BJ Penn has always walked the line between chaos and greatness. But now, the UFC Hall of Famer’s story has taken yet another turn. Just weeks after being arrested multiple times, and amid an active restraining order request filed by his mother, Lorraine Shin, Penn returned to social media with a chilling message.
In a post shared on his Instagram account, the 46-year-old wrote, “It’s not personal, it’s just business.” The caption accompanied an image that read, “To everybody I fell out with this year, f—- you next year too.”
At first glance, it might seem like a typical act of defiance from a former fighter known for his unfiltered personality. But taken in context, the message feels heavier. It comes at a time when Penn is being accused by his own mother of multiple troubling incidents that include home invasion and repeated harassment.
According to legal filings obtained by MMA Fighting, Shin claims Penn believes she is not his real mother. Instead, she says he has accused her of being an impostor who k****d his actual family and took over her identity.
She even alleged that Penn is suffering from Capgras delusion, a rare psychiatric disorder in which a person believes close relatives have been replaced by identical fakes. The details in BJ Penn’s mother’s statement claim that the UFC Hall of Famer glued shut her bedroom lock, blocked her security cameras, and physically assaulted her with a flashlight while trying to prevent her from calling 911. As such, her request to the court asked not just for protection, but for her son to receive medical treatment.
This isn’t BJ Penn’s first run-in with the law. Over the past decade, he’s faced multiple arrests for DUIs, assaults, and public altercations. But this may be the most serious situation yet, one involving not only the law but the safety of his own family and his mental health, as even Joe Rogan brought it up during a recent episode of his podcast.
Joe Rogan and his guest speak out about BJ Penn’s concerning spiral and struggles
In the episode no. 2339 of The Joe Rogan Experience, the long-time UFC commentator finally addressed the alarming behavior of the former champion. In a moment of serious reflection, Rogan asked, “Do you guys not pay attention to the BJ Penn stuff? BJ Penn claims that his family are imposters, that someone has kidnapped his family and replaced them.”
For Joe Rogan, who’s seen dozens of fighters deal with the aftershocks of war inside the cage, this wasn’t just another controversy. It was a red flag.
And comedian Big Jay Oakerson, Rogan’s guest on the episode, chimed in with, “Isn’t it funny when they hit with mania and manic stuff like that and bipolar with those kinds of things? They’re really textbook, a newfound thing in religion and being serious about it all of a sudden, like it’s always been that way. And weird. And they always have those things. That’s one of them too, like everyone’s fake. Everyone in my life has been replaced with somebody else.”
According to the National Library of Medicine, the Capgras syndrome which was also referred to by Penn’s mother in her legal statement, is often linked to brain trauma, dementia, or schizophrenia. Capgras syndrome can also arise from damage to the brain’s memory and recognition centers, areas vulnerable in those with long-term exposure to head trauma, like professional fighters.
In the end, BJ Penn’s legacy as one of MMA’s all-time greats now stands in stark contrast to the personal crisis unfolding before the public eye. As friends, fans, and even voices like Joe Rogan speak up, the hope is that Penn receives the help he clearly needs.
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