There’s no doubt UFC middleweight/light heavyweight Chael Sonnen has made his share of enemies in Brazil. So much so that his mom, Claudia, has begged the nation not to let anyone “reach” her son to hurt him.
She made the comments to Brazilian media in the run-up to Sonnen’s second stint as a coach on The Ultimate Fighter reality show, which will film in Brazil next year.
“I’m worried about his safety during filming there. I know you all are legal, decent people,” she said (H/T MMA Mania). “My sister and her family received an exchange student from Brazil who has lived in her house when Chael was younger and they have shared many hours with each other. That said, it only takes one to ruin it…and I pray that you not allow someone to reach Chael in person. He is a great coach and is eager to help the young fighters as much as he can.”
During his years as a middleweight contender, Sonnen made many enemies in Brazil with his pursuit of division champion Anderson Silva. In his now famous trash talk leading up to two failed attempts to beat Silva in the Octagon, Sonnen went after anyone associated with the champion, including his country and training partners the Nogueira brothers.
Sonnen, of course, both lost his first fight to Silva but was also suspended for failing a drug test after the fight due to elevated testosterone levels. The man himself continues to claim that he only used testosterone for medical reasons and that he didn’t actually fail the drug test due to the use of anabolic steroids.
Still, several people took exception to his trash talking, including another middleweight and friend of Anderson, Wanderlei Silva. Wandy famously confronted Sonnen in a car about his comments, warning him that he would lose his teeth if he carried on talking the way he was.
That laid the seeds for a Wanderlei/Sonnen TUF showdown, which is now being realised three years later. However, threats of Brazilians breaking his teeth still loom over the American.
Despite assurances from the UFC, Sonnen still fears for his safety. Preparations for his security, as well as dates for the filming of the show, are still being made and the two coaches might not eventually face each other until June 2014.
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