Doggy Bag: Rumor Edition

I’m a sports fan, and I’ve seen cases of one team just having a superior team’s number many times. Sometimes, this is due to matchup issues, and, sometimes, it’s just a mental hurdle. Does Frankie Edgar just have B.J. Penn’s number? Since Penn’s return to 155 pounds, nobody has really tested “The Prodigy,” but here comes a glorified featherweight that gets the best of him twice in a span of months. I see Penn as the better striker, wrestler and submission artist, but he could not do anything against Edgar. What gives?
-- Jacob

Brian Knapp, associate editor: Before we sell Frankie Edgar short, let’s give him the credit and respect he deserves. He defeated B.J Penn twice at his best weight. No other man can lay claim to such an accomplishment. To beat him so convincingly in a rematch speaks volumes about Edgar’s drive and talent.

Does he have Penn’s number? I suppose a case could be made there. Penn may be the better striker and submission artist -- he is not the better wrestler -- but Edgar came in with the smarter game plan and executed it to perfection. There is no substitute for intelligence in sports. Penn could do nothing with Edgar because he refused to adapt to the situation and adjust to the opponent in front of him. What worked against Diego Sanchez, Sean Sherk and Joe Stevenson did not work against Edgar the first time the two met and was even less effective in the rematch. Penn should have learned his lesson. Instead, Edgar once again baffled him with speed, movement and tenacity.

The Edgar-Penn matches revealed plenty about both men. First, Edgar has legitimate claim to the top spot in the lightweight division, as he beat one of the most accomplished fighters in the history of the sport, not once but twice. He may be small -- a “glorified featherweight” as you put it -- for 155 pounds, but he has learned to use that to his advantage. Speed kills in every sport, and MMA is no different. Second, Penn needs to do some serious soul searching. Achieving greatness comes with a heavy price, no matter how talented one may be, and the jury remains out on whether the Hawaiian truly wants to dedicate himself to his chosen profession. We have seen greatness in spurts, but Penn turns 32 in a few months. The clock is ticking.