Chael Sonnen’s long-discussed return to middleweight is apparently off for the foreseeable future.
The former challenger to both the UFC middleweight and light heavyweight titles announced on Friday’s UFC Fight Night pre-fight show on FOX Sports 2 that his upcoming fight with Wanderlei Silva will be contested at 205 pounds.
“Wanderlei, eat up. Enjoy the holiday,” Sonnen said.
Over the summer, Sonnen announced that he would drop from light heavyweight back down to middleweight following his August bout against Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. After submitting Rua in the first round of their bout, though, he then accepted another light heavyweight fight, which he lost in short order to Rashad Evans at UFC 167.
Sonnen and Silva, who have been jawing at one another for years, will serve as coaches on the upcoming season of “The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil,” which is slated to begin filiming in January.
No date or venue has been announced for the Sonnen-Silva coaches fight.
Silva, for his part, recently expressed to MMAFighting.com his desire to have the bout at 205.
“I want him really strong, so he can survive more than a round against me,” Silva said. “I want this fight at 205 pounds.”