BJ Penn intends to be 1st three-division champion

Jonathan Shrager recently caught up with BJ Penn for The UnderGround.

‘The Prodigy’ is one of only two fighters in UFC history to hold world championships in two divisions. The UFC Hall of Famer is widely considered to be the greatest lightweight of all time. The greatest boxing coach who works with MMA fighters, Freddie Roach, says Penn is the best boxer in all of MMA. Penn earned a BJJ black belt in 40 months, and became the first American to win gold in the BB division at the Mundials. And the UFC G.O.A.T., former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva, says that Penn is the greatest pound-for-pound fighter in the history of the sport. 

However, Penn’s career hit a slump in 2010, and he went just 1-5-1 since. They say Einstein said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results.” Penn, now 37, is a fight genius, and for his next fight, vs. Dennis Siver on June 4, 2016 at UFC 199, Penn is doing things differently.

His camp for this fight is at Jackson-Wink MMA, in Albuquerque, NM. Hilo, Hawai’i sits at sea level; Albuquerque is a mile high. Hilo is a tropical paradise; Albuquerque is paradise too, if you’re a scorpion. At Penn’s gym in Hilo, he is the top dog; at Jackson-Wink, he is another fighter alongside Jon Jones, ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone?, Tim Kennedy ?and others who collectively represent the deepest team in the history of MMA.

GSP is talking about coming back, but says he wants big name fights, and is not focused on a title shot. By contrast, Penn tells Shrager he intends to become the first fighter to win the UFC belt in three divisions – welterweight, lightweight, and now featherweight, where Conor McGregor currently is champion.

Jonathan Shrager?: What’s it like training under the tutelage of Greg Jackson? He always seems to lend a positive guiding influence.

BJ Penn: It’s a dream come true training up here with Greg Jackson. His MMA Knowledge is very advanced. We see eye to eye and constantly feed off of each other.

JS: Greg Jackson has attested to the fact that you still have a lot to offer. Do you believe the FW title is a realistic ambition? If realized, this would signify that you’d break yet another record, becoming 3-weight UFC world champion. 

BJ: I completely believe that I will get the title. And yes you’re right it will be another world record. 

JS: When I recently interviewed your former foe Diego Sanchez, he mentioned that he was delighted that you were training alongside him at Jackson Wink Academy, and that you’ve fostered a close rapport. There are some huge personalities out there in Albuquerque. Who have you been socializing with away from the gym, and who have you built a strong bond with?

BJ: Diego is my best friend in Albuquerque. I’ve been hanging out with Cowboy once and while too, been trying to hang out with Greg Jackson so I can pick his brain but he’s too busy thinking about Martial Arts all day.

JS: Any insights into the Team Jackson fighters? Random superstitions, hobbies etc that the everyday MMA fan may not be aware of?

BJ: No superstitious stuff going on here. Just a bunch of good guys under one roof and Coach Greg Jackson and Coach Mike Winkeljon steering us all in the right direction. 

JS: You’ve seen Jon Jones up close in the gym. As one of the widely-regarded greatest of all time yourself, just how great is he?

BJ: The man is absolutely fearless. He’s the biggest strongest kid in the playground. His opponents never know what’s coming next. He’s a champ for a reason. I call him Big Bad Jon like the song and everybody knows you don’t give no lip to Big Jon ha ha.

JS: Conor McGregor recently took steps to becoming the third fighter after yourself and Randy Couture to win a belt in two divisions, but came up short. Do you think McGregor has what it takes? What do you think about McGregor generally?

BJ: Personally I don’t think he will ever be the WW Champion. If he keeps his head in the game long enough, maybe one day he will be a two belt champion. Its all up to him.

JS: There is remarkable footage of you rolling with Ronda Rousey. How do you rate her skills? 

BJ: The thing that surprised me the most about Ronda was how physically strong she was. Of course her tech is top notch but man is she strong. I bet she could crush a lot of the guys on the UG Forums. 

JS: There were reports that the novel striking style you adopted was devastating in the gym. Why did it not translate to the Octagon?

BJ: It is what it is. Watch me on June 4th

JS: Speaking with your former longtime standup coach Jason Parillo, he told me that he believes 145 has actually always been your natural fighting weight. Do you agree? Was the off-night featherweight debut influenced by the weight cut.

BJ: That was my 1st time. That’s how the fight went down. It was a great night for Frankie. 

JS: What fight did you train hardest for? And what fight least hard? Where are you now on the continuum?

BJ: If I have a two month notice I always train hard. The least amount of training before a fight would guaranteed be the Lyoto Machida and Duane Ludwig fights. That was the K-1 days when you found out if you going to fight and who you were going to fight with two weeks notice, but I was young in my 20’s. I was strong. I was fine. Two weeks was nothing. 

JS: What is the biggest problem in the sport right now?

BJ: I’ve been retired for two years I don’t see any problems in the sport. I just want to get involved. I know stuff happens with judges and stuff but I see a ocean that I want to surf. 

JS: What do you think about MMA forums?

BJ: The first time I went on an MMA forum I was 17 years old. I was doing BJJ and very interested to find out who won Extreme Fighting 2. I stumbled onto a forum called the Mousel’s MMA forum and followed Renzo Gracie vs. Eugenio Tadeu in Pentagon Combat. And that’s when I realized how cool MMA forums where. But someone named Vij Pawar hacked the whole forum. Looked like a deck of cards LOL. But the UG reminds me more of the Mousel’s than Sherdog. Watched all the forums start and grow.