Jon Fitch vegan diet cited as camp concern
Kenny Florian won’t compete until June where he’ll make his 145lbs at UFC 131, but he offered some analysis for…
Kenny Florian won’t compete until June where he’ll make his 145lbs at UFC 131, but he offered some analysis for this weekend’s UFC 127: Penn vs. Fitch event.
“Listen, I think BJ Penn always has a chance. The guy’s extremely dangerous on his feet. He’s going to be a little bit tougher to take down than Jon Fitch thinks. I would give even more of a chance to Jon Fitch if it was a five-rounder. At three rounds, I give a little bit more of a chance to BJ because I think a three-round BJ is different than a five-round BJ. A three-round BJ will go for it right from the outset. He’ll be very aggressive. He’ll kind of just let it loose for every single round. As soon as that bell starts. I noticed a five-round BJ, he really paces himself, he’s really unsure of the pace he needs to go at.”
There’s another x-factor Florian shares that changes the dynamic of the fight considerably: Fitch’s size. Normally a monstrous welterweight, Fitch’s dietary changes have had some profound effects on his stature.
“I know you mentioned him walking around at 200lbs, that is definitely the case. However, I just was with him at the last UFC (126) in Vegas. He’s actually walking around at 176lbs. He’s a vegan now. He’s 100 percent vegan. He’s changed his whole lifestlye. And the first thing I said to him ‘Man, you’re looking pretty darn skinny’ and he said, ‘yeah, I’m a vegan now and I’m 176lbs right now’. That is actually I hear maybe even a concern with people in his own camp.”