Sakuraba vs Penn: Fighting Giants, Who has the more lasting legacy to you?

As much as I love BJ, Saku fought the larger and more dangerous guys. He always seemed respectful and it always looked like he was going in there to do his job and put on a show, no matter how big his opponent was.
 
hot carl said:
do you give him credit for every fight he loses, or are you selective?
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the fact that he went out there and won the two rds while being super close to finishing matt again shows that it wasnt a fluke, he was able to hang with him for a 2nd time while almost finishing. It wasn't like JDS beating Cain and then getting absolutely annihilated in the next two fights
 
copyandpasteguy said:
According to Dana White the UFC is as good as ever right now, but on Sherdog we are talking about Sakuraba and Penn
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The sport wouldn't be where it's at today if it wasn't for Sakuraba. He was the pillar that Japanese mma stood on for years and solely carried the sport for a long time.

He headlined a card in 2002 that had 91k attendance. The all time record for mma that the UFC hasn't even come close to touching, and that was 14 years ago.
 
Sakuraba. That guy was an animal.
He fought Cro Cop when Cro Cop was Cro Cop.
 
Both GREAT fighters but Sakuraba sticks out alittle more.
 
Before entering this thread I knew the zuffa noobs would all say BJ and suggest it was not even close. But then if a new fighter wins 2 fights in a row the same group claims they are GOAT because all that matters is what happened the most recent to them.

In fact the opposite is true.

BJ's foray above LW was a disaster he should have never undertook. Other than having Hughes number (which the first win was a massive win) BJ's entire fight resume above LW is a disaster and joke. Not a single notable win but his fans cling to what he did in all those losses.

IMO Penn should have never left LW and after winning the UFC LW belt he should have went and fought in all the other org's at the time where the top LW's were spread around and cleaned them all out and built a LW legacy close to what Anderson or GSP have in their divisions. Instead BJ's LW resume is arguably no further ahead then Bendo or Edgar who both also have 3 defenses but against better comp.
 
BJ Penn

More skilled all around fighter and if they met at 170, BJ takes him to school.
 
I think Sakuraba has the more lasting legacy because he's more respected. I'm a Penn fan, but his legacy tainted to some degree due to the perception that laziness prevented him from reaching his potential. Saku, on the other hand, is absolutely beloved.
 
Saku fought Mirko, Igor, Rampage, Randleman, Vitor..

Monsters, there's really no debate when it comes to iconic greatness.
 
Saku had a lot of courage.


Bj in hindsight was pretty average as fighter. Lost to Edgar who's a much smaller fighter.
 
Coconutwater said:
In the eyes of fans, probably The Prodigy.

Personally, I think Saku aka "The IQ Wrestler" has a more battle tested legacy. The dude got slaughtered by Wandy 3x, but never hid from a challenge. You can't possibly know courage unless you stood across from Wanderlei Silva during the Pride years.

The cherry on top is Saku fighting Mirko, a ridiculous size match-up.

Saku all day.

* Penn is also a favorite of mine and I do remember his vs Machida, but still, Saku was something else.
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This! How can anyone even think that Penn compares with him?
 
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