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BJ Penn’s documentary video on GSP and UFC 94
By Zach Arnold | February 18, 2009
Read Michael David Smith’s thoughts on the video.
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 18 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Is this video actually from BJ himself? BJPenn.com is stamped on it, but on the site, it says uploaded by someone named Stan.
According to the linked article, BJ didn’t make the video, but it was “commissioned” by him, whatever that means.
BOOOO!!! Sour grapes (and selective editing) thy name is BJ. I hope Ken Flo kicks his ass.
Wow. On a scale of wack to awesome, this is pretty much the wackest thing I’ve ever seen.
I used to love when BJ would run to the cage, knock someone out, then run away.
Now I wish he would just run away.
I won’t buy this fight should they fight again, but I hope GSP fights him with a suit made up of sand paper and kicks the crap out of him.
Glad BJ is putting his money towards some powerful marketing tools.
Well played.
Seriously how does this guy have any fans left, he’s become an embarrasement and basically ruined his legacy with his pathetic actions after UFC 94.
I’ve never been much of a BJ fan (I personally prefer modesty over cockiness) but the greasing situation is legit. If you can’t see that you’re flat out blind. This propaganda piece has too much other garbage in it (shorts-grabbing, hitting behind the head) but otherwise does a decent job of documenting the improprieties of GSP’s corner. I haven’t seen anywhere that BJ claims it caused him to lose, his only point is that it was illegal and created an unfair advantage – which is absolutely 100% true. But because BJ has a pompous personality (spoiled rich boy, ‘I’m the best ever’, ‘to the death’, etc.) fans are not sensitive to the reality of the situation.
I say correct the rules (already taking place to some degree), punish GSP and his corner (whether he was aware of not is irrelevant) and organize a rematch (which we all know what the outcome will be). A no contest overturn may be a bit too much however I think it’s more appropriate in this case than it was in the Nick Diaz vs. Takanori Gomi match. Diaz’s THC level was illegal but did not provide the advantage that Vaseline did for GSP.
An unpopular opinion but nonetheless, that’s how I see it.
Ironic choice of music – a Canadian band, who’s name is Rush… and who’s singer was an arrogant little pr*ck when I met him. I wonder if that was intentional?
I guess it comes down to this: if Vaseline is allowed in the Octagon, it’s allowed. It was in PLAIN SIGHT of the cameras, and the NSAC. They could have stepped in, taken it away and toweled off GSP at any point.
They didn’t.
And if you think about it, if it WAS legal to have trace amounts of Vaseline on your hands and rub down your fighter, wouldn’t BJ’s camp have the same opportunity?
I think the Florian vs. Penn fight could actually validate, or invalidate, BJ’s whining.
If it goes to the ground and Penn gets the better of the BJJ game, he (and his fans) will say “SEE? When a fighter isn’t greased Penn can easily execute a submission, escape from underneath, etc.”
If Ken-Flo wins the BJJ game, everyone will realize that Penn just doesn’t have the ground game in 2009 that he claims he has.
(1) I say correct the rules (already taking place to some degree)
Agreed.
(2) punish GSP and his corner (whether he was aware of not is irrelevant)
Disagree. How can you punish someone for something that isn’t/wasn’t illegal?
If you’re ALLOWING Vaseline in the Octagon (which the NSAC and the UFC did in that fight), and allowing – theoretically – trace amounts to be rubbed on a fighter, then how can you punish someone?
From this point FORWARD, you can punish someone if that happens, but you can’t go back in time. You can’t go back to UFC 3 and rule a fight a no-contest for a groin strike because it’s illegal NOW.
If the Vaseline was allowed to be rubbed all over GSP causing some massive advantage as team BJ would have us believe, then they had a chance to do the same thing, no?
(3) and organize a rematch (which we all know what the outcome will be).
Penn would REALLY be putting it on the line to agree to a rematch which he’d likely lose, and I don’t see it happening.
Penn should stay at 155 and try to dominate there – he’s just too small, and trying to add pudge and compete at 170 just doesn’t work for him.
(4) A no contest overturn may be a bit too much however I think it’s more appropriate in this case than it was in the Nick Diaz vs. Takanori Gomi match. Diaz’s THC level was illegal but did not provide the advantage that Vaseline did for GSP.
THC in your system is against the rules.
Vaseline in the corner is not (or wasn’t during Penn/GSP).
The thing about THC is that it stays in your system for way longer (up to a month) than the the effects (which last for a few hours at most). That is why THC testing in sports is so absurd and discriminatory.
Unless most or all of the quotes were made up, I’d say that this video is pretty damning. This video leads the viewer (or me) to believe that has been a consistent pattern of Vaseline usage (in trace amounts or otherwise) throughout GSP’s fights. This is the equivalent to pitchers, back in the day, slicking up their baseballs with “trace” amounts of oils in order to gain a small advantage over batters.
