A potential rematch between UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva and trash-talking challenger Chael Sonnen has easily become one of 2012’s most anticipated fights, and it’s the words of Sonnen that have people wanting to see this fight more than ev…
A potential rematch between UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva and trash-talking challenger Chael Sonnen has easily become one of 2012’s most anticipated fights, and it’s the words of Sonnen that have people wanting to see this fight more than ever right now.
Sonnen spoke to Jim Rome earlier today and continued to implore his demand for a rematch with the last man to beat him.
After defeating Brian Stann at UFC 136 earlier this month, Sonnen called out the pound-for-pound king in the post-fight interview and said, “Anderson Silva, you absolutely suck.”
He continued by calling out Silva and offering a loser-leaves-town match for Super Bowl weekend, 2012.
“That offer was good when I made it, but it’s like any offer—they’ve got to expire,” said Sonnen, who lost to Silva via triangle-choke in the fifth round of their UFC 117 bout.
“I’m doing anything I can to lure him out, and yes, I would have absolutely done that,” Sonnen continued. “I’ll do a winner-takes-all. I’ll do any stipulation that he wants.”
Since defeating Sonnen, Silva has fought twice and defeated two opponents in Yushin Okami and Vitor Belfort. Sonnen helped train Okami for his fight with Silva at UFC 114, but the Japanese fighter was knocked out in the second round, leaving Sonnen no choice but to get back in action and make the rematch happen as quickly as possible.
“All he needed to do was stand up and give me a thumbs up. [If] he wanted to accept that offer, all he needed to do was nod to me. Have one of his handlers come in the back and say, ‘Anderson accepts.’ He does the exact opposite. He went to the media and said, ‘I do not want to fight that guy.’ So what can I do? Now, I’ve got to come up with a new offer.”
“He [Silva] comes out and tells Dana, ‘Hey, I want the biggest fights there are.’ Well, there is no bigger fight in this business than our rematch, and my name has never come out of his mouth once.”
Filed under: UFC, NewsUFC president Dana White has already said he’d be crazy not to sign middleweight champion Anderson Silva against Chael Sonnen in a rematch of their August 2010 classic, but that’s apparently not enough to pacify Sonnen.
UFC president Dana White has already said he’d be crazy not to sign middleweight champion Anderson Silva against Chael Sonnen in a rematch of their August 2010 classic, but that’s apparently not enough to pacify Sonnen.
The contender ratcheted up his campaign for another chance at Silva on Tuesday’s edition of the nationally syndicated Jim Rome Show, admitting he was trying to pick a fight with what he believes to be an unwilling participant.
“[Silva] tells Dana he wants the biggest fight,” Sonnen said. “Well this is the biggest fight he can have and I’ve never heard my name come out of his mouth once.”
Sonnen discussed his UFC 136 post-fight challenge, in which he told Silva that if he lost, he would leave the promotion, saying that he was still willing to answer to the stipulation, but that “like any offer, it’ll expire sometime.”
At the time of the offer, Silva was in the crowd but simply smiled before pretending to cower in fear. Since then, Silva’s manager Ed Soares told a Brazilian news program that while Sonnen is a great fighter, he had his chance, lost and should “go back to the end of the line.” Rome asked Sonnen how he would have responded if he were on the receiving end of the offer.
“I would have come over the guardrail, walked up the steps, gone into the octagon, taken the microphone out of his hands and shoved it straight down his throat,” he said.
Sonnen reiterated the claim that he was the rightful winner of their UFC 117 fight, during which he dominated the first four-and-a-half rounds before losing via tapout. Rome challenged him on that, reminding him that he tapped out due to submission. Sonnen didn’t necessarily agree.
“Who are you going to believe? Me or your lying eyes,” he said. “I’m here to tell you under any other scoring system in the world, I won that fight. I hit him 300 times, he hit me 11 times. Look, if the rolls had been reversed and he hit me 30 unanswered times, they would have pulled him off me, declared him the winner and sent him on his way. I not only hit him 30 unanswered times, I did it at 10 different points of the fight.”
As Rome playfully pressed the point, Sonnen acknowledged the fight’s final outcome but said he was the man to unseat Silva. Past that, he said that if Silva is angered by some of the things he has said — including a recent comment that many believe crossed the line by referencing Silva’s wife — this is his chance to shut him up.
“As far as the line, I don’t care,” he said. “People say it’s not personal. Well, it is personal. But he has a problem and what does he do? He calls Dana and tattles about it. Guess what? Let’s get into the octagon, the people’s forum and I’ll answer for everything I’ve ever said.”
Sonnen went on to call Silva “a paper champion, overpaid and overrated,” before adding some new material to his Silva diatribe. After saying he would slap Silva in the face the next time he saw him, he added this gem: “I was going to dump a Coke on him one time. He was right next to me, and if I thought he was worth the buck-fifty I spent on the Coke, I would’ve done it.”
