Nik Lentz on Hall of Famer BJ Penn: ‘I’m going to end his career’
Nik Lentz accuses BJ Penn of commenting on his and his wife’s Instagram accounts to coerce Lentz into accepting a fight. (1:31)
The latest episode of Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show featured a disgruntled former UFC champion, multiple up-and-coming prospects, and a movie star.
Here’s what you might have missed:
The BJ Penn vs. Nik Lentz fight hasn’t even been signed, has no targeted date or venue, but Lentz is already on attack.
“The guy hasn’t won a fight since we went to war in Iraq,” Lentz said Monday during an appearance on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show. “It’s ridiculous. But I’m going to end his career. I’m going to do him a favor.”
UFC president Dana White told TSN last week that a Penn-Lentz fight had been verbally agreed to by both fighters, and that it will be the final UFC bout for the 40-year-old Penn, a UFC Hall of Famer who is winless in his past eight fights, a skid that extends all the way back to 2010.
Lentz (30-10-2, 1 NC), who said he has not yet seen a fight agreement, said the beef with Penn (16-14-2) began years ago when he was brought in to help the Hawai’ian prepare for a fight. Lentz left disgruntled after a few days, he said, and since then Penn has been harassing him on social media.
The title picture in the welterweight division should clear up when the UFC hits Newark, New Jersey, on Saturday. In the main event, top contender Colby Covington takes on former champion Robbie Lawler, with a title shot likely next for Covington should he earn a victory. “Chaos” is on a six-fight win streak but hasn’t fought in over a year. Lawler, meanwhile, hasn’t won in the Octagon in over two years.
UFC on ESPN: Covington vs. Lawler
• Saturday, Newark, N.J.
• Prelims: ESPN, noon ET
• Main card: ESPN, 3 p.m. ET
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“He comes to my Instagram all the time,” said Lentz, 34, “and when I don’t respond to him he goes on my wife’s Instagram to tell her to tell me to respond to him.”
During his appearance on Helwani’s show, Lentz leveled accusations of drug abuse and also alluded to Penn’s recent legal troubles. In April, Penn’s estranged partner and mother of his children was granted a temporary restraining order, claiming abuse throughout their 10-year relationship. In June, Honolulu police were called after Penn fought a bouncer outside a strip club.
“The guy is a whack job,” Lentz said. “He has been allowed to be this bad person his entire life because he was good at something. That’s just how it is in America. If you are good at fighting, or you’re good at sports, you can catch a ball, you can be as much of a dirtbag as you want.”
UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker will defend his belt against interim champion Israel Adesanya on Oct. 5 at UFC 243. It’s Whittaker’s first fight since a split decision victory against Yoel Romero in June 2018, due to multiple injuries and illnesses. Most recently, he had to undergo surgery for a collapsed bowel and internal hernia of the intestine. Whittaker told Helwani he’s looking forward to showing people what they’ve missed.
“I just want to get in there and get to work,” the Australian said. “There’s a reason why I’m at the top of the food chain. I’m going to get out there and remind some people.”
Bobby Knuckles is just about that action, boss (via @arielhelwani)
UFC women’s flyweight prospect Gillian Robertson, only 24 years old, impressed at UFC 240 on Saturday, defeating Sarah Frota by second-round TKO. Helwani asked about her long-term hopes, and how far away she was from potentially competing for the division’s belt.
Robertson was modest in response.
“I would say about a year or two still,” said said. “The division is pretty shallow. Valentina [Shevchenko] doesn’t have a lot of competition right now. I’m probably going to get moved up fast, and when that opportunity comes, I’ll be ready for it.”
Shevchenko, the current champion, is one of the most dominant fighters in the UFC. She has only three losses in 20 professional bouts, two of which came to the greatest female fighter ever in Amanda Nunes.
“I need more time at this moment,” Robertson said about a matchup with Shevchenko. “It’s not that it’s not a winnable fight for me at this moment. I have the potential to take out any girl in this division … if I had the opportunity to wait a couple years to develop myself a little bit more, I’ll be better there.”
Freddie Prinze Jr., who starred in films including “I Know What You Did Last Summer,” “She’s All That” and “Summer Catch,” joined Helwani to discuss his love of mixed martial arts and life as a writer and producer with the WWE. He shared what it was like to work with WWE chairman and CEO of Vince McMahon:
Freddie Prinze Jr. reflects on his time writing shows for the WWE and how Vince McMahon writes the shows from WrestleMania backward.