Saturday I caught UFC 80, held in Newcastle, England. The main event was a lightweight championship bout between BJ Penn and Joe Stevenson. Because of the time difference the fight was aired at around 3pm US cst.

After taking my buddy Brian to drop off his pimpin’ old school Mercedes at the shop we stopped off at Hooters for some wings and beer. I didn’t know it but they show the UFC fights there, which is awesome because they are $40 ppv. So it was perfect timing. Anyway BJ Penn dominated the fight but didn’t take any credit away from Joe, who showed a huge amount of heart. After Penn cut Stevenson in the first round with a glancing elbow to the forehead Stevenson pushed the pace to ensure the fight didn’t get stopped due to his serious cut. However Penn remained calm and countered with precision, eventually taking Stevenson to the ground and maintaining control. Penn claimed the victory with a rear naked choke at 4:02 in the second round, earning himself the lightweight title and record of being only the second person in UFC history to hold titles in two different weight divisions. [he previously held the welter weight title.]

Penn has been my fav for sometime now, however this fight gave me a lot of respect for Joe “Daddy” Stevenson. He seems like a really good guy and I look forward to seeing a rematch at some point. Penn’s next fight will likely be with Sean Shirk, who lost the title and is currently suspended because of steroid charges.