Edgar's the champ, Penn's no longer invincible, now what?
This is why champions don't need to talk incessantly about changing weight classes. Give me a title holder who's defended his title 10-12 times, faced all the young lions and silenced a few previous opponents during rematches, then he can look for new challenges. B.J. Penn fell victim to the look-ahead spot. It's a real blow to his legacy. We thought Penn had dashed all the past talk of focus and conditioning issues. He revisited the past when Frank Edgar, employed a perfect gameplan, made Penn work for 25 minutes and showed that the former champ was still vulnerable.
It certainly creates a whole new world at 155 pounds. What would you like to see? Does Kenny Florian get a third title shot so close to his loss to Penn? Maybe this is the rare case where the UFC gives the champ an immediate rematch. Or is time to get Tyson Griffin and Gray Maynard shots at Edgar, Penn and Florian? Imagine the matchmaking possibilities when you look at the UFC's top 10.
1. Champ - Frank Edgar
2. B.J. Penn
3. Kenny Florian
4. Tyson Griffin
5. Gray Maynard
6. Takanori Gomi
7. Jim Miller
8. George Sotiropoulos
9. Sean Sherk
10. Joe Stevenson
On a side note, remind us again why Nate Diaz and Diego Sanchez left the division? Wouldn't they be in the mix? Also, think about what this group could look like in a few years if the UFC ever signs Eddie Alvarez, Joachim Hansen, Josh Thomson or Gilbert Melendez. We can also dream about Shinya Aoki or Tatsuya Kawajiri but there's little chance that they're leaving Japan for good to fight exclusively with the UFC. All these names provide more proof that 155 is the deepest weight class in the world.
