The jury is still out whether former UFC lightweight and welterweight champion B.J. Penn will ever again fight inside the Octagon, and it now looks like it’ll remain that way for the foreseeable future. Penn traveled to Utah on Monday to meet with renowned eye specialist Dr. Alan Crandall, in order to undergo surgery to repair “a damaged eye suffering from cataracts,” the 34-year-old announced on his official website.
“January of last year is when I first noticed there was a problem,” explained Penn. “I was looking at my iPhone and I really couldn’t tell what was going on. At first I thought I tore my retina, so I went to my doctor and he said, ‘I can see right away what the problem is. You have a cataract.’ The doctor told me it could be traumatic or it could be from this medicine I was taking called Prednisone, which is what I had been using over the previous few years for sinus infections.”
Crandall is well known within the boxing community for successfully completing a similar procedure on Antonio Margarito, whose cataract problem were once considered career threatening. Margarito ultimately made a full recovery, and to this day remains the highest-profile fighter to regain licensure from a state athletic commission after undergoing such a procedure.
Penn revealed that his condition existed 11 months prior to his bout against Rory MacDonald, however he shouldered the blame for his loss in full, refusing take away anything from MacDonald’s victory. Nonetheless, Penn nudged open the door for a potential return to mixed martial arts if the surgery is successful.
“The number one reason for the surgery is just for daily life,” he concluded. “I have a tough time driving at night when the lights are shining and I’d like to get that back. On the other hand, you never know what you’re going to be thinking if the surgery goes well. If I go in the gym and I’m knocking down all my sparring partners and doing awesome I would definitely think of fighting again.”
6 MUST-READ STORIES
Penn undergoes surgery. Former UFC champ B.J. Penn traveled to Salt Lake City, UT to undergo surgery with Dr. Alan Crandall to repair a cataract in his eye. After announcing his decision, Penn opened the door for a return to the cage if recovery goes well. Per his website: “If I go in the gym and I’m knocking down all my sparring partners and doing awesome I would definitely think of fighting again.”
The MMA hour. Ariel Helwani and The MMA Hour return with another loaded episode featuring a lineup of Uriah Hall, Bjorn Rebney, Ryan Couture, Cub Swanson, Jimi Manuwa and Dennis Bermudez.
Rebney, Alvarez talk lawsuit. Eddie Alvarez phoned into The MMA Hour during Bjorn Rebney’s segment, hoping to speak with the Bellator CEO about the pair’s ongoing lawsuit. Rebney ultimately refused, however a fuming Alvarez later aired his thoughts on Rebney and the perceived “lies” Bellator’s lawyers were perpetuating with their litigation.
Report: UFC cards expanding. UFC fight cards, which typically span 11 fights, will regularly begin capping off at 12 or 13 fights in order to accommodate the needs of a roster rife with new talent from Strikeforce, according to a report from CagePotato.
TUF 17 Finale bookings. Three bouts highlighted a slew of bookings for The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale on April 13, 2013: UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson vs. John Moraga, former Strikeforce women’s champion Miesha Tate vs. Cat Zingano, and heavyweights Travis Browne vs. Gabriel Gonzaga.
Maia’s manager wants Saffiedine. With each of the top UFC 170-pound contenders already booked, Demian Maia’s manager, Eduardo Alonso, is angling for a bout against Strikeforce welterweight champion Tarec Saffiedine next for his client, according to a report from Brazilian outlet Tatame.
MEDIA STEW
“She’s running from me,” — Cris Cyborg, putting it bluntly when asked about Ronda Rousey.
Even despite the awful Stemm soundtrack, the ghosts of Pride live on strong in this Japanese UFC on FUEL 8 ad.
Jon Jones‘ most embarrassing experience involved a depantsing? Would’ve never guessed.
What sort of Morning Report curator would I be if I didn’t include at least one highlight-worthy slice into your day? That being said, off we go to the Scottish Open Knockdown Championships 2013…
(HT: MiddleEasy)
Carlos Condit wins this one. Hands down.
Is it just me, or has Big John not aged a day since any of this old footage took place? Whatever this guy has been eating for the past 20 years, I want some.
Our good friend Kyle Haase, the man behind the remarkable MMA collage, is back with his latest work, in what is hopefully the first of many to come. (To see more of Kyle’s work, check out his deviantART page or hit him up on Twitter.)
GOOD LUCK, CHAMP
Salt lake Utah is pretty cold … Beautiful place though
— BJ PENN (@bjpenndotcom) February 11, 2013
taking care of some business “@soopa_villain: @bjpenndotcom what u doing in utah BJ”
— BJ PENN (@bjpenndotcom) February 11, 2013
We’ll see how this goes “@lovelltaylor662: @bjpenndotcom so are you going to fight again”
— BJ PENN (@bjpenndotcom) February 11, 2013
LONG WAY TO GO
I’ve never been more excited to get back to camp, so looking forward to the end of this Chael Sonnen Chapter
— Jon Bones Jones (@JonnyBones) February 11, 2013
EDDIE VS. BJORN, PT. 1
@arielhelwani Got some questions for Mrs Rebney ,maybe ill call in
— Edward Alvarez (@Ealvarezfight) February 11, 2013
EDDIE VS. BJORN, PT. 2, FEATURING SPECIAL GUEST
@arielhelwani why won’t he talk to him on air?
— Dana White (@danawhite) February 11, 2013
IT’S ON
It’s official guys!! Im signed to the @ufc & have my first fight set for April 13th in Las Vegas!!
