B.J. Penn Shows Off the Prodigy Skills in Win Over Matt Hughes

After losing his last two fights to Frankie Edgar, B.J. Penn got back in the winning business Saturday night at UFC 123. Penn beat the crap out of Matt Hughes, knocking the 37-year-old Hall of Famer out in 21 seconds. The KO win earned Penn the UFC 123 knockout of the night bonus and it was extremely well deserved.

Penn connected with a right-left combination shortly after touching gloves, then followed with a left to the face. He caught a kick by Hughes and hit Matt in the face. Seconds after the UFC graphic was telling home viewers which fighter was which (Penn in the black shorts, Hughes the chump in the camo), Penn moved in on Hughes and dropped the veteran. B.J. quickly pounced, jumping on Hughes with several punches to the face before the fight was stopped. It was the second-fastest knockout of Penn’s career.

B.J. is an enigmatic fighter because he can look as brilliant as he did, finishing Matt Hughes in 21 seconds, but he can go a full fight without doing much damage against a guy like Frankie Edgar. He completes the trilogy with Hughes going 2-1 against Matt and is now set for a matchup with Jon Fitch at UFC 127 in Australia.

Photo Credit: Esther Lin/FanHouse