UFC 101 Preview: Penn vs. Florian

Sports Betting News - August 5th, 2009 - Written by Bruce

This Saturday night's UFC 101 will feature a much anticipated lightweight match up between B.J. Penn and Kenny Florian. Penn (13-5-1) is the current UFC Lightweight Champion, while Florian (11-3) is the number one lightweight contender. In his last fight, B.J. Penn lost convincingly to the current UFC Welterweight Champion, Georges St. Pierre. He will now be looking to rebound with an impressive win against the very dangerous Florian. B.J. has dominated the lightweight division in the UFC since back in 2001. He has already proven how dangerous of a fighter he is by being so successful in multiple weight classes. Penn, the current UFC Lightweight Champion, was formerly the UFC Welterweight title holder. His opponent, Kenny Florian, is no slouch though, as he is coming into this fight with six straight victories. Betting Lines have B.J. Penn listed as the favorite for the fight at -220, while the underdog Florian is listed at +200.

Kenny Florian is an extremely dangerous fighter, who is well versed as a Brazilian Jui-Jitsu and Muay Thai fighter. He made his first appearance in the UFC when he lost in the finals of the first season of the Ultimate Fighter show on Spike. Florian has made a name for himself with his extremely effective elbow strikes, which routinely frustrate his opponents. He is also very effective at forcing the submission of his opponents. In his most recent fight at UFC 91, Florian looked impressive when he defeated Joe Stevenson in the first round by submission, executing a rear naked choke. After the fight, Florian made some bold remarks regarding a future fight against Penn. In the post fight interview Florian said, "I want B.J.'s belt. B.J. you're one of the best fighters out there. I'm here to test myself. I think you're a great fighter, someone I look up to. I consider you a master. It's time to kill that master." This Saturday night Florian will get just what he asked for, a title shot against Penn.

Since his early fighting days, B.J. Penn has been labeled "The Prodigy". Before entering the UFC, Penn became the first American fighter in history to win the World Jui-Jitsu Championship in the black belt category. This remarkable achievement caught the attention of UFC President Dana White. Since then Penn has gone on to a brilliant UFC career, earning the reputation as one of the greatest fighters to ever enter the octagon. He became the second fighter in UFC history to win two UFC titles in two different weight classes. He is currently ranked by Sherdog as the number one lightweight fighter in the world. Him deciding to take on the bigger Georges St. Pierre was a lot to ask, even for a fighter of Penn's talents. He will now once again return back to his most dominant weight class. This will be Penn's first title defense in the last fourteen months. He easily disposed of Sean Sherk in that fight, but he will be facing a motivated, well rounded fighter in Florian. Saturday's UFC 101, will pit these two technically sound fighters against one another in what should be an awesome fight for UFC fans to watch. 

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