— Miesha Tate (@MieshaTate) February 11, 2013
YUP
Children are the best they can shit their pants without breaking eye contact with you. It just look like their thinking really hard
— Forrest Griffin (@ForrestGriffin) February 11, 2013
Disregard anything I say I have an IQ of 84. 14 points from mentally handicapped. Explains alot???
— Forrest Griffin (@ForrestGriffin) February 7, 2013
FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS
Announced yesterday (Monday, February 11, 2013):
- TUF 17 Finale: Demetrious Johnson (17-2-1) vs. John Moraga (12-1) for flyweight title
- TUF 17 Finale: Miesha Tate (13-3) vs. Cat Zingano (7-0)
- TUF 17 Finale: Gabriel Gonzaga (14-6) vs. Travis Browne (13-1-1)
- TUF 17 Finale: Cole Miller (18-7) vs. Bart Palaszewski (36-16)
- TUF 17 Finale: Daniel Pineda (17-9) vs. Justin Lawrence (4-1)
- Bellator 91: Alexander Sarnavskiy (22-1) out with injury, Jason Fischer (6-1) in against David Rickels (12-1) for welterweight tournament semifinals
FANPOST OF THE DAY
Today’s Fanpost of the Day sees tigerlee return with another edition of the: MMA Transaction Wire: February 5 – 11
More Strikeforce additions make UFC debut, Bellator 89 prelims, Two division champ Conor McGregor signed by UFC, Invicta FC 5 takes shape
Name Record Weight (Rank) Transaction Info (Date) Fight Card Opponent (Rank) Quinn Mulhern 18-2-0 170 (56) Signed by UFC, Feb 5 UFC 158, Mar 16 Rick Story (34) Thiago Tavares 17-5-1 155 (49) Suspended 9 months – failed drug test, Feb 6 TBD TBD Jorge Masvidal 23-7-0 155 (19) Signed by UFC, Feb 7 UFC FOX 7, Apr 20 Tim Means (32) Tim Goodwin 7-3-0 135 (185) Signed by Bellator, Feb 7 BFC 89, Feb 14 James Nathan Davis James Nathan Davis 3-0-0 135 (NR) Signed by Bellator, Feb 7 BFC 89, Feb 14 Tim Goodwin Chris Mierzwiak 4-2-0 170 (489) Signed by Bellator, Feb 7 BFC 89, Feb 14 Johnny Buck (157) Johnny Buck 11-8-0 170 (157) Signed by Bellator, Feb 7 BFC 89, Feb 14 Chris Mierzwiak Kyle Bolt 6-2-0 185 (391) Signed by Bellator, Feb 7 BFC 89, Feb 14 Joe Pacheco (NR) Joseph Pacheco 3-0-0 185 (NR) Signed by Bellator, Feb 7 BFC 89, Feb 14 Kyle Bolt Aaron Johnson 11-10-0,1NC 170 (130-LHW) Signed by Bellator, Feb 7 BFC 89, Feb 14 Brennan Ward (289-MW) David Mejia 4-0-0 265 (NR-I) Signed by Bellator, Feb 7 BFC 89, Feb 14 Mont McMullens (NR) Mont McMullens 2-3-0 265 (NR) Signed by Bellator, Feb 7 BFC 89, Feb 14 David Mejia Conor McGregor 12-2-0 145 (78-LW) Signed by UFC, Feb 7 UFC FUEL 9, Apr 6 Marcus Brimage (32) D.J. Linderman 13-4-0 205 (30) Signed by Legacy FC, Feb 7 LFC 19, Apr 12 Robert Drysdale (87) Chris Jones 8-1-0 145 (129) Signed by Legacy FC, Feb 7 LFC 19, Apr 12 Reynaldo Trujillo (296-LW) George Pacurariu 4-1-0 135 (NR) Signed by Legacy FC, Feb 7 LFC 19, Apr 12 Steven Peterson (119) Chris Spang 5-1-0 170 (174) Signed by UFC, Feb 4 UFC FUEL 9, Apr 6 Adlan Amagov Adlan Amagov 11-2-0 170 (48-MW) Signed by UFC, Feb 4 UFC FUEL 9, Apr 6 Chris Spang Ryan LaFlare 7-0-0 170 (224) Signed by UFC, Feb 9 UFC FUEL 9, Apr 6 Ben Alloway (126) Jennifer Maia 6-2-1 F125 (NR) Signed by Invicta FC, Feb 5 IFC 5, Apr 5 Zoila Gurgel (9) Jasminka Cive 5-0-0 F125 (NR) Signed by Invicta FC, Jan 28 IFC 5, Apr 5 Bec Hyatt (NR) Alex Chambers 3-1-0 F115 (15) Signed by Invicta FC, Jan 11 IFC 5, Apr 5 Jodie Esquibel (NR) River Jones Debut (6-0 AM) 135 (NR) Signed by Invicta FC, Jan 25 IFC 5, Apr 5 Lauren Barefoot (NR) Lauren Barefoot 1-0-0 135 (NR) Signed by Invicta FC, Feb 10 IFC 5, Apr 5 River Jones Rich Attonito 10-5-0 170 (113) Signed by Fight Time, Jan 12 Fight Time 13, Feb 15 Jerome Martinez (NR) Miesha Tate 13-3-0 135 (2) Signed by UFC, Feb 11 TUF 17 Finale, Apr 13 Cat Zingano (6) Cat Zingano 7-0-0 135 (6) Signed by UFC, Feb 11 TUF 17 Finale, Apr 13 Miesha Tate All Rankings taken from Fight Matrix at time of writing
Regional results from former Zuffa and Bellator fighters, plus more after the jump…
Found something you’d like to see in the Morning Report? Just hit me on Twitter @shaunalshatti and we’ll include it in tomorrow’s column.