Former Pride champion Wanderlei Silva has no love for fellow head coach on Season 3 of The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil Chael Sonnen—which is no secret, but he has now gone on the record, slamming his American adversary about his testosterone replacement therapy usage.
As first reported by Brazilian media outlet UOL Esporte, translation via MMA Fighting, The Axe Murderer slammed his arch nemesis ahead of their long-awaited showdown in May.
“If he needs that, what can I say?” Silva said with a laugh. “I thought about using it, but my wife told me she would ask for a divorce, so I said I wouldn’t. People say (Sonnen) only has one ball, so if he has to use it maybe he can’t get it up.”
After nearly pulling off the upset of a lifetime at UFC 117 in a middleweight title bid against then seemingly unstoppable champ Anderson Silva in August 2010, Sonnen tested positive for elevated levels of testosterone after the bout, per MMA Junkie.
The American Gangster applied for and received a testosterone usage exemption in his subsequent six fights, posting an even 3-3 record.
Sonnen has gone on the record on many occasions saying that he suffers from hypogonadism, a condition that is often associated with diminished testosterone production in the body, and has been using TRT to deal with the issue since 2008, per Cage Potato.
With all that in mind, Silva also took verbal shots at Sonnen for both his most recent win and most recent loss.
(Sonnen) is a good athlete, I can’t underestimate him, but he didn’t beat the real Shogun. Shogun gave him the neck. We can’t use that fight as a parameter.
He showed who he really is against Rashad (Evans). He goes in there wanting to quit. When I push him, his spirit will want to go back home.
At one time rumored to headline UFC Fight Night 26 in August against Wanderlei, Sonnen instead fought fellow ex-Pride star Mauricio Rua.
He won the bout via a guillotine choke in the first round.
It was a completely different story when the Team Reign Training Center fighter went up against Rashad Evans at UFC 167 in November, suffering a one-sided TKO in the first round.
Silva also made note that he isn’t worried about Sonnen‘s takedowns and top control, as he is confident in his sweeps and submissions from bottom.
The Brazilian slugger enters the grudge match coming off what will have been a 14-month layoff from the cage, most recently scoring a vintage knockout over Brian Stann at UFC on FUEL 8 in March.
Will Silva be able to back up his trash talk, or will Sonnen‘s wrestling and constant pressure prove to be overwhelming?
John Heinis is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA editor for eDraft.com.
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