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Okay, guys - I was the photographer and having one of the best seats in the house I can tell you this: it was Joe's decision to fight on, insisting that he was capable of working through the pain of the gash.

His wound got the proper attention at the time and was really just a small scratch that happened to be at the terminator of a very blood-rich vein at the top of his head. It was gushing so badly on account of

a) The location of the cut i.e. the particular vein it opened up

and

b) Joe's elevated heart rate and andrenaline

I did notice that Penn was using the cut as a bullseye mark and kept striking at it, though Stevenson gave all his heart and kept on trucking. In the end, though, the bloodflow impaired his vision to such a degree that it made it difficult for him to see what was going on. It also helped BJ slip the RNC into position.

Lastly, from my post-fight conversation with a few UFC bods and other MMA journalists, the strike itself was borderline since it was close to the 12 o'clock to 6 o'clock style of strike that constitutes a foul. At the end of the day it was Yamasaki's decision to allow it - and Stevenson kept on fighting through it.

Anyways - keep an eye on ESPN when the UFC rolls into London in June; I'll be there again to shoot more of the same action. Let's just hope that the rumored fight card (Liddell vs. Rua, Vera vs. Werdum, Lesnar vs. Anyone!) come true.

hahah pussy,
once again, name any time of fight that was stopped cause of that. And if your so big in the UFC name, fly me out to your gym and id gladly whip your ass. Your a shmuck, any mma fighter wouldnt tell someone to come fight him, but even if you were, id kick your fucking ass. What you people dont realize is not only the people in MMA are bad asses. There are some crazy fucking street fighters bro, that just bang, and i know some shit too so fuck, lets do it. Respond fag and ill be glad to show you your years in the Gym trying to be a bad ass was just worthless. And if your a fighter, your a shity fighter, especially if you own a gym, because by that time you should be known. Me, give me 1 year to crispin my talents, and id be a fucking champ, for i think alot of these guys in the UFC anyways are pussies. So, let me know dude, ill be glad to let you try and teach me a lesson. lol

I hope other people are reading you sounding like a total jack ass. You are an idiot. They are illegal. I know and train with UFC fighters. I've been to the rules meetings. NO DOWNWARD ELBOWS ALLOWED. You are one of those dumb asses that just can't be wrong. I'm telling you right now, YOU ARE WRONG. I know it 100% factually. You are wrong wrong wrong. How does that feel? At least nobody else cares to see this anymore, so only I know what a jack ass you are. I didn' read the rules off the website stupid. I'm a fighter and an mma coach. Come in to my gym, I'd be happy to give you a free lesson on downward elbows. =0)

AND IF FOR SOME REASON IT IS ONE OF THERE RULES, THEY DONT INFORCE IT BECAUSE HOW YOU GOING TO DETERMIN THE POINT OF YOUR ELBOW RULE?
WAY TO FUCKING STUPID BUT ITS BEEN DONE A MILLION TIMES IN THE UFC AND NEVER BEEN STOPPED.

AND I DONT GIVE A SHIT WHAT THE RULES SAY ON THE WEBSITE, THATS BULL SHIT, IVE NEVER SEEN A FIGHT STOPED BY THAT. ESPECIALLY ANYWHERE FROM THE FEET.

MMA COACH NO ELBOWS ARE ILLEGAL IN THE UFC.WHAT DO YOU THINK THE ELBOW IS THE FOREARM? AN ELBOW IS THE POINT IN THE BEND OF YOUR ARMS DUMB ASS, WHERE IS THE REST OF YOUR ELBOW? LET ME NAME OFF THE ELBOWS THAT HAVE SPLIT PEOPLE OPEN. CHUCK LIDDELL SPLIT OPEN WANDERLEIE WITH A ELBOW, DAVID LUIASAU CUT EVAN TANNER OPPEN WITH ELBOWS, SHAWN SHERK HITS PEOPLE WITH ELBOWS, ON THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER SEASON CHRIS LEBAN GOT HIS FACE CUT OPEN BY A ELBOW. NOT ILLEGAL IN THE UFC AND THATS ONLY THE ONES I REMEMBER IVE NEVER SEEN A ILLEGAL ELBOW UNLESS ITS THROWN AT THE BACK OF THE HEAD. TELL ME A FIGHT THAT WAS STOPPED BY A ILLEGAL ELBOW? IN THE UFC NOT PRIDE.

Most elbows are legal. DOWNWARD elbows can be thrown from guard or half guard, it doesn't mean you're on top.

Oh, and Jeramy, DOWNWARD strikes with the POINT of the elbow are ILLEGAL, you made yourself look like an ass by saying elbows are legal. So who really looks like they don't know crap about the UFC now?

