Sonnen, who had remained adamant on his retirement throughout the course of his 2-year suspension handed to him in 2014, revealed that the reason he lied about his retirement was that ‘bad guys lie.’
‘The American Gangster’ followed up the announcement of his signing to Bellator by calling for a fight with former UFC champion Tito Ortiz. Ortiz, who has been away from MMA competition for a year, was quick to fire back at Sonnen via social media; stating that he would love for Sonnen to be his final win before retirement.
During the Bellator 161 broadcast Friday night, Sonnen joined commentators via satellite to give his first live Bellator MMA interview.
The appearance certainly lived up to the hype as Sonnen picked right back up where he left off, delivering an incredible promo as he talked about his signing with Bellator, as well as his future plans within the promotion.
Sonnen will be entering his return fight on a loss after being defeated by Rashad Evans at UFC 167. The loss came via 1st round TKO, putting the former title challenger back in the ‘loss column’.
Following that, Sonnen coached opposite Wanderlei Silva on TUF Brazil. While the pair were slated to fight following the conclusion of the show, Silva was pulled from the fight, and Sonnen was suspended for 2 years for a failed drug test.
Former UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland sent a scathing message to Chael Sonnen aimed at UFC 308 winner Khamzat Chimaev immediately after his No. 1 contender fight.
