BJ Penn Big Favorite Over Diego Sanchez In Main Event At UFC 107

Sports News - December 9th, 2009 - Written by Jimmy

Dana White and the UFC are at it again. This weekend, all eyes in the MMA world will be fixated on UFC 107 this Saturday, December 12th.

Slated for the main event of the night, BJ Penn puts his Lightweight title on the line as he faces top contender Diego Sanchez.

As it stands now, BJ Penn is a -300 favorite to take down Diego Sanchez in their battle according to the UFC Odds as found at BetUs Sportsbook. On the other side of the octogon, Diego Sanchez is listed as a +220 underdog in the contest.

Penn is only one of two fighters in UFC history to lay claim to a title in two different weight classes, welterweight and lightweight.

His last fight, in August, saw Penn defend his belt when he choked-out Kenny Florian in the fourth round. Penn has dominated the lightweight division and will look to continue his winning ways. While he is the clear favorite, do not expect him to take Sanchez lightly.

"I think Diego's good in all areas," Penn said regarding the upcoming bout. "He's got great take downs and jiu-jitsu, and he's improved his striking a lot. All that said, I think his greatest strength is his tenacity. All you've got to do is look at his past fights."

Sanchez's "tenacity" definitely grabbed the attention of Penn, so much so that he even switched up his training for this contest to skew it towards Sanchez's "relentless" fighting style.

"That's an area where we did a lot of work, people trying to push the pace," Penn said when asked of his training. "We amped up our cardio to get ready for what's going to take place. It makes no sense to train with a slow jiu-jitsu guy if you're fighting a strong wrestler who's exploding all the time."

Sanchez comes to UFC 107 looking to take advantage of this opportunity that lay in front of him; a shot a beating the best, and claiming title as his own. Of course no one knows this better than the "pedal to the metal" fighter himself.

"This," he said of the upcoming match up with Penn, "is what I've been working for the last eight years."

Sanchez has prepared extremely hard for this battle, and believes that this is his time; this is his moment.

"In my mind, I'm going to beat whoever I'm in the cage with." said the 5'10, 155 pound fighter. "You've got to believe in yourself. I believe it's my time. Everything in my career has built up to this moment. Everything feels right."

This is the first fight in Sanchez's career that is slated to go five rounds, sparking him to say "I've never gotten tired in a fight" when asked of the subject.

UFC 107 will be a Pay-Per-View only event. Contact your local cable provider for more details on getting UFC 107.