Chael Sonnen may get labeled as a brash trash-talker about 99 percent of the time, but he’s also an excellent analyst who has paid respect to a number of his opponents.
When he was matched up with former WEC champion and decorated Marine Brian Stann ah…
ChaelSonnen may get labeled as a brash trash-talker about 99 percent of the time, but he’s also an excellent analyst who has paid respect to a number of his opponents.
When he was matched up with former WEC champion and decorated Marine Brian Stann ahead of their fight at UFC 136, Sonnen didn’t have a bad word to say about him.
The same can be said about his next opponent, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, who meets “The American Gangster” at UFC Fight Night 26 on Fox Sports 1 on August 17.
While Sonnen has had beef with more than a few Brazilians over the years, he has nothing but good things to say about Rua. What Sonnen wants to accomplish by facing him is to beat a former UFC champion—something he has yet to do in his MMA career.
“He’s an excellent fighter. He’s won everything there is to win including the UFC,” Sonnen told Bleacher Report recently. “I have beat every champion of every company there’s ever been, every one of them—except the UFC champion. I’ve never beat a UFC champion, this will be a chance to do that.”
He does take a chance during the interview to land a couple of shots at Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, who was supposed to face Rua at UFC 161 before dropping out due to injury.
Check out the interview with Sonnen, including his comments on why he switched training camps and how he enjoys working with new head coach Mark Munoz.
UFC light heavyweight Chael Sonnen recently stated that his TRT exemption for his upcoming bout against Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at the TD Garden in Boston had been accepted. The reality of the situation isn’t that black and white, at le…
UFC light heavyweight ChaelSonnen recently stated that his TRT exemption for his upcoming bout against Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at the TD Garden in Boston had been accepted. The reality of the situation isn’t that black and white, at least right now.
Sonnen, in talking to Boston.com said, “That got accepted on the record. They had a meeting.” When Bleacher Report contacted the Massachusetts State Athletic Commission on the issue, they offered the following statement via email:
The Massachusetts State Athletic Commission has not issued a license to ChaelSonnen to participate in the August MMA event scheduled in Boston but has preliminarily agreed to allow him to fight. Sonnen, however, would be required to undergo testing to determine his testosterone levels both before and after the contest. TUE (therapeutic use exemption) for testosterone is uncharted territory for the Commission which has sent the issue to its Medical Advisory Board to determine allowable ratios prior to the fight and issuing Mr. Sonnen a fight license.
As the statement indicates, it does appear that Sonnen will be allowed to fight on the card. However, the issue of Sonnen’s therapeutic use exemption for testosterone replacement therapy, seems to be a bit of a gray area.
It seems as if Sonnen is the first fighter that has requested a TUE in the state of Massachusetts. As such, the Commission has not yet determined what the allowable ratio of testosterone to epitstosteroneSonnen will need to meet for his TUE. The Medical Advisory Board is scheduled to discuss that topic during an August 8 executive session.
In Nevada, that ratio is 6:1, for the state of California and Olympic athletes the allowable ratio is 4:1. Sonnentested with a ratio of 16.9:1 in California following his UFC 117 loss to then middleweight champion Anderson Silva.
Sonnen was suspended for six-months following that fight for failing to properly disclose his use of testosterone replacement therapy for the August 7, 2010 fight with Silva.
Sonnen (27-13-1) will face former UFC light heavyweight champion Rua (21-7) in the main event of the first UFC on Fox Sports 1 card on August 17.
Bleacher Report will have more on this story as it develops.
Even though UFC fan favorite Wanderlei Silva seemingly wrote off a grudge match with Chael Sonnen days ago, he was singing a different tune in an interview with BJPenn.com yesterday.
When asked if he would fight Sonnen if countryman Mauricio…
When asked if he would fight Sonnen if countryman Mauricio Rua doesn’t retire him at UFC Fight Night 26 next month, the Brazilian brawler said he would consider.
It’s a good fight, he’s (Sonnen) a good fighter. (It’s) interesting for the public, interesting (for) the UFC .. I’m not the type to say ‘I’m gonna fight this guy.’ I take the guys offered to me, so if he’s offered to me, then sure … We can’t discriminate the guy because he has a style, a great promotional, he promote his name very well … Some things he say … I don’t believe the things he’s saying are true … He’s a joker guy, he’s fun like a clown. You can’t say he’s serious, for a clown, he just needs just the red nose, man. Because all the things that he do, he makes these guys laugh.
After a sensational nearly seven-year run inside the PRIDE ring, “The Axe Murderer” lost five of his six bouts between September 2006 and June 2009.
While Silva may not ever be a title contender again, he has won three of his past five fights since then, most recently scoring a brutal vintage knockout over Brian Stann at UFC on FUEL 8 in March.
