Penn To Face MacDonald on FOX December 5

Wainaku resident BJ Penn will definitely come out of retirement to face Canadian-born Rory MacDonald in a UFC cage.

After the UFC postponed the bout that was supposed to take place on September 22 in Toronto, it was announced this week that both men will step in the octagon on December 5 at a location to be determined. The bout will be part of a fight card that will air on the FOX Television Network, which locally airs on KHON-TV.

UFC President Dana White had to postpone the scheduled September pay-per-view bout because of an injury that MacDonald suffered over his right eye. It took 38 stitches to close the cut that he suffered during training.

After the postponement was announced, Penn used his website, BJPenn.com, to try to get MacDonald to face him sooner, saying that he believed that the fight should take place in October, while MacDonald suggested moving the fight to November. The UFC decided to attach the bout to a free-TV card that includes Nate Diaz battling Ben Henderson and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua facing Alexander Gustaffson.

The original postponement still does not sit well with Penn, who spoke to MMA website Sherdog.com about why he believes MacDonald postponed the fight.

““I know the reason why Rory pulled out on September 22nd. The cut is a detail but I know the reason why he pulled out is because he knew he wasn’t gonna win,” Penn stated. “If he let that cut heal, tried to train, whatever it was, whether he should have been in shape already… I’ve never heard of a guy pulling out of a fight 10 weeks early from a cut.