2008-07-05 22:21:58
Josh Koscheck: I'll Drop Down to Lightweight to Fight B.J. Penn
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In a recent interview with Kevin Iole that was posted on Yahoo! Sports, Josh Koscheck indicated that he might entertain the possibility of dropping down to lightweight to take on B.J. Penn.
Koscheck said that he simply wants to be a world champion, and it really doesn't matter to him whether it's the lightweight, welterweight or middleweight title.
Would this be the match-up that would keep B.J. Penn from jumping to the Welterweight division? Penn is lukewarm at best about the prospects of fighting the winner of the Kenny Florian / Roger Huerta match, as he doesn't see either of them as a big enough challenge. Could Josh Koscheck, one of the best welterweights in the world and a close friend of Penn's, be the opponent that keeps Penn in the lightweight division?
Dana White is having a hard time convincing Penn to remain in the lightweight division. It's not really hard to see why - after destroying Sean Sherk at UFC 84, there are no real "big" matches left at lightweight for Penn. He clearly has his sights set on Georges St. Pierre, so I'm not sure if he could be convinced to stay at lightweight. Besides, if Penn makes the jump to Welterweight to fight St. Pierre and wins the Welterweight title, then he would likely defend against Koscheck down the road anyways.
Koscheck is desperate for another shot at a title, but I think that his best bet is to first worry about beating Chris Lytle at UFC 86, and then work towards another possible shot at the Welterweight title in 2009. Dropping down to lightweight to fight Penn doesn't seem like the smartest idea for Koscheck, especially considering that Penn has absolutely no intentions of remaining in that division.
I can understand Koscheck's frustration though. He sees himself as being at least half a year away from another shot at the Welterweight title, maybe even longer. First, St. Pierre will defend against Fitch at UFC 87. Then, St. Pierre would likely fight Thiago Alves. After that, if Penn jumps to the Welterweight division, then St. Pierre (or whoever the current Welterweight title holder is at that time), would likely fight Penn in a "superfight". After all of those possible fights, Koscheck may be the next in line for a shot at the title, assuming that he has handled all of his business in the meantime. It's a long road towards another shot at the Welterweight title for Koscheck.
As far as the UFC is concerned, I don't think that they will be able to say much to Penn that will keep him at lightweight. A match-up against St. Pierre at Welterweight would be far more appealing to Penn compared to a fight against Koscheck at lightweight. The UFC tries to accommodate their best fighters, and I'm sure that if Penn really wants to move to Welterweight, they won't stop him.
For Koscheck, he needs to focus on the opponents that are in front of him (namely, Chris Lytle), or else he runs the risk of permanently burying himself in the UFC.
Source: Koscheck wouldn't mind fighting Penn
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