Gift of gab won’t keep Sonnen out of the fight cage
“THE FACT THEY’VE BEEN FOOLED INTO BELIEVING THAT’S A JOB IS JUST A BONUS.” CHAEL SONNEN
Though Chael Sonnen has turned himself into an Ultimate Fighting Championship superstar in large part thanks to a mouth that roars, he’s not yet prepared to solely make his living with his quick wit and motormouth.
Sonnen, one of the most entertaining — and, at times, controversial — fighters in the UFC has quickly become one of the top analysts and onair personalities in the business.
Whether he’s performing his weekly co-hosting duties for FOX Sports’ UFC Tonight or providing pre- and post-fight insight into UFC’s major events, Sonnen has turned heads at FOX and laid the groundwork for a career when his competitive days are done.
That time hasn’t arrived just yet, though, says the Portland, Ore. native who on Saturday night will take on UFC legend Mauricio (Shogun) Rua at UFC Fight Night, from the TD Garden in Boston.
The card is the highlight event of the FOX Sports 1 launch, as the media conglomerate makes a run at ESPN for dominance of U.S. airwaves.
“There’s a lot of guys that can do what I do. There’s a lot of guys that like to watch this sport and sit around and talk about it,” said Sonnen (27-13-1), who over the past three years has been must-see TV in the buildup to fights with Anderson Silva, Jon Jones and others.
“I think that Dana White is one of the smartest guys I know, but how we ever convinced him to believe that’s a job — I’ve never felt like I had to work there. I’ve been offered a raise there. I told those guys I’ll take your money when you make me work.”
Sonnen says he’s as much a fan of the sport as he is a fighter. He insists he could sit around and talk about the fight game all day. It’s why he loves his time on set.
“The fact that entertains somebody is just a bonus. The fact that they’ve been fooled into believing that’s a job is just a bonus,” he said.
Nothing, says Sonnen, can replace the feeling he gets when he’s in the gym, or on fight night as he readies for competition, or having his hand raised following a victory. Most of all, he still feels like he has something to prove.
“I haven’t reached my goals. And you know your goals change constantly in this sport depending on where you’re at in the landscape. Everything changes routinely but I haven’t reached my goals,” said Sonnen, who turned 36 in April. “Aside from chasing a world championship, there’s some guys I just want to fight.”
Sonnen relishes the idea of facing Rua on Saturday night, an icon in the sport from his championship days in both PRIDE and the UFC.
He still would love another shot at nemesis Anderson Silva.
He’s already asked to face one of Rua’s close friends, Wanderlei Silva, in the coming months. He has yet to wear a UFC title, despite two middleweight title bouts versus Anderson Silva and a light heavyweight championship bout versus Jones. He is also intrigued by athletes such as boxer Bernard Hopkins and swimmer Dana Torres, who extended their careers past the age of 40.
“I’m one of the guys that will be forced out of this sport,” said Sonnen. “I will stay in it too long because I love it. I’m not going to pull the plug on myself.”
Rua (21-7), a veteran at the age of 31, also feels like he has another serious run left in him. A former champion in both the UFC and Japan-based PRIDE, Rua has gone 5-5 since his UFC debut in 2007, including high-profile wins over Chuck Liddell and Lyoto Machida and losses to Jones and fellow legend Dan Henderson.
A loss in December to current No. 1 contender Alex Gustafsson set Rua back in his bid to regain the title he lost to Jones in 2011 but he believes he can turn things around, starting with a win on Saturday.
“The desire for a victory will be the same,” said Rua.
“My main goal is to get back to the belt, to a title shot. A victory over Sonnen would be the first step.”
In other matches at UFC Fight Night: ■ Alistair Overeem takes on Travis Browne in a critical heavyweight comain event. Overeem is coming off a loss to Antonio Silva that cost him a title shot against Cain Velasquez, while Browne earned a knockout of the night bonus for his win earlier this year against Gabriel Gonzaga. ■ Perennial challenger Urijah Faber continues his climb toward another title shot, facing Yuri Alcantara in a bantamweight contest. ■ Fast-rising Matt Brown takes on veteran Mike Pyle in a welterweight match.