If GSP’s usage of Vaseline is or was legal, then Penn is just S.O.L. and the UFC and the commission needs to make the necessary rule changes. (Which the UFC has already done.) If I were the commission, I would had investigated GSP, looking into allegations of GSP’s body being “slippery” in his last couple of fights. If able to confirm this pattern of usage, I’d strip GSP of his title and suspended him and his corner men for a year. The unfortunate thing was that commission officials had over looked this issue until the later rounds. (I assume to both preserve face (hoping that this was a coincidence) and to not spoil a big-money fight.) So applying any serious punishment would look somewhat hypocritical and a little late due to this fact. Commission officials should had stepped in and disqualified GSP the moment that the Vaseline was applied beyond the face. (Assuming this was illegal.) The best they could do after this negligence (to limit any potential heat) was to declare the fight a no-contest. Plus BJ and his corner should had been diligent enough to complain to the ref and the officials on hand. So BJ ultimately screwed himself for not making a stink until after the fight.
We really DON’T KNOW if BJ would of had his ass handed to him or not if GSP wasn’t slicked up with the Vaseline. We DO KNOW for a fact that BJ was unable or found it extremely difficult to apply any submissions because the Vaseline was applied. The video more than makes this point. I also believe that GSP was able to so easily slip in and out of Penn’s guard because the Vaseline would had easily spread to BJ’s legs.
Ultimo Santa and klown: One of the side-effects (or benefits) of THC is that it’s a great pain reliever. Takanori Gomi very has heavy hands. Imagine what would happen if you didn’t have feel those blows or you could lessen the impact of those blows. That was the advantage for Nick Diaz. I saw that fight and was surprised at how Diaz was able to continue to hang with and ultimately submit Gomi. A no-contest and suspension was more than appropriate for that fight. For a long time, drug testing in the U.S. has been an over-glorified intelligence test for fighters. They know what is legal and what isn’t. Diaz obviously failed, thus discriminating against the stupid.
You’re right – we DON’T know how much – if any – Vaseline was on GSP during the fight.
We don’t know if it would have affected the outcome either way.
Hell, we don’t know how oily GSP is NATURALLY (some people have very naturally oily skin, others have dry skin).
The only thing we can judge are the facts.
Fact 1) UFC and NSAC allowed Vaseline in the corner.
Fact 2) There was no rule that prevents the Vaseline applier from touching the fighter aferwards.
Fact 3) If that rule WAS in play, it was the role of the UFC and/or the NSAC to step in, towel him off, eject the guy applying the Vaseline, etc.
Knowing all this, how can you strip/suspend/punish GSP or his camp in any way? This isn’t something that was done in a back room – this was done in front of a live audience, thousands on PPV, and the retarded monkeys that work for the NSAC.
Not to belabor the point, but going FORWARD, this Vaseline-applying technique should change (or be banned). Looking backwards you can point fingers, but if it was legal (which it was) Penn’s camp could have done the same thing.
And one other question:
If Penn was having SUCH a hard time with the greased-up, cheating GSP, why didn’t he tell the referee DURING the fight? Like Sakuraba did when Akiyama was *actually* greased?
“We DO KNOW for a fact that BJ was unable or found it extremely difficult to apply any submissions because the Vaseline was applied”
We don’t KNOW that. It might well have been because GSP is just that much better a fighter and BJ was outclassed.
As for THC. Have you ever been high on weed? Even if he had been smoking between rounds it would not have turned him into some sort of unfeeling superman. Opiate based pain killers might have but not weed. Further it is unlikely that Nick smoked that night, more likely that he smoked sometime during the 4 weeks leading up to the fight and the THC stayed in his system. Not to mention he had a prescription legal under CA law.
This whole situation……….
makes the French Canadian a villain to hunt down- good thing for UFC/Zuffa
helps BJ Penn to partially regain his fame that was lost in the fight- good for BJ Penn
provides MMA community with lasting topics to discuss- good for fans, bloggers, broadcasting industry, and Zuffa.
investigates into the truth about GSP’s history of dominant performance!?- good for his past opponents and their fans
adds new characteristic to GSP himself- good for GSP and Zuffa.
creates an opportunity to improve MMA rules and regulation- Good for MMA
All in all, vaseline incident was not bad at all for the benefits of the majority.
It’s going to be real bad for BJP if he loses to Florian. Sticking your head out is fine as long as you keep winning, but if you’re a loser, you’re a liability.
Now we have Penn, Mayhem, Hughes, Sherk, and Serra all saying GSP felt unusually greasy during their fights. They can’t all be lying. Now, this piece is more conclusive than the Zapruder film.
Yiffer,
Did you even read what I wrote? I said that THC stays in your system (and appears on drug tests) LONG AFTER ITS EFFECTS HAVE CEASED. Get it?
And as spacedog points out, even if Diaz was high as a kite DURING the fight – and remember, a positive test for marijuana DOES NOT MEAN THE USER IS CURRENTLY HIGH – it wouldn’t explain the ability to keep fighting with a smashed orbital. That requires a more freakish quality, common to many fighters!
It is weed’s ability to trigger positive results on tests long after the effects have worn off that makes THC testing so unfair. It makes a judgment on a fighter’s personal lifestyle rather than whether the fighter cheated in a fight.
Penn, Mayhem, Hughes, Sherk, and Serra are not stupid. They are working up to get rematches and establish a reason that they all lost. They are looking for the cash ! They only care about the MONEY