For better or worse, MMA legend BJ Penn is reportedly planning another UFC return.
The decorated former UFC lightweight champion will return against The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) winner Ryan Hall at an unknown event. The fight was first reported by ESPN’s Ariel Helwani. The bout does not have an official date or time:
“It appears as though BJ Penn isn’t done yet. According to multiple sources, the UFC is currently discussing booking Penn vs. Ryan Hall later this year. The lightweight fight isn’t signed yet and a date hasn’t been finalized at this time, as well. November or December has been discussed.
“According to sources, Penn is currently in Brazil training for his return. The 39-year-old Penn (16-12-2) has lost his last five fights in a row and hasn’t won since he knocked out Matt Hughes in November 2010. His most recent fight was a June 2017 majority decision loss to Dennis Siver. Hall (6-1) hasn’t fought since his December 2016 win over Gray Maynard.”
A Risk Worth Taking?
Penn has been out of the Octagon since dropping a majority decision to Dennis Siver in June 2017. He has lost his last five MMA bouts including two by knockout. He looked especially weathered in his UFC Fight Night 103 loss to then-rising featherweight prospect Yair Rodriguez.
‘The Prodigy’ remains one of the most storied fighters in UFC history due to his insistence on fighting anyone at any time, but his UFC record appears a bit lackluster at this point.
It’s a fair question to ask if he should risk slipping it further towards .500 at this point. Penn would be risking a lot against an opponent who is not a big name. Hall has been out of action since a December 2016 decision win over Gray Maynard. He won The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 22 lightweight tournament by defeating Artem Lobov in December 2015.
Hall has had a well-documented struggle getting fights from the UFC due to a grappling-centered style deemed boring by many.
For better or worse, MMA legend BJ Penn is reportedly planning another UFC return.
The decorated former UFC lightweight champion will return against The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) winner Ryan Hall at an unknown event. The fight was first reported by ESPN’s Ariel Helwani. The bout does not have an official date or time:
“It appears as though BJ Penn isn’t done yet. According to multiple sources, the UFC is currently discussing booking Penn vs. Ryan Hall later this year. The lightweight fight isn’t signed yet and a date hasn’t been finalized at this time, as well. November or December has been discussed.
“According to sources, Penn is currently in Brazil training for his return. The 39-year-old Penn (16-12-2) has lost his last five fights in a row and hasn’t won since he knocked out Matt Hughes in November 2010. His most recent fight was a June 2017 majority decision loss to Dennis Siver. Hall (6-1) hasn’t fought since his December 2016 win over Gray Maynard.”
A Risk Worth Taking?
Penn has been out of the Octagon since dropping a majority decision to Dennis Siver in June 2017. He has lost his last five MMA bouts including two by knockout. He looked especially weathered in his UFC Fight Night 103 loss to then-rising featherweight prospect Yair Rodriguez.
‘The Prodigy’ remains one of the most storied fighters in UFC history due to his insistence on fighting anyone at any time, but his UFC record appears a bit lackluster at this point.
It’s a fair question to ask if he should risk slipping it further towards .500 at this point. Penn would be risking a lot against an opponent who is not a big name. Hall has been out of action since a December 2016 decision win over Gray Maynard. He won The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 22 lightweight tournament by defeating Artem Lobov in December 2015.
Hall has had a well-documented struggle getting fights from the UFC due to a grappling-centered style deemed boring by many.
When you think of hotspots currently gracing the world of mixed martial arts, some of the big places are the Russian Caucasus, Poland, Ireland and Mexico. MMA is exploding there, leading to an increase in interest and prospects for the sport. A place that has really jumped on the radar in recent times is Hawaii, […]
When you think of hotspots currently gracing the world of mixed martial arts, some of the big places are the Russian Caucasus, Poland, Ireland and Mexico. MMA is exploding there, leading to an increase in interest and prospects for the sport. A place that has really jumped on the radar in recent times is Hawaii, […]
CagePotato.com has learned that ProElite’s second show under its new ownership and management will happen November 5 at the iWireless Center in Moline, Illinois. Although no announcements have been made regarding the event, which is tentatively dubbed “ProElite II” or the show’s fight card, there is strong indication that the promotion is working on a third meeting between former UFC heavyweight champions Tim Sylvia (29-7) and Andrei Arlovski (16-9) and that the bout could be the main event.
Adding to speculation that the bout is all but official is the following tweet that “The Maine-iac” sent out last week.
(Which one is the dead horse?)
CagePotato.com has learned that ProElite’s second show under its new ownership and management will happen November 5 at the iWireless Center in Moline, Illinois. Although no announcements have been made regarding the event, which is tentatively dubbed “ProElite II” or the show’s fight card, there is strong indication that the promotion is working on a fourth meeting between former UFC heavyweight champions Tim Sylvia (29-7) and Andrei Arlovski (16-9) and that the bout could be the main event.
Adding to speculation that the bout is all but official is the following tweet that “The Maine-iac” sent out last week.
ProElite had originally planned to hold its next show back in Hawaii, but evidently decided that Illinois was a better fit, considering Arlovski lives and trains two hours west of Moline in Chicago and Sylvia is a part-time police officer in Milan, less than 15 minutes away from the venue.
If the bout does happen, Sylvia will go into it with a 2-1 advantage over Arlovski, having beaten him by decision and TKO in back-to-back bouts in 2006 after being submitted by Andrei in 2005 with an Achilles lock. Since being released by the UFC in 2008, the 35-year-old Maine native has racked up a somewhat uninspiring 5-3 record including losses to Fedor Emelianenko, Ray Mercer and Abe Wagner. Sources indicate that the former Team Miletich fighter, who defeated Patrick Barrentine (9-6) in his last fight under the Fight Tour banner on August 20, has been quietly preparing for his ProElite debut, so all evidence is pointing to this fight going down.
Arlovski’s luck hasn’t been any better. Since he was let go by Zuffa, the 32-year-old former Belarusian police officer has gone 3-4, including four losses in a row to Emelianenko, Brett Rogers, Antonio Silva and Sergei Kharitonov, respectively. In his most recent bout he defeated Ray Lopez (5-3) in “ProElite II’s” first show last month in Hawaii.
Tickets for the show will go on sale this Saturday at 10:00 am CT through Ticketmaster.
