UFC 94: St-Pierre vs. Penn 2 was a mixed martial arts (MMA) pay-per-view event promoted by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on January 31, 2009. The card featured five televised MMA bouts, as well as five un-aired preliminary bouts. It was the second UFC event of 2009 and took place on the weekend of Super Bowl XLIII.

The main event featured the UFC Welterweight Champion, Georges St-Pierre, defending his title against UFC Lightweight Champion B.J. Penn. This represented the first time two current titleholders competed against each other in the UFC. The contest was heavily promoted, featuring a publicity tour to Canada and Hawaii, as well as the introduction of UFC Primetime, a preview show that cost $1.7 million to produce. The co-main event of the evening was a battle between two undefeated light heavyweights sporting 13–0 records in Lyoto Machida and Thiago Silva.

Lyoto Carvalho Machida (Portuguese pronunciation: [liˈotu maˈʃidɐ]; born May 30, 1978) is a Japanese-Brazilian mixed martial artist from Salvador, Bahia, Brazil who fights as a light heavyweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He is a former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion and is currently ranked as the #6 light heavyweight fighter in the world by Sherdog, MMAWeekly and Yahoo! Sports.

Machida was born in the city of Salvador as the third son of the highly ranked head of the Brazilian branch of the Japan Karate Association, Shotokan karate master Yoshizo Machida. Yoshizo moved to Brazil from Japan when he was 22 years old. There he met and married Lyoto's mother, Ana Claudia. Growing up in Belém, Lyoto began training in karate at the age of three and earned his black belt at the age of thirteen. He also began training in sumo at twelve and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at fifteen. He won a number of amateur karate tournaments, including the 2001 Pan American Karate tournament.

He was the runner-up in the 2000 Brazilian Sumo Championships in the 115 kg division. As an adult, he became Brazilian Champion twice under Taylor Swanson, and placed second in the South American Championship. He defeated American black belt Jiu-Jitsu fighter Rafael Lovato Jr. at L.A. Sub X. In addition to his sumo and karate achievements, he has a college degree in Physical Education. Lyoto's brother, Chinzô, is a Shotokan vice-champion (Australia 2006), losing only to number-one ranked Shotokan master Koji Ogata. Lyoto and Chinzô fought in a Karate Final 10 years ago in which Lyoto gave Chinzô a cheek scar that still exists today. His other brothers include Kenzo Machida, a TV journalist for one of Brazil's biggest TV stations, Take Machida and adopted brother Francisco Machida.

Bruce Anthony Buffer (born May 21, 1957, in Tulsa, Oklahoma) is the main octagon announcer for Zuffa main events.^{[citation needed]} On UFC broadcasts, he is introduced as the "Veteran Voice of the Octagon." He is the half brother of the well-known boxing and wrestling ring announcer Michael Buffer, and is President and CEO of their company "The Buffer Partnership". Both Michael and Bruce are grandsons of late boxer Johnny Buff. Buffer holds a black belt in Tang Soo Do and has fought as a kickboxer.

Buffer always begins each PPV with the phrase "Ladies and gentlemen, we...are...live!" Before each main event Buffer proclaims, "This is the main event of the evening," followed by "This is the moment you've all been waiting for," and finally, "It's time!" before introducing the final two fighters.

Along with his catch phrases, Buffer has a signature move, which he has called the "Buffer 180" where he motions directly across the Octagon before quickly spinning 180° and pointing to the corner being introduced. Buffer performs 45° and 90° turns before most fights^{[citation needed]}, but reserves the "Buffer 180" for main events and co-main events. At UFC 100, Buffer performed a "Buffer 360" during his introduction of Frank Mir v. Brock Lesnar. Buffer vowed he would never do the "Buffer 360" again. Regardless of this vow, he's stated on his radio show on the Sherdog Radio Network, that he might perform the 360 in "the spur of the moment." He also performs the "Buffer Bow" exclusively for Randy Couture, in which he bends down as a knight would to a king in the accolade.^{[citation needed]}

Dana White (born July 28, 1969) is the current President of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts organization based in the United States.

Born in Manchester, Connecticut on July 28, 1969, White grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada, Ware, Massachusetts and Levant, Maine. White is a passionate Boston Red Sox fan. During his youth, he bounced back and forth between Boston and Maine. He attended the University of Massachusetts Boston but did not finish; however, while there he did launch a boxing program for inner-city youth.

White has a background as an aerobics instructor. In 1992, White established Dana White Enterprises in Las Vegas. He conducted aerobics classes at three gyms in the Las Vegas area and began managing MMA fighters Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell.

While working as a manager, White learned that Semaphore Entertainment Group, the parent company of the UFC, was looking for a buyer for the UFC. White contacted childhood friend Lorenzo Fertitta, an executive at Station Casinos, and a former commissioner of the Nevada State Athletic Commission. Within a month, Lorenzo and his older brother Frank bought the UFC, with White installed as its president. White currently owns about 9% of Zuffa, LLC, the entity the Fertitta brothers created to own and manage the UFC.

Akihiro Gono (郷野聡寛, Gōno Akihiro^?) (born October 7, 1974 in Tokyo) is a retired Japanese mixed martial artist. He is best known for his clever and deceptive fighting style, and for his flashy ring entrances. His fighting style is characterized by skillfully avoiding strikes, using fast counter punches and generally getting the opponent to fight his way. He is only one of two men to beat Bellator Middleweight champion Hector Lombard, and one of three to beat the DREAM Light Heavyweight Champion and former Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion Gegard Mousasi.

Akihiro Gono began fighting mixed martial arts in 1994, beginning with the Lumax Cup: Tournament of Japan '94. He would go on to fight in the Shooto organization, as well as Pancrase. He began fighting in Pride Bushido with Bushido 2 in 2004.

Gono holds wins over such fighters as Gegard Mousasi, Hector Lombard, Yuki Kondo, Ivan Salaverry, Crosley Gracie, Daniel Acacio, and Hayato Sakurai. He has fought many tough opponents, with losses to such fighters as Mauricio Rua, Dan Henderson, Matt Hughes, and Yuki Kondo.