UFC 137 Fight Card: Nick Diaz Must Be Cautious vs. B.J. Penn

B.J. Penn vs. Nick Diaz should be another magnificent main event when the two fighters square off in UFC 137 on Saturday night in Las Vegas.

Both are accomplished fighters, both are top-10 fighters in the welterweight division.

But Diaz in particular must be careful, despite a better overall record.

Diaz has a clear weakness in his game, and it has nothing to do with his technique or boxing skills. Diaz's biggest weakness is that he can be too aggressive going in for the knockout and, at times, forgets to protect himself.

In Diaz' last fight on April 9 against Paul Daley, Daley was doomed from the start when he failed to capitalize on this.

Diaz deserves credit for his victory over Daley, but Daley also had a poor game plan. Instead of countering the quick-handed Diaz, Daley decided to load up for big punches, which played right into Diaz's strength.

The best way to fight Diaz is to wait for him to open up and then punish him for it. You aren't going to get anywhere loading up a haymaker, nor will you generally win strictly from the standup position.

Penn has the wrestling advantage in this fight and his style could frustrate Diaz, who doesn't seem that warm to the idea of a fight's outcome being decided on the mat.

If Penn waits for his opportunities and then strikes, there's no reason why he can't win this fight. Diaz may be a force recently, but he hasn't been as dominate as the win-loss column would suggest.

Penn has the opportunity to expose what many fighters have curiously opted to ignore: Diaz' fearlessness.

Penn disrupted Jon Fitch's rhythm in February with several takedown attempts. He would be wise to use the same strategy against Diaz.