Hey, shutupandfight, I'm not going to comment on the elbow strike... shit like that happens when you fight. BJ may or may not have "meant" to throw it. Like someone else said though, IT IS a moot point. I've been watching Joe Stevenson fight since way back... when he was 16. He earned some victories that could have easily been seen by YOU as "robberies", however, I used the word EARNED because he EARNED them. My true intent is to point out that ANY fighter, who in his last 7 UFC fights has fought: Joe Stevenson (a top contender), Jens Pulver (an experienced Militich fighter with the potential to finish from anywhere), Matt Hughes x 2 (...its Hughes man), GSP (best pound for pound fighter in the world), Caol Uno (one of the best wrestlers around), and Matt Serra (definitely no Tomato Can), is not being CODDLED by anyone, especially the hard-nosed, asshole-at-times UFC (that he has spurned in the past, no doubt). The UFC has a microscopic eye on BJ and always will. Look at your original comment... if you still feel the same, then I think analysis like that gives inexperienced fans a bad taste for the sport.

You all dont know crap about the ufc, elbows are 100 % legal, you can throw them anywhere, even if your on top of your apponent. You ever see david luasau or however you spell it, fight Evan tanner, dude, he used the elbows to split him open and the fight was done. Elbows are only illegal in Pride. Anyone saying the elbow was illegal, dont know the rules then. I was rooting for Joe this fight, but i must admit, bj penn whopped his ass, elbow or not. (elbows are legal dumb fuck>

watch some vale tudo and maybe you won't be such a pussy. I want to see a fight(I miss pride rules at least) not some slap-fest

make that "downward strike with the POINT of his elbow"

i'm no lawyer but i think the intent of both rules is to keep blood from interferring with the fighter's ability to see.

i obviously vote illegal...it was a downward strike with his elbow...that's a foul to a T.

it's not like it the first time Penn has used these kind of tactics...Penn vs Hughes 2...tried to poke Hughes' right eye out.

Rule#7 says you cant put a FINGER into any ofifice. its ok to use the glove to grind into the opponents face.

as far as the elbow, i think we shoud take a vote on it to put this one to bed. come on, majority rules

Vote: Not illigel

are you people effin blind???

http://www.ufc.com/index.cfm?fa=LearnUFC.Rules

Fouls...#7 and #10.

the elbow wasnt illegal, get over it. and if you admit that he wouldnt have won anyway, why are you arguing a moot point?

and the use of hands to the face is not illegal either, as long as the fingers dont poke. all fighters use hads to the face to abstruct the breather patters of their apponents or to keep cut bleeding.

Stevenson admitted defeat...and i'm not saying Stevenson would have won...far from it. i am saying that any chance he had of getting his shit together was gone once his face was full of blood...and that blood was cause by...i'll say it again...an ILLEGAL strike...and susequent ILLEGAL grinding of his hand (rule reads "finger" but wtf) into the cut to cause it to continue to bleed.

i see that nobody is disputing the fact that the elbow was illegal.

Shutupandfight, I mean Joe Stevenson, you lost plain simple and you lost bad. you are going to have to learn to admit defeat

I think shutupandfight should crawl out of "daddy's" ass and secondly wake the **** up. The fight lasted a little less than 2 full rounds.....And during the ENTIRE time

BJ dominated before the cut, after the cut, in between the cut
BJ dominated on the feet, on the ground
BJ was dominate before the fight , durung the fight, after the fight.

"Daddy" was on his back the entire fight...before the cut, after the cut, in between the cut.....well, except for when he was getting beat during the stand up exchanges.

I respect Joe S. as a fighter, but come on dude...you got to realize that BJ gave him a good old fashined ass whoopin. You have to be Joe S. himself to say that Daddy was "robbed" or just have zero knowledge of combat sports. Or just the fact that the guy getting repeatedly punched in the face and bleeding like a pig is the ONE losing the fight

read UFC's rules...#7 and #10 i believe.

no...it ain't "boxing"...and it ain't street fighting either.

he looks like he just fell out of Tim Sylvia's pussy whilst on his period.

last time i checked, you're supossed to throw elbows with bad intentions or the intentions to cut. what do you think this is, boxing?

Shutupandfight is correct. After tossing a cup of blood in my own face... I'm having considerable difficulty typing this email... let alone kicking BJ Penn's ass.

shutupandfight has to be troll but trolling a comment section is pretty pathetic. Joe got pwned plain and simple and that picture is fucking brutal.

illegal my dick. even before the cut Stevenson was getting peppered up on his feet.

joe said in the pre-fight interview that he was going to win at all costs and even try and cut BJ, looks like his plan backfired.

toss a cup of blood in you own face and see how well you control a fight.

that elbow was intentended to open that cut...and regardless of that...it was an ILLEGAL strike.

shutupandfight stop making excuses. Regardless of the elbow BJ was totally controlling that fight from the get go.

Stevenson was robbed??? He was clearly outclassed, dont get me wrong i like stevenson but robbed no i dont think so lol.

that fight should have been stopped the second after Penn landed that elbow...downward strike with the point of his elbow to be specific. if that weren't enough to push the rules Penn went on to grind his glove into the open cut. at best the fight should have been stopped due to cut when it began gushing in the second round...he obviously couldn't see a damned thing.

Stevenson was robbed...and Penn continues to be coddled by the UFC.

Mmmmm.....pwwwnage

Well, Joe may not be crying... but, I admit it... that bloody-awful photo sure the heck made ME cry!!!