Rome, who is known to generate headline-grabbing interviews from his subjects, apparently left the conversation in awe of Sonnen’s fight-selling skills, calling him one of the five best guests he’s had on the show, and describing any future Sonnen interviews as “appointment listening.”
With Sonnen getting national mainstream press, it’s even more likely that Sonnen-Silva II is in our near future.
(Editor’s note: Listen to Sonnen’s appearance on Jim Rome Show below.)
There is no question that in this day and age of promotion and brand awareness, you have to be loud and proud to get your message out to listeners whose ears take in thousands of messages daily.Mixed martial arts and the UFC presents such an inter…
There is no question that in this day and age of promotion and brand awareness, you have to be loud and proud to get your message out to listeners whose ears take in thousands of messages daily.
Mixed martial arts and the UFC presents such an interesting combination in that silence and calm demeanor at the heart of traditional martial arts, yet the ability to trash-talk and promote is equally as important to success in the game at times.
I would prefer each fight to be a little more respectful. It is martial arts. But I’m OK with the other side of it, too. I understand there are two different fan bases. Some people like more of that warrior spirit, discipline and honor, and other people like more of the cage fighter, I’m-gonna-knock-you-out type stuff. So I’m getting more comfortable with both of them, and it is what it is.
Mark me down as a fan in the warrior spirit side of the coin, but I do love the loudmouth characters who entertain leading up to certain fights. You can’t have the yin without the yang, and love them or hate them, here are my top 10 biggest loudmouths in the UFC.
JS: Hi Matt, cheers for taking the time to talk today. Ok, so your promotion “Sport Fight” is hosting its 30th show this coming weekend, an organisation which you co-founded with Randy Couture. Is “The Natural” still involved a…
JS: Hi Matt, cheers for taking the time to talk today. Ok, so your promotion “Sport Fight” is hosting its 30th show this coming weekend, an organisation which you co-founded with Randy Couture. Is “The Natural” still involved at all with Sport Fight?
ML: Nope. Randy moved onto Vegas and I’ve taken it over. But even when he moved out to Nevada, he’d bring over plenty of the guys that he trains to start on our show. Fighters like Gray Maynard and Evan Dunham. Randy understands our business model, and he appreciates the quality of our show, so when Gray was starting out, he realised it would be the perfect platform.
JS: Great. You should ask Randy to tweet out a promo for the upcoming Sport Fight 30 to his 150,000 followers. You and Randy also co-founded Team Quest, and Dan Henderson became involved in 2006. However, I read about the trademark infringement lawsuit that Dan Henderson filed against you earlier this year. How is your subsequent personal and working relationship with Dan?
ML: Good idea man, I might hit Randy up. Yeah I licensed a gym to Dan back in ’06. I don’t know what Dan’s up to right now. I’m not sure what Dan’s problem is, because he hasn’t spoken to me in a while. We haven’t had a relationship in a while now. Even when he was speaking to me, he wasn’t exactly forthcoming. I don’t know, maybe he has a big ego, and thinks he wants to take over the world. I just keep my chin down and move forward.
JS: Ok, irrespective of that, how do you think Dan will fare against Shogun?Would a victory warrant a title shot at MW or LHW belt? How would he fare against Anderson and JBJ?
ML: I think Shogun’s a pretty great matchup for Dan stylistically, and I think he’ll do fantastic in that fight. I don’t think JBJ or Anderson would be good matchups for Dan. In terms of what a win over Shogun warrants, I don’t know. That stuff is usually up to the whim of a promoter. It’s not always based on performance requirements. No athletic architecture is really in place. Wouldn’t that be nice? We are in the sports’ business, and I understand there’s an element of entertainment also. But wouldn’t it be nice if MMA was a meritocracy like in other professional sports. I remember in the Olympics, I had to earn my way there, and there was a specific criteria set.
JS: Yes, that sounds fair. Team Quest is primarily known for its excellence in wrestling. I made the obvious connection, and was wondering whether the name was partly based on the cult 80s wrestling film “Vision Quest?”
ML: Haha, no. But that is a cult classic, especially for American wrestlers. I didn’t realise that film would be well-known outside of the US.
JS: I must be honest here. At UFC 129, Randy entered the Octagon to Red Rider’s “Lunatic Fringe,” and Joe Rogan mentioned that it had featured on the film’s soundtrack, so I subsequently looked it up. Moving onto Chael now, you’re obviously close with him. Given both of your involvements in politics, is your friendship based more on politics or fighting?
