Fight Metric, the mathmeticians of the MMA universe, have released their report on Penn vs. Edgar 2. And, like you'd suspect, it confirmed what we all saw with our own two eyes. Edgar really did dominate en route to a decision. We knew that, of course, but it's good to have the backing of math.

 
Props: Photo by Esther Lin for MMA Fighting

Quoteworthy:

Welcome to Boston! I'm glad I got to fight here in Boston. I wanted to take his arm and that's exactly what I did...The crowd was unbelievable tonight. I love the crowd. I love Boston. I was definitely feeding off that energy.

Joe Lauzon missed almost a year after a knee injury. When he finally returned to action, at UFC 108 in January he looked tentative and lacked the explosiveness that had come to characterize his career. No more. Lauzon ran through fellow The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 5 contestant Gabe Ruediger like a freight train.

He slammed his cake eating opponent, and basically had his way with him before mercifully finishing the fight with an armbar two minutes in. Lauzon didn't just take home a win. He took home a cool $60,000 for submission of the night too. Maybe it was calibre of competition, but Lauzon looked like he had switched bodies with fellow Bostonian Kenny Florian. Is Lauzon back? Is he the real deal? Or is Gabe Ruediger just that awful?

It's long been a given that BJ Penn is one of the greatest fighters of all time. We hear it from Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan every time he fights in the Octagon and he's a multiple time world champion in two weight classes. But after losing two in a row, is it time to reevaluate where Penn stands in the annals of MMA history? Jonathan Snowden, who wrote a book about the history of MMA, thinks so:

The raw numbers stand out like a sore thumb. In title fights, BJ Penn is a pedestrian 5-5-1. For every big fight he wins, he loses one in turn. The true greats of the sport, your Georges St. Pierres, your Matt Hughes, your Frank Shamrocks, your Fedor Emelianenkos, are defined by rising to the occasion. When the fights get tougher, these men only get better. Not so with BJ Penn.

BJ Penn is a front runner. We learned that for the first time against Jens Pulver at UFC 35. Crowned as champion before even stepping into the cage, Penn had no answer for Pulver's heart and determination. When the fight got to the point where it demanded each man expose his very soul to walk away the winner, Penn faltered. Pulver stepped forward. That was the difference.

Sports Illustrated's Josh Gross agrees:

About that "best ever" tag that follows Penn wherever he goes, it needs to be reconsidered. Most talented? Hard to argue he wouldn't qualify. But did he get the most out of his gifts? I don't think so. And you don't need to look further than Penn's career and the choices he made to understand why.

For starters, he was fast-tracked. In just his fourth fight, Penn was given a title shot against Jens Pulver. He lost. There was no grooming the Hawaiian. Then, in his seventh fight, he received another title shot. This time a draw against Caol Uno. Two fights later -- after defeating Takanori Gomi in what remains his biggest win in the lightweight division -- Penn moved up a class to fight top welterweight Matt Hughes. That victory may have been the worst thing that happened to Penn. It fed into an obsession resulting in his multi-weight excursion. Two fights later he was at 185. Next, a bout at light heavyweight versus Lyoto Machida. Back to middleweight and then a return to 170, where he lost consecutively to Georges St. Pierre and Matt Hughes.

"You can’t let (the crowd) affect you. I’ve got bills. I’ve got all that stuff... All the odds were stacked against me. All the odds. That’s a blue-collar win for me, and I’m blue-collar..."I’ve beaten all the top guys. I’m ready"

The hometown Boston Globe caught up with "The Bully" Gray Maynard after his unanimous decision win over Boston bred Kenny Florian at UFC 118. Dana White reconfirmed that Maynard will get the next title shot at Frankie Edgar's lightweight belt and Maynard believes he's up to the challenge. Can Maynard beat Edgar for a second time (the two clashed previously at UFC Fight Night 13 in 2008)? And are fans sharpening their knives, ready to slice Maynard and his cautious approach to pieces in the comments?

Props: Yahoo Sports

Quoteworthy

"I built on my confidence. The first time I was in there, I had the confidence I could do what I needed to do, but I hadn’t done it before. After doing it and knowing I could do it going in a second time, that confidence added a lot to it."

