The Prodigy originates prior to him competing in mixed martial arts, from accomplishing his extraordinary feat in the sport of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (earning his black belt in just under three years and winning the black belt division in the World Jiu-Jitsu Championship only three weeks later). His biography on the UFC website expressed this accomplishment as "an astonishing achievement in a sport where it takes the average athlete ten years or more to reach black belt status. The Ultimate Fighting Championship's inaugural signature gym located in Honolulu, Hawaii, 'UFC Gym BJ Penn' is named in Penn's honor. The gym has grown to become one of the largest and most successful in the state of Hawaii. Penn (in his knockout victory over former UFC Lightweight Champion Sean Sherk) is featured in the UFC "Evolution" pay-per-view introduction. Ranking in mixed martial arts history He is widely considered one of the greatest lightweight (155 lbs) competitors in the sport's history, and as one of the greatest Welterweight (170 lbs) competitors as well due to his performances against Georges St-Pierre and Matt Hughes. Penn was also simultaneously ranked number one in both of these divisions following his back-to-back submission victories over Takanori Gomi and Matt Hughes, where he is the only fighter to hold such an honor. Renowned boxing coach Freddie Roach has famously described Penn as the best boxer in all of mixed martial arts. Former UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva, has said on numerous occasions that he believes Penn to be the greatest pound-for-pound fighter in the history of the sport. UFC Hall of Famer, UFC 10 and UFC 11 Tournament Champion and former UFC Heavyweight Champion Mark Coleman acknowledges Penn as his idol in the sport of mixed martial arts. Penn was ranked within the top five in the FightersOnly! Magazine '100 Greatest Fighters in History'. UFC Hall of Fame During the televised broadcast of UFC 187 in May 2015, it was revealed on Fox Sports that Penn would be inducted into the revamped UFC Hall of Fame under the Modern Category during International Fight week festivities prior to UFC 189. Championships and accomplishments Mixed martial arts Ultimate Fighting Championship UFC Hall of Fame Modern-Era Wing (Inaugural inductee) UFC Lightweight Championship (One time) Three successful title defenses Tied with Benson Henderson, Frankie Edgar and Khabib Nurmagomedov for the most consecutive Lightweight title defenses in UFC history - (3) UFC Welterweight