After a one-sided TKO loss to light heavyweight champion Jon Jones at UFC 159 in April, Sonnen vs. Wanderlei was heavily speculated to headline the UFC’s first show on UFC FOX Sports 1 on August 17.
For whatever reason, that bout never came to fruition and Sonnen instead faces a former divisional champ in Rua, who has also become quite inconsistent ever since transitioning from PRIDE to the UFC.
“The American Gangster” announced on Tuesday’s edition of UFC Tonight that he has signed a new five-fight deal with the UFC and will return to the middleweight division after his matchup with Rua.
That, coupled with the fact that Silva wants to get back into the title picture at 185 pounds (via MMA Fighting), could mean a long-awaited Sonnen vs. Silva showdown could happen somewhere down the line.
Is Sonnen vs. Wanderlei Silva a battle the fans still want to see, or has the expiration date on this feud come and gone?
JohnHeinis is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com.
Fight fans are well aware of the fact that there is no love lost between UFC veterans Wanderlei Silva and Chael Sonnen.
The outspoken American has never hesitated to spit verbal venom at his Brazilian rival and “The Axe Murderer” has always been …
Fight fans are well aware of the fact that there is no love lost between UFC veterans Wanderlei Silva and ChaelSonnen.
The outspoken American has never hesitated to spit verbal venom at his Brazilian rival and “The Axe Murderer” has always been happy to fire back.
On the latest edition of UFC Tonight yesterday evening, Ariel Helwani informed the viewers that the former PRIDE champion made a bold prediction about Sonnen‘s upcoming bout with fellow Brazilian star Mauricio Rua.
A gutsy claim indeed by “The Axe Murderer,” considering “Shogun” is just 2-2 since losing the UFC light heavyweight strap to current champ Jon Jones at UFC 128 in March 2011.
Even the most die-hard PRIDE fans (PRIDE is where Rua won the 2005 Middleweight Grand Prix) have begun to question if the Brazilian slugger’s best days are behind him after posting just a 5-5 record in the UFC.
In all fairness, though, “The American Gangster” has lost three of his past five bouts (twice to Anderson Silva, one to Jones), and also has an even record inside the Octagon (6-6).
However, it’s also worth noting that Sonnen is 7-1 in his past eight non-title matchups.
Ironically, it once seemed like a forgone conclusion that Silva and Sonnen would headline the UFC’s first event on the FOX Sports 1 network on August 17.
Funny how a couple of months can change things, as Wanderlei also allegedly told Helwani that Sonnen is old news and not on his level, so he no longer has any intention of settling their differences inside the cage (via MMA Fighting).
Has Silva called a massive upset in the making or is Shogun’s style tailor-made for Sonnen to take him down and beat him up for three rounds?
JohnHeinis is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com.
Former three-time UFC title challenger Chael Sonnen has already had his testosterone replacement therapy therapeutic usage exemption approved for UFC Fight Night 26, according to Boston.com.
Sonnen has been using TRT since 2008 and insists that, …
Former three-time UFC title challenger ChaelSonnen has already had his testosterone replacement therapy therapeutic usage exemption approved for UFC Fight Night 26, according to Boston.com.
Sonnen has been using TRT since 2008 and insists that, even though he was suspended by the California State Athletic Commission in 2010, he has never done anything wrong.
“That (TRT exemption for UFC Fight Night 26) got accepted on the record. They had a meeting. But, I never broke a rule anywhere. In California, they said that your T to E ratio [testosterone to epitestosterone] was high. Well it was! I was on testosterone. That gap is your ratio. All that tells you is what they already knew, that I was on testosterone. They didn’t understand their own test. They go, “No, your levels are way too high, you’re 17 to 1.” It’s like, guys, I could be 1700 to 1, I’m still within the legal limit. You don’t understand your own test. So they give me six months [suspension] instead of a year. The referee that night is now in prison and that executive director is back home in Washington state and has been fired. But these are the guys that I’m working with. This is what you get when you deal with government.”
After giving then-seemingly invincible middleweight champ Anderson Silva all he could handle for almost 22 minutes at UFC 117 in August 2010, “The American Gangster” got caught in a triangle choke and tapped out after initially trying to fight through the submission.
Afterwards, Sonnen was suspended by the CSAC for, as he recalled, having a testosterone-to-epitestosterone ratio of 16.9 to 1, with the highest T-to-E ratio permissible by the commission being 4-to-1 (via Sherdog).
The Team Quest standout won his initial appeal in December 2010, with the CSAC agreeing that the issue at hand was that Sonnen failed to disclose a medical condition, hypogonadism, which limits the body’s production of testosterone (via Cage Potato).
However, the CSAC suspended Sonnen for another six months after he was convicted of money laundering, also believing “Uncle Chael” may have provided false testimony during his appeal (via CageSideSeats.com).
