He knows what he’s doing and he can take advantage of that. “This is just going to be awesome for me”. I believe I can be champion. Do you think it’s time for Penn to call it a career?
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Rodriguez landed a front kick followed by a right hand to drop the 2015 Hall of Famer in the opening exchanges of the second round, and followed it up with some devastating ground and pound that prompted the stoppage from referee John McCarthy.
More kicks from Rodriguez though, powerful blows that are making a big impact.
Yair Rodriguez vs. B.J. PennJoe Lauzon vs. Marcin HeldCourt McGee vs. Penn hit the canvas and would fight to remain in the fight. Rodriguez praised Harris’ performance in this bout, calling it something of a comeback after a disappointing first entry into UFC Fighting. Thankfully, Penn walked away from the Octagon seemingly in one-piece and he embraced some of the fans cageside as he walked to the back.
“Him and his manager, I guess, they saw me working out at the gym and maybe heard that B.J.is not too good when I first came back after being out for two weeks”, Penn said. The truth is if he had fought Ricardo Lamas, as he was scheduled to do at UFC Fight Night 97, the beating could have been even worse.
“I said, ‘What excuse can I possibly come up with to not go into the ring?’ ” Penn said. I’m not the kind of fighter who’s going to ask for a guy next.
“He’s is a guy I grew up watching. I live on a different island”. “Me and Max, we don’t know each other. That’s why I’m here”, Penn said, underlining the fact that he has no relationship with Holloway, who will next challenge Jose Aldo for the featherweight title and has said he’d long to fight Penn for the belt in Hawaii.
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Here’s how fighters from across the UFC reacted to Rodriguez’s fifth straight win and Penn’s fourth straight loss. Over six years since his last win – against Matt Hughes at UFC 123 – perhaps Penn merely craved one last taste of victory, but it seems likely that he’ll have to be content with the knowledge that many of those who are now setting the standards were driven to do so by him. Penn looks like he’s quickly running out of ideas as Rodriguez overwhelms him with every trick in the book.