ML: Haha. I’ve been Chael’s coach since he was 15 years old in high school, so I can pretty much answer anything on him. Chael and I are both involved in politics, and we are aligned in a lot of our philosophies and beliefs, but Chael is a straight GOP party guy in my opinion, therefore more conservative, whereas I’m a strict libertarian, even though I ran on a GOP ticket. Chael and I both live in different districts of Oregon, so there’s a chance that we’ll both run for office simultaneously one day. But for now, both of our focuses is on MMA.
But politics and religion are topics that people tend to stay away from in their conversations, because they’re polarising. But they are important topics, so they should be discussed the most, so we should know each other’s opinions on them.
JS: Is it your own experiences with the law, specifically having to secure your spot on the US Olympic team through the courts, which fueled your passion for politics?
ML: I think there’s some truth to that. I’ve always been intrigued with law and the political process, which is all based on law. I think our country has taken a lot of liberties, such as killing the Al-Qaeda member in Yemen a couple of weeks ago. That was completely unlawful, and we didn’t have congressional approval to go and kill another citizen. Regardless of whether he’s a terrorist or not, there is a law in place which requires us to give a due process. So yeah, I’m a big believer in the system, but I just don’t think we follow our own system and laws very well. I think ultimately we’ll see the system collapse. You know, no system has ever stayed around forever. Returning to your question, I’m not sure what fueled my interest in politics. I guess human nature, curiosity, just constantly striving to learn more.
JS: Would you prefer to run against him for office or have to face him inside a cage? Which would be easier?
ML: Haha. Well, I’ve already got victories over Chael on the mat. I don’t think either of us would want to face each other inside the cage. I wouldn’t want to battle Chael on wits, or strength. Both would be very difficult. I’ll stay allies with Chael on both fronts.
JS: Haha, sounds sensible. Now you’ve gone on record as stating that Anderson is already attempting to shirk Chael. If the fight eventually materialises, how would Chael fare in the rematch?
ML: I think the rematch would look just like the first one, except I’ve got a game plan for Chael to finish him before the end of the third round. So, yeah it’ll look similar to their first encounter, but with some additional techniques and strategy, it won’t make it to the championship rounds.
JS: WOW, ok. Just trying to probe a little further, would these additional techniques involve wrestling submission holds or BJJ?
ML: (Sounds jokingly astounded) BJJ submissions? We are not Brazilians. We are Americans. You understand that right? Why would we be working BJJ? We do not employ BJJ. We employ American wrestling submissions.
JS: Haha. Fair play. I’m just a naïve Englishman here.
ML: Ok, I’ll let that one slide since you aren’t an American reporter. But yes, we would employ a submission hold finish or some vicious ground ‘n’ pound to finish that fight.
JS: You know Chael better than nearly anyone. Is he as funny off-camera as when being filmed? Good to go for a beer with?
ML: Yes, he is. Haha, he’s fairly entertaining off-camera also. He has always amused me, even when he was a young man. And he’s a great person to go for a beer with, because if you want a drink, he won’t have one and he’ll drive you home. He can be pretty funny without even the beers at the pub. I’ve got a ton of funny stories about Chael, I wouldn’t even know where to begin. Half the time when he amuses me, I don’t even think he’s trying to be funny.
JS: Ok. You alluded to it before with your jovial comment about BJJ. What did you make of Chael’s remarks about Brazil? Did you believe they were light-hearted, because Brazilian natives took offense?
ML: Of course they were light-hearted. It was just marketing and promoting. Expanding his brand and showcasing his personality. I mean, you can’t take everything serious. Too many people take this sport too seriously, like this is the be all and end all. It’s just an athletic competition. I think the Brazilians need to lighten up and get a sense of humour.
JS: Ok, moving onto your career. Obviously you’re 41 now, and your resume features some legendary names. Amongst the hardcore you’re renowned and respected but to the casual fans, new to the sport, you are relatively unknown.
ML: Well, you know, when I was fighting in the UFC, they weren’t promoting and marketing as well as right now. The FOX deal will only enhance its popularity. Me personally, I never got into MMA to be famous, I got into it to compete and pursue athletic aspirations. They were my pure intentions. I came from a true sport, an Olympic background, winning multiple national, international and Olympic medals. So I entered MMA as a sport. I started MMA in 1997, and in 2000 I jumped in both feet. Coming from a pure sport background, I treated MMA as such, rather than focusing on the fact that it’s also an entertainment industry. But I’ve learnt later on in my career that it is also an entertainment industry, and I’ve coached my athletes to be both entertainers and sportsmen.
JS: Ok, so as Chael has risen to prominence within the MMA world, have you consequently advised him to be more outspoken, in order to market himself and his brand?
ML: Yeah, absolutely. And what you see is Chael’s real personality. It isn’t an act. But it’s better to accentuate your personality than to hide it. People will become more familiar with you and talk about you, whether they love you or hate you.
