Issue 048

April 2009

The recent fight between BJ Penn and Georges St Pierre was the most anticipated battle of the modern era. A clash between two great champions, it was a real fight for the ages, a meeting between two men who were kings of their own domains, namely the light and welterweight divisions. 

It wasn’t the first time Penn had fought at welterweight – in fact, he had briefly held the 170lb title, taking it from Matt Hughes, but relinquished it due to a contractual ‘difference of opinion’. 

Penn had made a name for himself as something of a traveller, moving up through the weight classes in search of tougher and tougher challenges. He eventually stopped and turned back around after facing light heavyweight Lyoto Machida, having worked his way through a couple of middleweight Gracies. 

Back to his natural home of lightweight, Penn looked unstoppable, hammering the likes of Stevenson and Sherk, but vociferously campaigned for a rematch with one of the men to beat him at 170lb, the welterweight champion Georges St Pierre. 

But as much as the fight promised, it was a step too far for Penn. Their first fight had been a competitive match, but their second meeting was as one-sided as you could imagine. St Pierre dominated Penn like no other fighter had done before. As game and tough as Penn was, he had little to offer the Canadian. St Pierre used his size and weight advantage to tire out Penn in the early rounds, a smart strategy that paid dividends. 

What transpired in that fight should be a warning to those considering moving outside of their weight class. Go up against someone equally talented but bigger and stronger than you are, and the odds are immediately stacked against you. 

One fighter who needs to pay close attention to this very fact is none other than the man who helped communicate it to the world. I am, of course, referring to Georges St Pierre. His demolition of Penn served as a cruel reminder of what can happen when an ambitious fighter bites off more than he can chew. In this case, it earned Penn a sound beating. 

Though it seemed like a loud and clear message to the world, the one person who is in danger of not understanding could well be St Pierre himself. Immediately after the fight, he fielded questions about a match with middleweight champion Anderson Silva. Speculation as to whether the Canadian would challenge ‘The Spider’ has raged for months, but St Pierre had been totally focussed on his impending match with Penn. With the Hawaiian soundly beaten and back in the division he belongs, everyone wanted to know what St Pierre would do next. 

St Pierre’s first priority will be a title defence against number-one challenger Thiago Alves, but if he wins that, he will no doubt face calls from fans to start seriously considering a fight with Silva. 

UFC president Dana White has discussed the idea of St Pierre moving up in weight before, and with the recent success of UFC 94, would surely consider doing something similar again. After all, as much as Dana wants to look after his champions, his job is to sell tickets, and a fight between the 170lb and 185lb champs would surely sell a truckload of tickets. 

When Penn fought St Pierre in January, the size difference between the two was considerable. Penn is by no means a large lightweight, whereas St Pierre is a big welterweight. There would have easily been a 20lb weight difference between the two come fight night. 

Though St Pierre walks around close to 190lb, he has said he would need time to develop more muscle and bring his weight up should he ever fight Silva. There is just one problem though: Silva is a big middleweight, and famously moved up to light heavyweight for a one-off fight against journeyman James Irvin, who he destroyed in 61 seconds. 

If a fighter such as St Pierre was to ever consider moving up in weight, he would do well to consider Silva’s strategy. Instead of going up to a division and facing off with the top guys straight off the bat, he faced an average fighter who wouldn’t test him too harshly. 

St Pierre wouldn’t be facing off with just anyone. He would find himself across the Octagon from the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world. At 5’10”, St Pierre would give up four inches in height to the 6’2” Brazilian. When GSP stepped into the Octagon against Penn, he weighed 187lb. Silva would be well over 200lb. 

Penn’s arrogance has always been his downfall, and his supreme self-confidence let him believe he had what it took to take out one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world at a weight class above his own. St Pierre is a more modest fighter, humble and realistic, and able to analyse his strengths and weaknesses objectively. Hopefully this will mean he realises that should he wish to move to middleweight, the obstacles ahead of him are simply too great.