Former champions fight for spotlight tonight

Though all four fighters in the co-main events on tonight's Ultimate Fighting Championship card are former champions, there is no belt on the line in either bout.

In fact, neither fight carries even the promise of a title shot to the victor.

None of the four fighters seems bothered in the least.

"It's very premature to be talking about a title fight," said former welterweight and lightweight champion BJ Penn, who will meet UFC Hall of Famer and former welterweight champ Matt Hughes at UFC 123 in Auburn Hills, Mich.

Former light heavyweight champions Lyoto Machida and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson will meet in the other headline bout.

Penn will fight at welterweight for the first time since losing to champion Georges St. Pierre in January 2009. Penn lost his lightweight title to Frankie Edgar in April and dropped the rematch in August.

After his second loss to Edgar, Penn returned home to Hilo, Hawaii, and spent a few days hanging out. He said he realized while driving one day that he didn't want to sit around doing nothing.

"Once you've been where me, Lyoto, Rampage and Matt have been, a lot of other stuff just seems boring," Penn said. This is the only thing that keeps me feeling like I have something to live for."

So when he got a text message from UFC president Dana White asking if he would be interested in fighting Hughes for a third time to break their 1-1 tie, Penn jumped at the chance.

"I started shaking all over my body and I was like, 'I've got a reason to live for a couple more months,' " he said.

Penn said he isn't set on staying at welterweight and would like to own the title in both weight classes again before his career is over.

He acknowledged that Hughes, who has won three consecutive fights after losing three of four, is closer to a title shot at welterweight. But both fighters have lost to champion St. Pierre twice, making it less likely that either would fight for the title in the immediate future.

Hughes said he's more relaxed since dropping out of title contention and that has been a significant factor in his recent success.

"I definitely think that no pressure is something of it. Having that pressure off has just made it a lot funner," he said. "I just have a fun time training, have a fun time traveling. So all and all, I'm just having a great experience when it comes to fighting."

Machida is one fight removed from being champion, having lost the belt to Mauricio "Shogun" Rua in May in his first career defeat.

While the weight of being undefeated and the champion was lifted off the Brazilian karate specialist, Machida doesn't think he will ever fight completely pressure-free.

"The reality is there's pressure every time you step into a fight, regardless if (you're) undefeated or what stage of your career, there's always pressure," Machida said through an interpreter. "This time is not any different."

The pay-per-view card will air live at 7 p.m. At least two live fights will air on Spike (Cable 29) beginning at 6.

Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509.