JS: Ok, well thanks for your time today Matt. I really appreciate it. I look forward to our forthcoming interview in which we’ll discuss your newfound role as an advisor to the future home of MMA Takedown Fight Media, and its inaugural coverage of your promotion Sport Fight 30 on 22nd October
ML: No worries, it was a pleasure talking with you.
Filed under: UFCYou can’t blame Anderson Silva for not wanting to get bossed around by Chael Sonnen. Here’s the UFC middleweight champ, the consensus pound-for-pound king of MMA, and he has to sit next to Charles Barkley in Houston and listen to a guy …
You can’t blame Anderson Silva for not wanting to get bossed around by Chael Sonnen. Here’s the UFC middleweight champ, the consensus pound-for-pound king of MMA, and he has to sit next to Charles Barkley in Houston and listen to a guy he beat a year ago stand in the cage and try to map out his future.
Super Bowl weekend. Las Vegas, Nevada. Loser leaves the division and possibly the UFC “forever.” That makes for a great pre-fight promo piece, but it must have come as a surprise to the champ, who had yet to agree to any of it.
That’s why it’s somewhat understandable for Silva’s manager, Ed Soares, to insist on a recent episode of Inside MMA that Sonnen should “get to the back of the line” if he wants a crack at the belt.
The trouble is the line isn’t quite as long as he seems to think. The Silva camp can argue with the UFC over dates and locations, but there’s really only one dance partner that makes any sense right now, and it’s Sonnen.
One can see how it might seem frustrating to Silva. He beats Sonnen in August of 2010, Sonnen then gets put on the shelf following the dual headache of testosterone use issues and money laundering charges. When he comes back, Sonnen wins exactly one fight before demanding a title shot on his own personal timetable and according to his own specific pro wrestling terms. Who does this guy think he is?
But that’s an easy question to answer. Sonnen happens to be one of the only middleweights left who can sell a fight against Silva, and he knows it. That’s why he can afford to call his shots, at least to a degree.
Silva (or Soares) might not like it, but what other options are there? Should he get past Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, Dan Henderson has said he’ll cut down to middleweight for a rematch with Silva. Then again, he also said he’ll only cut down for a fight with Silva, which makes you wonder what would happen if he managed to beat the 185-pound champ.
Henderson is 41 years old, and, from the sound of it, not all that excited about losing a bunch of weight every three or four months at this point in his life. Does the UFC really want a middleweight champ who doesn’t want to be a middleweight?
Even with the potential infusion of Strikeforce fighters, the landscape at 185 pounds isn’t exactly overflowing with attractive contenders. Luke Rockhold, Tim Kennedy, even the winner of the Michael Bisping-Jason Miller fight — there’s no logical contender who poses enough of a threat to be interesting to fans right away.
Some of that is Silva’s fault. It’s hard to find a compelling fight for him when he has so thoroughly dismantled every challenger. That is, every challenger except for the one who took him five rounds deep before one careless mistake cost him the fight.
Ideally, the case for a rematch should be based on more than simply the potential to make it a close fight, but this is Silva we’re talking about. Finding him a close fight is a battle in itself. Finding him one with an opponent who can also do all the hype work that the champ either can’t or won’t is like finding the winning lottery ticket in among the dirty laundry. The UFC would have to be crazy not to cash in on this find while it can.
If Silva doesn’t want to fight as soon as Super Bowl weekend, whether it’s because his shoulder is still bothering him or because he simply wants more time to prepare, that’s the champion’s prerogative. He should get more say in choosing the date, just like he should feel free to ignore Sonnen’s loser-leaves-town proposition altogether.
But if he’s waiting around for a better challenger or a bigger fight, he’s going to be waiting a long time. At 36 years old, and with the clock likely ticking on his MMA career, now’s the time to fight the big fights, the ones people will remember him for long after he’s retired.
The first fight with Sonnen was one of those. Whether the second fight can live up to those expectations or not, he’s really got no choice but to take it and find out. And besides, it might be his only hope of finally shutting Sonnen up for good.
The sport of mixed martial arts hasn’t emerged as a powerhouse over the recent decade on performance alone.In fact, it’s the fighters who have dedicated their lives to the sport that bring a spice to MMA.More specifically, the UFC is filled with indivi…
The sport of mixed martial arts hasn’t emerged as a powerhouse over the recent decade on performance alone.
In fact, it’s the fighters who have dedicated their lives to the sport that bring a spice to MMA.
More specifically, the UFC is filled with individuals who not only can fight, but can pitch you a line.
While they are mixed martial artists at heart, there are a few fighters who could pursue a career in politics when their fighting careers are over.
The following list displays five fighters who could have a future in politics.
A potential rematch between UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva and trash-talking challenger Chael Sonnen has easily become one of 2012’s most anticipated fights, and it’s the words of Sonnen that have people wanting to see this fight more than ever right now.
UFC president Dana White has already said he’d be crazy not to sign middleweight champion 
You can’t blame