Odds on Penn in brawl vs. Sanchez

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This article was published 12/12/2009 (6006 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — For challenger Diego (Nightmare) Sanchez, UFC 107 is the culmination of his dream. For lightweight champion B.J. (The Prodigy) Penn, it is just another step towards the mixed martial arts organization’s hall of fame.

The main event at the FedExForum tonight (available on pay-per-view) pits Sanchez’s raw emotion and intensity against Penn’s experience, guile and well-stocked arsenal.

The bookies see Penn as a 3-1 favourite. Montreal coach Firas Zahabi, who helped welterweight title-holder Georges St. Pierre defeat Penn in January at 170 pounds, also believes Sanchez is a long shot.

"He’s a berserker," Zahabi said. "He’s just going to go absolutely nuts. You have a puncher’s chance in that kind of case and you have a chance of him wearing out B.J.

"But I do believe B.J. is a very good standup fighter. Jiu-jitsu, he’s got the edge, of course, and can Diego Sanchez take B.J. Penn down? Very unlikely. So he’s going to have to stand on the feet and land a good, hard punch and if that good, hard punch doesn’t land, it’s going to be all B.J. all night long."

Penn (14-5-1) is one of only two UFC fighters to have won titles in two weight classes (lightweight and welterweight), half of a select club with Randy (The Natural) Couture. Including his career outside the UFC, he has fought from lightweight to heavyweight.

Penn respects Sanchez, but it’s clear he sees the challenger as just someone else in his way.

"He’s got some stuff that he brings to the table, but I’ve faced all types of opponents, all types of champion fighters, all the best guys all over the world. It’s just another fight, that’s all it is."

While Sanchez fights for the 155-pound title, Penn is working on his legacy. He wants future fighters to say: "It’s because of him, it’s because of guys like this is the reason we’re all making millions."

The Memphis card has an interesting heavyweight co-main event with former champion Frank Mir taking on French striker Cheick Kongo. The matchup, which features Mir’s submission skills against Kongo’s sharp standup game, has become more pointed thanks to Mir’s not very sophisticated trash-talking.

Elsewhere, middleweight Alan (The Talent) Belcher has a point to prove against Brazilian Wilson Gouveia in what could be one of the fights of the night. Belcher thinks he should have got the decision that went to Yoshihiro Akiyama last time out and he is upset that he has been relegated to the undercard.

Heavyweight Paul Buentello returns to the UFC after an absence of almost four years to take on 6-foot-11 Swiss stringbean Stefan (Skyscraper) Struve. While fighters in other weight classes counted calories to make weight this week, Buentello has been enjoying Memphis rib joints.

Halifax welterweight T.J. Grant looks to rebound from a loss to Dong Hyun (Stun Gun) Kim at UFC 100 against a tough opponent in Kevin (The Fire) Burns.

And Florian, with Zahabi in his corner, looks to put the Penn loss behind him when he takes on the energetic Clay Guida.

 

— The Canadian Press