Sonnen implied he considered taking his suspension case to court, but decided the suspension would be over before a court hearing concluded.
Over three years later, Sonnen says the whole ordeal left a bad taste in his mouth, saying that the CSAC has “the blind leading the blind” and “they don’t know their own rules.”
The former two-time All-American wrestler has a tough task awaiting him on August 17 in the form of PRIDE star/ex-UFC 205-pound titleholder Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.
Sonnen is just 2-3 in his past five bouts, though his losses came to Silva (twice) and current pound-for-pound top dog Jon Jones. He also boasts a 7-1 record in his past eight non-title match ups.
Shogun, who Sonnen called “a true legend,” is an even 5-5 under the UFC banner, a far cry from his incredible 12-1 record inside the PRIDE ring.
Rua was out-scored in each round by upcoming light heavyweight title challenger Alexander Gustafsson in his most recent fight at UFC on FOX 5 in December.
Will Sonnen show he can still be a legitimate threat at 205-pounds or will Rua pull out a vintage performance and shock the TD Garden with a brutal knockout?
JohnHeinis is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com.
Mixed martial arts is ready to go big time with the first UFC on FX event being held this Friday night. We have gotten a taste of what UFC’s new home is going to be like, but this show will be the first full event on the new network, and it will be hea…
Mixed martial arts is ready to go big time with the first UFC on FX event being held this Friday night. We have gotten a taste of what UFC’s new home is going to be like, but this show will be the first full event on the new network, and it will be headlined by Melvin Guillard vs. Jim Miller.
Guillard’s rise up the lightweight rankings took a hit after losing to Joe Lauzon in October, but he has a chance to get right back in the thick of things with a win on Friday night. He has lightning quick hands and good power to knock anyone out.
Miller is not as flashy as Guillard, but he always manages to get the job done. He is a wrestler extraordinaire, though it does not bode well for his long-term future because he tends to have some not-so-exciting fights. He will be looking to get back on track after a loss to top contender Benson Henderson.
Where: Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, TN
When: Friday, Jan. 20
Watch: Preliminary card starts at 6:00 p.m. EDT on Fuel TV, main card starts at 9:00 p.m. EDT on FX
Fight Card
Main Card on FX
Lightweight bout: Melvin Guillard vs. Jim Miller
Welterweight bout: Duane Ludwig vs. Josh Neer
Bantamweight bout: Mike Easton vs. Jared Papazian
Heavyweight bout: Pat Barry vs. Christian Morecraft
Preliminary Card on Fuel TV
Middleweight bout: Jorge Rivera vs. Eric Schafer
Lightweight bout: Kamal Shalorus vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov
Welterweight bout: Charlie Brenneman vs. Daniel Roberts
Lightweight bout: Fabricio Camoes vs. Reza Madadi
Featherweight bout: Daniel Pineda vs. Pat Schilling
Bantamweight bout: Joseph Sandoval vs. Nick Denis
Why Guillard Needs to Win
Guillard has always been a gatekeeper in UFC. He has the talent and charisma to be a star, but his problems outside of the octagon, and inability to evolve as a fighter, have always held him back.
If he wants to become something more than just another fighter, he will have to prove that he is capable of changing. He has already switched up training camps, so we will see what effect that has on him.
Why Miller Needs to Win
Miller was one win away from earning a championship fight against Frankie Edgar, but his loss to Benson Henderson last August ended his hopes in the immediate future. Now, he is trying to right the ship and prove that he still belongs in the discussion for a title shot sooner rather than later.
His stock is still on the rise and he is just 28 years old, so there will be plenty of time for him to make a name for himself. Guillard provides a good stylistic matchup for him, where he can show off his great wrestling and submission background if he gets the opportunity.
Predictions For Fight Night Bonuses
Fight of the Night: Melvin Guillard vs. Jim Miller
Knockout of the Night: Pat Barry (vs. Christian Morecraft)
Submission of the Night: Jim Miller
Predictions For Main Card Fights
Pat Barry defeats Christian Morecraft via TKO (2nd Round)
Mike Easton defeats Jared Papazian via unanimous decision
Josh Neer defeats Duane Ludwig via TKO (1st Round)
Main Event Prediction
Miller is a better overall fighter than Guillard. He is going to work the fight to the ground, and when he does it will be academic at that point because Guillard has no defense on his back whatsoever.
Guillard’s best chance is to catch Miller off guard early, and hit him with a hard punch to the face to stun him before dropping him with more shots.
Mixed martial arts is ready to go big time with the first UFC on FX event being held this Friday night. We have gotten a taste of what UFC’s new home is going to be like, but this show will be the first full event on the new network, and it will be headlined by Melvin Guillard vs. Jim Miller.