Why I Fight: The Belt Is Just an Accessory - Hardcover

Penn, Jay Dee "B.J."; Weintraub, Dave

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0061803650 ISBN 13: 9780061803659

Publisher: William Morrow, 2010

Synopsis

Claiming that “the belt is just an accessory,” Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Lightweight Champion B.J. Penn explains Why I Fight in this honest, intimate, and fascinating memoir. Written with David Weintraub, Why I Fight is an unforgettable portrait of one of the top and most recognizable mixed martial artists in the UFC and an up-close look at one of the most exciting and fastest growing sports in the world. UFC and Jiu-Jitsu aficionados—and fans of Iceman, A Fighter’s Heart, and Bruce Lee’s classic The Tao of Jeet Kun Do—will want to explore Why I Fight.

About this title

From the Back Cover

Street fighting. Brazilian jujitsu. Grappling.
Welcome to BJ Penn's island.
Don't worry, he won't hurt you (much).

For the last decade, BJ Penn has been one of the most successful and feared fighters in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), rising through the ranks to become, pound for pound, one of the best in the world. Along the way, people have been quick to judge, praise, criticize, and hype him. They have torn him down only to build him back up. They have spilled ink and blood trying to understand what makes him the provocative and controversial fighter that he is.

Why I Fight is the answer that everyone—critics, fans, commentators, pundits, and perhaps even Dana White, current president of the UFC—has been waiting for. In his own words, Penn tells the story of his life spent fighting, explaining what led a scrappy teenager from the rough streets of Hilo, Hawaii, onto the biggest stage in all of mixed martial arts (MMA). From his earliest days, becoming one of the preeminent practitioners of Brazilian jujitsu in the world, to his first MMA fights and his battles with UFC champions like Matt Hughes and Georges St-Pierre, Penn shows that in life, just like in the Octagon, he is never one to back down from a fight.

A blunt and brutal look at his hardest-fought victories and his most frustrating defeats, Why I Fight is the story of how BJ Penn became one of only two fighters in UFC history to hold belts in two different weight classes. It is the story of a kid from Hawaii who loved to fight. It is the story of a true prodigy.

About the Author

BJ Penn is a former UFC lightweight and welterweight champion and is considered one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world. In 2000, he became the first and only non-Brazilian-born winner of the World Jiu-Jitsu Championship in the black belt category. Penn is only the second fighter (after Randy Couture) to win UFC titles in two different weight classes. He lives in Hilo, Hawaii.

David Weintraub is a freelance journalist, writer, and producer who has done freelance work for the UFC.

About this edition

• Publisher: William Morrow
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 0061803650
• ISBN 13: 9780061803659
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 320