The UFC Lightweight Championship will be on the line when the Ultimate Fighting Championship travels to Abu Dhabi at UFC 112. Reigning champion “The Prodigy” BJ Penn will defend his title against top contender Frankie “The Answer” Edgar on the promotion’s debut card in the Middle East.
The announcement, first reported on by MMAjunkie.com, comes just one day after Gray “The Bully” Maynard eked out a lacklustre decision win over Nate Diaz. The fight did not endear Maynard to the fans and the UFC has opted to award the title fight to Edgar instead.
Penn (15-5-1) captured the title with a nine-minute dismantling of Joe “Daddy” Stevenson at UFC 80 two years ago and has not lost as a lightweight since. Aside from an ill-fated UFC Welterweight Championship bout with old nemesis Georges “Rush” St. Pierre at UFC 94, Penn has looked unstoppable and he is coming off of stoppage wins over former top contenders Kenny “KenFlo” Florian and Diego “Nightmare” Sanchez.
The biggest problem for the UFC has been in trying to find worthy contenders to challenge for Penn’s crown and Penn has quickly established himself as a class above the rest of the division. He will face a decent test in the fast-paced and aggressive Edgar, but Penn had little to no trouble in his fight with Sanchez, who is just as quick and aggressive. Whether Edgar will pose any problems at all for Penn once the fight starts remains to be seen.
Edgar (11-1-0) has won three straight fights since suffering his first career defeat against Maynard back at UFC Fight Night 13 in April of 2008. He holds wins over current UFC standouts Jim Miller and Tyson Griffin and has also bested former title challenger Hermes Franca and former champion Sean “The Muscle Shark” Sherk. With significant improvements in his striking, Edgar has become one of the most well-rounded fighters in the division, but most of his UFC bouts have gone the distance.
The title fight may headline UFC 112, which takes place on April 10th in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The card also features a welterweight bout between former champion Matt Hughes and Renzo Gracie. A venue for UFC 112 has not yet been announced.
(Photo Credit: Sherdog.com)