BJ Penn has declared Frankie Edgar as his only reason to come out of hiatus and drop down to the featherweight division and "The Prodigy" has promised to give a good fight like he always does.
"The Prodigy" and two-division world champion spoke in front of a crowd of fans and media at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas for the UFC 175 pre-fight press conference, stating that he would not have come back to face any other fighter.
"If Dana had asked me to come to 145, and fight any other people, there's no way I would have done it," Penn said.
While there is no bad blood between BJ Penn and Frankie Edgar, things have gotten more personal for "The Prodigy", since it was "The Answer" who derailed his then successful run at lightweight.
BJ Penn and Frankie Edgar first faced each other at UFC 112 in April 2010. "The Answer" defeated "The Prodigy" via unanimous decision in a grueling five-round battle.
Their rematch at UFC 118 four months after, however, was more one-sided in favor of Frankie Edgar. This unsuccessful run at the 155-pound division forced BJ Penn to move back up to welterweight, where he achieved very little amount of success as well.
After being given the opportunity to face his old rival, BJ Penn believes that Frankie Edgar's competitiveness will be more helpful for him.
"Getting the opportunity to coach against him, I realized he's one of the most competitive people," Edgar explained. "He's not one of those 'I'm mad at you now and I want to kick everybody's butt."
"He's just a really competitive person and I think that's going to help me," he added. I've got a very familiar opponent standing on the other side."
BJ Penn is known as one of the most resilient fighters in the UFC, and this is one of the reasons why he is a fan-favorite. And for him, the upcoming fight against Frankie Edgar is no different, as he promises his fans that he will give it his best shot, like he always has.
"I want everyone to know that I always gave it the best shot I had, whether it went that way my night," Penn confidently said. "Fighting is my whole life, the UFC is my whole life. Dana and the UFC gave me the opportunity and I always gave the best I could give."
