Florian gives Sanchez little chance at defeating Penn
After going four hard rounds with B.J. Penn and falling short, Kenny Florian isn’t sure who’s going to take down…
After going four hard rounds with B.J. Penn and falling short, Kenny Florian isn’t sure who’s going to take down the UFC lightweight king. He doesn’t think that Diego Sanchez, who is likely to get the next shot, has much of a chance:
“I don’t think he has the striking to get it done,” Florian told ProMMARadio’s Larry Pepe. “I don’t think he has the wrestling to get it done. He has phenomenal cardio, phenomenal heart, great ground skills, but I think he’s going to have some trouble with B.J. I just think B.J.’s going to be a little bit too much for him. I expect B.J. to win.”
Florian, who lost to Sanchez back in 2005 during The Ultimate Fighter I Finale at 185 pounds, thought he was right in the fight with Penn. Pepe agreed saying he had Penn up 2-1 entering the fourth round. Florian said he was told by a Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission member that at least one judge had him leaing the fight. I’m not even sure how folks gave Florian a single round. Florian was 0-for-9 working for takedowns and consistently got the worst of the standup including when the fighters separated from their meetings along the cage.
Florian (11-4, 9-3 UFC) did admit his standup was lacking. He was surprised that the nine months between fights took its toll:
“Being away has always caused me some problems. With the striking aspect it’s hard. I found that I couldn’t get my range and my timing going, felt I wasn’t effective there.”