Chael Sonnen News

Harry Kettle - March 29, 2021

Chael Sonnen listed the reasons why Derrick Lewis deserves the next shot at the UFC heavyweight title – while taking a shot at Jon Jones. We now all know that at UFC 260, Francis Ngannou finally ascended to the top of the mountain and beat Stipe Miocic to claim the heavyweight crown. In doing so, he also avenged his defeat to Miocic from UFC 220 back in 2018.

Adam Martin - March 2, 2021

Chael Sonnen blasted the “fake tough guys” atop the UFC welterweight division, suggesting that “none of the top-five guys want to fight.” Sonnen was a guest on the “Victory Loves Company” podcast with Jim West and James Lynch, and was asked his thoughts on the UFC welterweight division. Kamaru Usman currently is the champion and seems likely to rematch Jorge Masvidal in his next fight, but nothing has been put to paper yet. Meanwhile, Colby Covington continues to sit out in hopes for a big fight, while Leon Edwards hasn’t fought in almost two years. It’s been frustrating for fans to watch, as the UFC 170lbs division is one of the marquee weight classes in the promotion. Yet for whatever reason, there doesn’t seem to be much urgency for the top fighters in the weight class to step into the cage, and Sonnen finds that very frustrating.

Tom Taylor - February 18, 2021

Former fighter and MMA analyst Chael Sonnen believes the UFC’s top welterweights are all “scared” of rising prospect Khamzat Chimaev. The UFC welterweight top 5 is currently jam-packed with elite talent like champ Kamaru Usman, and top contenders Colby Covington, Gilbert Burns, Leon Edwards and Jorge Masvidal. Unfortunately, the division’s top fighters haven’t been particularly active of late, and Sonnen believes that’s due in part to the arrival of Chimaev.

Tom Taylor - January 26, 2021

Former UFC and Bellator MMA star Chael Sonnen has shared his thoughts on what went wrong for Conor McGregor against Dustin Poirier. McGregor and Poirier met in the main event of UFC 257 this past weekend. The bout was a rematch of a 2014 fight that McGregor won by first-round knockout. The second time around, Poirier crippled McGregor with leg kicks and ultimately stopped him with a storm of punches in the second round.

Adam Martin - November 27, 2020

MMA legend Vitor Belfort has called out rival Anderson Silva and fellow veteran Chael Sonnen, saying to “bring the legends back.” Belfort fought Silva at UFC 126 in February 2011 and suffered a historic KO loss after Silva landed an incredible front kick to finish him. Belfort and Silva have always been tied to a rematch but to this point, nothing has ever been booked. As for Sonnen, Belfort was supposed to fight him at UFC 175 in July 2014, but Sonnen failed his drug test and the bout was canceled. All three fighters are no longer in the UFC, with Belfort part of ONE Championship, Sonnen with Bellator, and Silva a free agent.

Adam Martin - November 26, 2020

MMA analyst Chael Sonnen believes that former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva, his long-time archrival, will never fight again. Sonnen and Silva were part of a memorable rivalry in the early 2010s. The two met at UFC 117 and, after Sonnen dominated the first four rounds of the fight, Silva came back to win in the fifth round by submission. They then fought in a rematch at UFC 148, with Silva winning via second-round TKO. The rivalry between the two was heated at the time but in recent years both men have become much more cordial with one another, and are basically friends now.

Tom Taylor - November 18, 2020

Chael Sonnen absolutely trashed Jon Jones after the former light heavyweight champion dragged him into his renewed beef with Daniel Cormier on Wednesday. Jones and Cormier, two of the fiercest rivals in MMA history, have been jawing back and forth on Twitter for days. Unsurprisingly, Cormier ultimately pointed the finger at Jones over his previously issues with the United States Anti-Doping Agency.

Tom Taylor - November 16, 2020

MMA analyst Chael Sonnen believes boxing legend Mike Tyson will use performance-enhancing drugs in his upcoming fight with Roy Jones Jr. Tyson, 54, will return to the ring for a special exhibition fight with Jones, 51, on November 28. Ahead of the fight, Tyson came clean about previously using baby urine to pass drug tests, and Sonnen believes the legend is probably still using performance-enhancers today.