Frankie Edgar is the champion at 155 pounds. After UFC 112, not many people were buying that. But after completely dismantling BJ Penn over the course of five rounds there are no unanswered questions. The champion chasitized the media at the post fight press conference for not believing in him. Do you believe? Is Edgar a long term champion? Or is he keeping the belt warm for Gray Maynard?

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"It went exactly according to plan which is a rarity in our sport. I was pretty happy to see it go that way... Range was a big factor, especially against a guy with the striking skills James has. You don't see too many guys shoot a low single in mixed martial arts. And I knew the low single would work and make it difficult for him to counter punch me or catch me coming in. I got the mount position and he didn't have any idea how to get out of the mount. I had the choke once and he was propped up against the fence. I had to adjust and let him off the hook, but he gave it to me again."

Randy Couture tells ESPN's MMA Live that he intended to throw more leg kicks but the wrestling instincts kicked in and he took it to the mat. Many MMA fans were calling it a triumph over the sport of boxing, but at the end of the day it was just a fight. Toney never had a chance to bring his boxing skills to the forefront as Couture took him immediately to the ground and tapped him out with an arm triangle. Did Couture strike a blow for the sport over boxing? Or was it just two old men scrapping in a cage? You decide, Maniacs.

The king is dead. Long live the king. When Frankie Edgar won the lightweight title from BJ Penn at UFC 112, there was a question mark attached. The decision over the legendary BJ Penn was iffy and fans didn't seem to buy him as the real champion.

After five more rounds at UFC 118, there are no more questions. BJ Penn came into his rematch with Frankie Edgar as the clear favorite, and in many ways this fight was a repeat performance of the first, with more of an edge to Edgar. Frankie had the answer to BJ's stand up early on in the first, using his speed and movement to avoid BJ's hands. Edgar was almost able to take BJ down at will, going as far as slamming Baby J later on in the first.

Edgar dominated Penn for 25 minutes on his way to a unanimous decision. Penn had no answer for Edgar's quickness and wrestling acumen. The champion was able to crack him standing and took him down several times, much to Joe Rogan's amazement.

There was a brief glimmer of hope for Penn fans when late in the fight Penn took Edgar down and quickly transitioned to a mount, but Edgar was able to squeeze a leg in and secure half guard before standing back up. Penn looked lost against the much quicker Frankie Edgar throughout the fight

In the end, Penn looked befuddled. Rogan discussed a move to 170 pounds, but he's already lost twice to the champion in that division, the amazing Georges St. Pierre. At just 31, Penn seems a fighter past his prime, a relic from another generation.

Nothing has changed since UFC 1 back in 1993. We learned then that a boxer can't defend against the takedown or the submission. Seventeen years later, that lesson still applies. As the crowd chanted "UFC, UFC, UFC" Randy Couture took down and submitted boxer James Toney in the first round.

James Toney against Randy Couture was destined to be a freakshow from the second it was announced. All of the talk about training partners getting subbed by Toney went up in smoke within seconds of the bell ringing when Randy immediately took James Toney to the mat and mounted him.

Couture rained down blows and was able to get Toney into the cage and lock in a loose head and arm choke. Toney survived, but Couture was finally able to lock it in tight and get a submission.

Toney talked trash for a month before the fight, but once the bell rang he seemed confused, seemingly unprepared to defend against basic MMA holds. Couture celebrated like he had won the Super Bowl and an unintelligible Toney interview with Joe Rogan put an exclamation point on the night.

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Tracy Lee from Yahoo Sports captured the grotesquely swollen eye of Marcus Davis after his submission loss to Nate Diaz at UFC 118. Click here for complete results and live play by play.

Props: UFC.com

Quoteworthy:

"Shaq has been a huge supporter of the UFC and we’re pumped that he’ll be making his first public appearance at the UFC Fan Expo. With Shaq becoming a Celtic and this being our first-ever event in Boston, the timing is perfect." - UFC President Dana White

Shaquille O'Neal was the first mainstream athlete to really embrace the UFC, making appearances at several events and bringing the growing company much needed media attention when media attention was hard to come by. Now a Boston Celtic, O'Neal made his Boston social debut at the raucous UFC Fan Expo today. The 7'1" center joked with Tito Ortiz, challenged Korean giant Hong Man Choi, and even grappled a bit with a small child. Of course, everyone's a critic, and the Diesel had to weigh in on the referee crisis in MMA:

"Listen, I love Herb Dean but I'll be watching on TV and I'll be like 'Herb, why do you stop the fight so soon all the time?' Five more punches to the head please."

