Issue 097

January 2013

The Ultimate Fighter season 17 won’t air until 2013, but I’m making a prediction right now: Chael Sonnen is going to leave the show smelling like roses.

Currently among the most polarizing figures in the sport, Sonnen’s brash approach to fight promotion, which generally starts with personal insults and sometimes includes berating entire nations, has brought him hero status in some circles whilst casting him as a demon in others. 

And so, despite the fact Sonnen had done basically nothing to earn a shot at the UFC’s light heavyweight title, he was an obvious choice in terms of entertainment value to coach opposite current champion Jon Jones.

Following their stints on TUF 17, Jones and Sonnen are expected to meet in an April title fight, and many MMA pundits expect Sonnen to use the six weeks of filming to work at getting under the champ’s skin. But if Sonnen is being true to words he issued in an interview at the TUF gym during the first week of filming, bugging Jones simply isn’t his number-one priority.

“I think about Jon every day,” Sonnen tells Fighters Only. “We’re going to fight April 27th in the biggest fight in UFC history. We’re going to fight for the belt. But that’s a separate entity, and I am not here representing the UFC, and I am not here with the UFC on my mind. I’m here on behalf of The Ultimate Fighter, which is a totally separate tournament. 

“I will not put my own agenda in front of these guys. These guys are putting it all on the line, and I will do everything I can for either side. I want my side to win, but anybody that wants help is going to get help. We’ve got an open-door policy. 

“As far as Jon and I go, look, that’s going to happen. We’re going to make that walk, we’re going to take our shirts off, and we’re going to fight for the world title. But that is just absolutely not an agenda right now.”

It’s a surprising revelation from Sonnen, who is among the most shameless self-promoters in the game. Yet it feels sincere as he issues the claim, and it would fall in line with one of the lesser-known roles Sonnen currently plays: youth wrestling coach. It’s that experience as a teacher and leader that could prove most valuable to the athletes on Team Sonnen.

“I can out-coach Jon, but that’s not the point,” Sonnen adds. “The point is, can I motivate a guy to get the most out of himself? Can I encourage him and motivate him and keep him focused? Because every one of these guys, including the one that wins it, every one of these guys is going to question themselves. 

“And every one of these guys is going to wonder, ‘Is it worth it? Is this really what I want to do?’ That’s when the coach comes in – not to teach a guy how to move his feet or throw a punch but to bring him back, to remind him why he’s here. That’s what I’ll do. That’s what I know how to do.”

It’s an attitude reminiscent of the one Tito Ortiz brought into his 2006 stint opposite Ken Shamrock on The Ultimate Fighter 3. Like Sonnen, Ortiz made a career out of being the fighter you loved to hate. Yet after watching Ortiz coach Michael Bisping and Kendall Grove to TUF success, viewers suddenly saw the ‘The Huntington Beach Bad Boy’ as a sincere, hard-working fighter invested completely in his team’s success. 

Sonnen, it seems, may be approaching the show in similar fashion, and it may allow the world to see a side of him that doesn’t often come across on pay-per-view broadcasts. When the sinister side of Sonnen is on mute, he’s one of the most intelligent, well-spoken and – dare I say it – charming individuals you’ll ever meet. I believe TUF 17 is going to give MMA fans an opportunity to see Sonnen’s full range, and I imagine he’ll be less of a villain because of it.

For his part, Sonnen insists if any of that happens, it will all be by chance. “I just am who I am,” he finishes. “I don’t ever put on an act or try to play for a camera when they turn it on. I’m going to be as sincere as I can be, and the fact of that matter is I am the bad guy, and I’m proud of it. That’s just the way it goes. But right now, it isn’t about taking. It’s about giving.

“It’s not about picking a fight. I’ve already got my fight. I’m not going to fight on this show. This is The Ultimate Fighter. I fight on a show called the UFC. This is a totally separate entity, and I will do my absolute best to see these guys succeed.”

By John Morgan, former Fighters Only World MMA Awards ‘Journalist of the Year’.