2008-08-11 The Book of Knowledge - Near perfect

BJ Penn is regarded as one of the best pound-for-pound mixed martial artists in the world. If you watch one of his fights, you will quickly discover that he is a force to be reckoned with. He is currently Lightweight Champion of the UFC and is amongst the top contenders in the Welterweight division. He has a solid ground game, unnatural balance and crisp striking skills - a true well-rounded fighter.

So what do you get when a fighter of his calibre writes a book? A vital asset to any practitioner that's what.

The book starts with an entertaining foreword that acts as a nice introduction to Penn's fighting career. He also puts you into the right mentality with the training + drills sections. From there onwards it moves towards the many techniques listed within the book.

The book is clearly split into appropriate sections in a logical order. Stand-up to clinch to ground. The techniques are given a brief write up which is accompanied by pictures from multiple camera angles and easy-to-follow captions. This is especially useful for any submissions novice, as some techniques could be made difficult to learn from just one camera angle.

All techniques within this book provide a wealth of information on the basics of MMA. However, if you are considering a move into MMA this book alone is unlikely to lead you to successful career. It only covers the basic techniques from every field.

I used this book as a teaching tool at my MMA class; newcomers can easily follow the instructions and it allows them to gradually improve all aspects of their game whilst providing tips here and there. At the start of each section there is an introduction and the `DO's' and `DON'Ts' list make for a very informative read.

PROS-

Covers a wide variety of techniques
Multiple camera angles
Effective instructional captions
Can set the foundation of a mixed martial artist to be

CONS-
Techniques from every aspect (striking, clinch work, throws and submissions) are very basic. The ground-game section for example covers the basic submissions such as RNC, guillotine choke, arms bar, kimura, americana, omaplata and triangle choke. Any experienced BJJ/Judo guys buying this book may want to consider an additional purchase if they wish to advance their own ground game. The same goes for any strikers out there - there are limited striking techniques, little to none on kicks. This is why one star is deducted.


In conclusion, this is an excellent book and it provides many of the most effective techniques used to by champions today. It sets the tone for any amateur and anyone who is interesting in the ever-growing sport of mixed martial arts.

This book is indeed a book of priceless knowledge and a must buy (unless you wanna get TKO'ed by some basic technique).