursday.
Penn said that he wants to show he can still hang with the 170-pound division’s best and also hinted that he would like some revenge for the beating he took at the hands of reigning champion Georges St-Pierre at UFC 94.
“I got a lot of offers from all these other guys to fight, but when I got the offer from Rory, I said, ‘Good, I get to fight that brain of Tri-Star Gym,'” he told hosts Jens and Abel Pulver.
Penn received an offer to fight Gilbert Melendez for the Strikeforce lightweight title and more recently had the opportunity to square off with UFC welterweight contender Josh Koscheck, but the BJJ black belt declined both offers.
“A lot of it is [trainer] Firas [Zihabi]. They got a good thing going on up there, they have a good team, and they’re making a lot of waves. Of course, they got St. Pierre, who is going to go down as the greatest welterweight in history, and now they got another guy they think will be the champion.”
Penn, now 33-years-old and weighing around 185-pounds since retiring after a loss to Nick Diaz at UFC 137, said he feels as good as he has since he was 22.
“I know when I’m going in at full gear and everything’s ready to go, he ain’t going to see my fists coming, he ain’t going to see my takedowns, he ain’t going to be able to stop my submissions,” Penn added. “I feel very confident.”
MacDonald requested that the bout take place in his home county of Canada at UFC 152 and Penn is happy to oblige.
“I’m ready to fly up to Toronto, the belly of the beast,” he said. “I’m going to see a fire-breathing dragon, and I’m going to pull out my sword. I’m ready. I’m ready to do this.”
UFC officials have yet to confirm the fight, but given the circumstances surrounding the bout, it seems to be a forgone conclusion that this match-up will happen in September.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com