(Props: Heavy.com)
Despite recent rumors that Georges St. Pierre and Nick Diaz are slated to face off at UFC 140 — and were the most likely candidates to coach the next season of The Ultimate Fighter — UFC president Dana White wants to make it clear that it ain’t happening. As he tells travel-size interviewer Megan Olivi in a new interview (quotes via FightOpinion):
“That fight is not a done deal and I guarantee you that those two will not be coaches, not even close. All this stuff that’s out there about that fight and the meeting that we had here is all bullshit.”
Asked if GSP vs. Diaz would be happening at the UFC’s return to Montreal in December, DW responded with a simple “no.” Of course, this wouldn’t be the first time that the UFC has denied a report just so they could announce it themselves later — but at the very least, relying on Nick Diaz to coach TUF for an entire season seems like way too much to ask, when he can’t even get through an eight-minute interview without threatening to slap somebody.
Later in the interview, Dana shared his thoughts on Chael Sonnen, whose livelihood was recently taken away when the California State Athletic Commission upheld his indefinite suspension:
MEGAN OLIVI: “All right, let’s talk about Chael Sonnen. What’s his status in the UFC right now?”
DANA WHITE: “I’m pretty bummed out about the Chael Sonnen thing and the way that the whole thing was handled. You know, this guy… I don’t know if there’s ever been a penalty laid down, I mean Tyson, I think when Tyson bit the ear, Tyson got a year. Um… it’s pretty crazy.”
MEGAN OLIVI: “You know, he said that you told him if he can’t licensed, he has to retire. Is there any truth to that?”
DANA WHITE: “Um… listen, it’s not that he’d have to retire, but right now was his opportunity. This kid had the opportunity to coach The Ultimate Fighter, he had the opportunity to get a big fight set up, should he win that fight… everybody knows what happened with Anderson Silva, this was a key moment in this kid’s career and me, personally, you know, you’ve heard me say it for the last almost 11 years, we always support whatever the athletic commission says… This kid got, this kid got it stuck to him, man. He paid his dues in every way, shape and form and, uh… I think he’s been treated a bit unfairly.”
Allow us to state the obvious: Chael Sonnen was just caught in another lie. As he said during his last hearing: “If I don’t get my license today I’m effectively retired. That came from the boss, Dana White.” Well, not exactly, unless you have a very loose definition of “effectively retired.” Because it sounds like White really wants Sonnen competing again Yes, despite Chael’s lies about his unapproved testosterone therapy, and despite his conviction for mortgage fraud, White wants him on the team. We feel some sympathy for Sonnen missing out on such huge career opportunities, but to say that he’s “paid his dues in every way, shape and form” still seems like an exaggeration at this point.