B.J. Penn has an estimated net worth of $20 million
B.J. Penn is an American professional mixed martial artist and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner with an estimated net worth of $20 million. He is 5’9″ and weighs 168 pounds. Jay Dee Penn was born on December 13, 1978 in Kailua, Hawaii. Penn is the first American to ever win the gold medal at the World Jiu-Jitsu Championship. After growing up in Hawaii, Penn became interested in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu when a neighbor opened up a gym and started training him. Shortly thereafter, he decided to move to San Jose, California to start training full time. After training and earning his purple belt under renowned instructor Ralph Gracie, Penn moved to Nova União in Brazil to get his black belt, which he did in 2000. Just weeks later he became the first non-Brazilian to win the World Jiu-Jitsu Championships in Brazil.
His success and stature in martial arts eventually led him to join mixed-martial arts which was beginning to enjoy widespread popularity in the United States in 2001. He debuted at the Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC) event in 2001 with a win and had early success before losing a decision in his first championship fight. In 2003 he would win his first championship as a lightweight division in K-1. He would win his first UFC crown at UFC 46 in the welterweight division, in one of the biggest upset in the history when he beat Matt Hughes.
After signing to fight exclusively for a Japanese league and falling out of favor with UFC – including some legal challenges – Penn came back to the UFC in 2006, losing to Georges St. Pierre in UFC 58, although many thought he won the fight. Next up was a rematch with Hughes that Penn lost after getting injured in the second round. He would then move up to the lightweight division and win a championship after an impressive victory over Joe Stevenson at UFC 80. He became only the second fighter in UFC history to win titles in two weight divisions. After losing a rematch with St. Pierre he would return as lightweight champions in 2009 and continued to fight until 2011 when he announced his retirement. Penn has coached on two episodes of The Ultimate Fighter television show and wrote an autobiography. He is widely regarded as one of the best MMA fighters in history. Penn has two daughters with longtime girlfriend Shealen Uaiwa.
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