Fresh off of their impressive victories at UFC 107, Lightweight champion BJ Penn and former heavyweight champion Frank Mir had both mentioned Manny Pacquiao as an inspiration, Frank Mir credited his knock down punch of Cheick Kongo as “The Pacquiao” punch, the same type of overhand left that Pacquiao knocked out Ricky Hatton with.
Mir who looked like a heavyweight version of Manny Pacquiao in his Dec. 2008 fight against Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, used the same tactics he used in the Nogueira fight against Cheick Kongo.
In an Article by Gareth A. Davies of the Telegraph, Frank Mir had this to say about his overhand left after his submission win at UFC 107 “It’s something we’ve been saying the whole training camp. We call it “The Pacquiao,” because Manny Pacquiao will step off as a southpaw and throw the overhand left. As soon as I hit Kongo I went to catch him with the uppercut and I didn’t see him, he was on the ground.”
BJ Penn dominated and defeated the durable Diego Sanchez by TKO. At the post fight press conference (video below) he praises Manny Pacquiao and compares his strategy to what Pacman does in the ring. Freddie Roach, Pacquiao’s trainer, has said in the past that BJ Penn has the best Boxing in all of MMA.
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