Video from ESPN Boston after the jump. What do you think? Will Shaq join Herschel Walker and Jose Canseco and make the leap to the cage? Or will the closest he ever comes to the Octagon be his $5,000 seats on the floor?

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"Since I'm in his hometown and I feel very bad about what I'm going to do... For weigh ins I brought him a little something. I hope he appreciates it."

Gabe Ruediger makes it clear to Heavy.com that he's willing to have a little fun with the lowest moment of his career.  Ruediger is the sport's most prominent cake eating fighter, famously being clowned on The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) Season 5 for eating an ice cream cake while struggling to make weight. When big Gabe couldn't make the cut, Dana White did, sending him packing from the house and from the UFC. Three and a half years later, Ruediger is finally getting a second chance against reality show teammate Joe Lauzon. Does Ruediger have what it takes to beat Lauzon? Or is this a one and done UFC appearance by a reality show washout?

Props: Heavy.com (Click the link to check out the complete gallery)

To check out the official UFC 118: "Edgar vs. Penn 2" weigh in results click here.

Props: Heavy.com

Quoteworthy:

"A motivated BJ Penn is somebody not to mess with, and you know what? I'm pretty motivated, I'm pretty damn motivated right now... Everybody wants to talk about how hard they train going into their fight, and I just want to tell you how hard I rested going into this fight."

Heading into UFC 118 one of the big questions, as with any other BJ Penn fight, is how motivated will BJ Penn be? There was talk after the first Edgar fight of just how little respect BJ gave his opponent and how he may have taken Frankie Edgar too lightly. Penn talked not about how hard he trained, but instead how hard he rested. Is BJ Penn really taking this fight as seriously as he should be, or will the joke be on BJ on Saturday night?

"B.J. by homicide. I think that it's going to be the B.J. we're used to seeing. No offense to Frankie. I've never met him personally, but I'm sure he's a great guy and great fighter, but BJ is going to be coming with a vengeance and win by homicide...Frankie's a tough, tough guy and a great fighter. It won't end in the first or second round. If anything, it will be in the third or fourth round after wearing him down, taking his back and choking him out—typical B.J. Penn."

WEC lightweight champion Benson Henderson has a professional interest in tomorrow night's fight between UFC champion Frankie Edgar and his legendary challenger BJ Penn. Henderson has crept into the lightweight top 10 in the WEC and is clearly itching to move on to the major league of MMA. Henderson told the Bleacher Report's Josh Nason he doesn't just want to be the best in the WEC. He wants to be the best-period. Henderson's not the only one picking Penn. Oddsmakers peg the Hawaiian as the clear favorite. Who do you have in this title fight?

"What's worse than having the WWF champ [as] our heavyweight champ? That ain't worse than having James Toney come out and win a fight. It's great for the sport. James Toney is God's gift to MMA right now. He's promoting the sport. He's telling everyone to go out and buy tickets. You can't ask for a better guy than that. What James Toney is doing is putting more money in everybody's pocket."

-- James Toney's UFC debut has attracted plenty of attention. The former boxing champion has polarized MMA fans, many of whom think the boxer's fight with UFC legend Randy Couture is bad for the sport. Penn seems to be looking at things from another perspective -- the fighter's. What matters at the end of the day is winning and putting a fat check in your bank account. Penn, at least, seems to think (based on his interview with MMAFighting.com) that Toney will help do the latter. Is he on point or way off base?

"What's worse than having the WWF champ [as] our heavyweight champ? That ain't worse than having James Toney come out and win a fight. It's great for the sport. James Toney is God's gift to MMA right now. He's promoting the sport. He's telling everyone to go out and buy tickets. You can't ask for a better guy than that. What James Toney is doing is putting more money in everybody's pocket."

-- James Toney's UFC debut has attracted plenty of attention. The former boxing champion has polarized MMA fans, many of whom think the boxer's fight with UFC legend Randy Couture is bad for the sport. Penn seems to be looking at things from another perspective -- the fighter's. What matters at the end of the day is winning and putting a fat check in your bank account. Penn, at least, seems to think (based on his interview with MMAFighting.com) that Toney will help do the latter. Is he on point or way off base?