The ongoing silent treatment Chael Sonnen was receiving from Jon Jones came to an abrupt end on Monday.
After enduring weeks of trash talk and playful banter from Sonnen, the UFC light heavyweight champ finally went on the offensive in the continued verbal exchanges between the TUF 17 coaches.
In a Twitter post, Jones accused Sonnen of taking “steroids in his prime” and needing Testosterone Replacement Therapy to “get in his prime again.”
Take steroids in your prime testosterone levels drop then you take TRT to get in your prime again.. Maybe I should just join the team $$$
— Jon Bones Jones (@JonnyBones) April 15, 2013
Sonnen was suspended for one calendar year after testing positive for elevated testosterone levels after his fight against Anderson Silva in August 2010.
The suspension was immediately appealed by Sonnen, who claimed he had been approved to be on TRT by the Nevada State Athletic Commission. The story was immediately shot down by Executive Director Keith Kizer, who confirmed Sonnen had never been approved to use TRT.
Nearly two years later in May 2012, Sonnen was finally granted a therapeutic use exemption for TRT from the Nevada commission. During an interview with the LA Times (via Fightersonlymag.com), Sonnen stated that his life depended on TRT:
“I don’t have an option. I either take this medicine or die. I’m not asking if I can take it. It’s up to them to let me take it. It’s a substance that’s often abused, and I deal with taking it in shame. But a blood test can clear you, and show I take the appropriate amount.”
Jones hasn’t shied away from his personal disdain for TRT usage in MMA. During the UFC 151 media call, he criticized MMA legend Dan Henderson, another TRT user, for utilizing a drug that “gives a person in their 40s the strength of a 30-year-old again.”
Jones is slated to defend his UFC title against Sonnen on April 27 at UFC 159. For the most part, he has remained relatively quiet leading up to the fight. As usual, Sonnen has gone above and beyond to hype the fight, including updating his own personal countdown on Twitter.
If Sonnen‘s aim was to get under Jones’ skin, it looks like he may have succeeded. He did the same in the time leading up to both bouts against Silva, but things didn’t turn out so well for the self-proclaimed “Oregon Gangster.”
Will it be any different against Jones?
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