BJ should continue to fight at 145

[Andrew Alexander]

110% spot on Eddie, dude has mad flexibility and he plays that bs guard. My 1st day white belts don't play that foot on the hips guard. He needs to box like he did at 155 and attack of his back like he did against the lubed up gsp, crackhead and crocs all day

[Chris Garry]

BJ is my all time fave fighter but he has never landed a sub off his back the only time he ever attacked was against Hughes the second time so it's no surprise he wasn't effective from his back as his guard has always been used to get back to his feet. BJ's game is about getting on top, control, passing, forcing the back take and rnc. He is somewhat unorthodox but it is still meat and potatoes bjj, he has even said he only has 5 moves and just forces them down your throat until you choke.

[stan myaskovskiy]

That crazy strategy should retire not BJ.

Kill the tip toe boxing stance.

Kill the feet on hips guard.

Kill the flat on the back defensive butterfly guard.

35 is not old. He's in amazing shape. He didn't lose because his body is breaking down. He lost the way he did because of that strange strategy. The whole world was confused.

He should stay at 145, and fight a couple of mid level guys to get his confidence back and I truly believe, with the correct/proper training camps, he can still beat some of the best at 145.

And of course I would recommend an offensive clinching guard when on his back. Not one arm bar, Oma plata, Gogo plata, or triangle attempt by BJ. Vitor went after Jones off his back, Pettis went after Benson, Anderson went after Chael, even Tito went after Machida off his back, there's no reason BJ can't attack off his back.

Just my opinion, I've never done MMA so what do I know, I could be way off. These are just my thoughts, thank you for taking the time to read this :-)

I have to fully agree with this. I am pretty sure we said the exact same thing in different words. This was my facebook status right after the fight and a few posts after:

"Can someone please tell me how someone with dexterity, record, and ability like BJ Penn could fight like a beginner in the cage? I seriously just do not understand what he was thinking getting in the cage if he wasnt AT LEAST planning to TRY..

The omaplata was there. The armbar was there. He didnt try for 1 submission. He didn't try one sweep, not one thing apart from an open guard and poor head control...

Striking wise in my opinion he didn't throw one kick. He didn't throw one punch with a single shred of conviction. Why ask for a fight and hype it if you don't plan to fight?

If you are not ready for Frankie Edgar I UNDERSTAND. No shame in that. Get a few back under your belt. But he didnt belong in there tonight. It was sad."

"I fully respect Bj Penn retiring. He needed too. I just wish we got to see one head kick, one punch of old. One omaplata from his early days. Maybe a submission attempt even. It was absolutely terrible to see BJ Penn come back and be a target for a last fight."

"That's the crazy part. He asked for that fight!! He has been saying he wanted it. Then he lost that desire before they even started. I think BJ Penn with a real coaching team that wasn't a bunch of "yes men" would have given him a great comeback. A team like Jackson's MMA could make him a champ again. His coaching team is awful. I would be screaming at him to activate that guard. His reguard is amazing. go for it!"

[stan myaskovskiy]

He may not have finished off his back, but he also had a guard nobody but GSP would go into. It was death. And if he got on top you were DONE! RNC Finish most of the time. He omaplata'd Din tomas to death, he used his bjj to dismantle Kenny Florian, Stevenson and a lot of other top level guys. He has always been a rediculous bjj guy who later decided to try and be a striker against much bigger opponents. I agree with actually proper coaching he could STILL make a run, just not with the team he has now.

Jens Pulver said it best in a recent interview.
"I wanna see BJ on top just once. Him on top is the deadliest BJ there is"

Again, an omaplata maybe wouldn't get him his first finish from the bottom in the UFC. But we all know the sub makes for a great sweep to top position when used right.

[mountveggie]

Hearing the corners talk to the fighters before the 3rd round was sad...

While Frankie got superb advice on how to possibly get into BJ's half guard and attack from there, BJ's corner were all "Go out there and win round 3! Win Big! Doesn't matter what happens in round 4, win round 3! You can win this!" - basically, the kind of stuff I (i.e. someone with zero MMA experience, and possibly the worst person to have in your corner) would say if I was trying to coach an MMA legend.

[mordecai]

BJ needs to fire jason perrilo. whoever advised him it was a good idea to stand so upright against a wrestler like frankie to defend takedowns? jason parillo said in interwiew with karyn bryant that he "coached him over the phone from CA" wtf was he even doing in his corner, he wasnt even there for the training camp and had no technical advice to offer. It was very sad to watch

[Fraser Taylor]

BJ needs to get the Marinovich's back in his camp. He needs guys that don't let him quit when he wants. Guys that will push him.

This.

It seems like BJ's gift for BJJ, fighting, etc is also his curse; sometimes it just seems like there is zero motivation and Frankie Edgar said something so true recently that he (Frankie) is always motivated for a fight, the idea of the fight motivates him but BJ seems to need something extra, the fight alone isn't enough for us to see the mythical 'Motivated BJ Penn'

Plus i think it helps is BJ dislikes the person.

[brianspinaltap]

The Fightland article by Jack Slack about the BJ /Edgar fight is pretty damn spot on. And nope, he has never submitted anybody off his back...

http://fightland.vice.com/blog/jack-...he-ring-lights

[Wancarlos]

Randy was 47 in his last fight, BJ has 12 more years, he still has time to refine and I agree that he could really kill off his back.

[DCurrie]

Yeah, the age thing is really a non-issue in this case, Edgar is only 3 years younger.

We have maybe seen brief glimpses of BJ's world class ground game on occasion but I always expect more from him. Feet in hips and butterfly hooks don't constitute a guard if you are not active with them.

It sounds ridiculous but the guy is one of the best ever and has done so much but I still feel like he under-achieved.

Saying that he will always have a place in my heart for smashing Matt Hughes.