Adam Martin - October 8, 2020

MMA pundit Chael Sonnen has suggested a retirement fight between legends Diego Sanchez and Donald Cerrone, where both fighters retire after. Sonnen took to Twitter this week to offer the suggestion about the final fight of both Sanchez and Cerrone’s MMA careers. Take a look at what Sonnen wrote below.

Harry Kettle - September 28, 2020

Chael Sonnen has taken a shot at UFC’s new light heavyweight king Jan Blachowicz for calling out Jon Jones after his UFC 253 win. Blachowicz was able to finally climb to the top of the mountain on Saturday night as he beat Dominick Reyes to capture the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship. In the immediate aftermath of his victory, the champ decided to call out the man who vacated the belt – Jon Jones.

Tom Taylor - September 15, 2020

Chael Sonnen has a new matchup in mind for Tony Ferguson now that a fight with Dustin Poirier is seemingly off the table. For many weeks, Poirier and Ferguson were linked to a fight at UFC 254 on October 24. Regrettably, the matchup fell through when Poirier and the UFC couldn’t agree on the size of his prize.

Tom Taylor - September 8, 2020

UFC welterweight contender Leon Edwards has responded to a recent criticism from former fighter turned MMA analyst Chael Sonnen. Edwards currently holds the No. 3 spot in the UFC welterweight rankings, and is riding an impressive, eight-fight win-streak. Despite his station in the division, he’s struggled to land himself a big fight, and Sonnen believes that’s because he’s not making himself “interesting” outside the cage.

Chris Taylor - September 5, 2020

Former UFC title challenger Chael Sonnen has shared some advice for perennial welterweight contenders Leon Edwards and Neil Magny. Despite being on an impressive eight-fight win streak, the Birmingham native in Edwards has not stepped foot in the Octagon since defeating Rafael dos Anjos by unanimous decision in July of 2019.

Natasha Hooper - July 30, 2020

Chael Sonnen has named his pick for the best UFC fighter to never receive a title shot. The MMA fighter turned analyst is known for his thorough breakdowns of MMA fights and his in-depth insights. Today is no exception as he shared the name of the man he believes is the greatest UFC fighter who never got the chance to fight for gold.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - July 20, 2020

Chael Sonnen feels the UFC bantamweight division is a mess and we have Petr Yan to thank. Yan competed for the vacant UFC bantamweight title on July 11. He met Jose Aldo on the main card of UFC 251. Yan scored a fifth-round TKO victory to capture UFC gold for the first time in his pro MMA career.

Fernando Quiles Jr. - July 14, 2020

Chael Sonnen doesn’t believe there was a robbery at UFC 251 but he does think Max Holloway deserved the nod over Alex Volkanovski. In the co-main event of UFC 251, Holloway challenged Volkanovski in a rematch for the featherweight championship. Volkanovski captured the 145-pound gold back in Dec. 2019 with a unanimous decision win over “Blessed.” In the rematch, “The Great” had a tougher time with Holloway but was able to secure the split decision victory.

Adam D Martin - June 28, 2020

MMA legend Chael Sonnen believes that “every cornerman just lost their job” following Mike Perry’s decision win over Mickey Gall at UFC on ESPN 12. In controversial fashion, Perry decided not to use a traditional corner for his fight, instead just having his girlfriend in his corner in what was a UFC first. Other fighters have had their significant others in the corner before, including fighters like Matt Wiman and Montana De La Rosa, but this was the first instance of a fighter solely having their corner just be their significant other with no coaching staff to speak of.

Cole Shelton - June 17, 2020

Chael Sonnen has a much different stance than many fighters have shared on former UFC matchmaker, Joe Silva. Recently, fighters have come out and told ‘horror stories’ about dealing with the former Ultimate Fighting Championship matchmaker. Yet, for Sonnen, he says every single interaction he had with Joe Silva was positive.