Chael Sonnen’s nickname ‘The Bad Guy,’ wasn’t bestowed upon him by mere coincidence. Sonnen is well known for his sharp humor and is considered to be one of the best trash talkers in the history of the sport.
While Sonnen has toned down his persona somewhat since embracing an analytical role, the spark of his verbal prowess remains undiminished. Recently, he found himself embroiled in a fiery exchange with MMA reporter Ariel Helwani. The catalyst for this incident was the reported payout of Francis Ngannou for his boxing bout against Tyson Fury.
In this exchange, Helwani expressed concerns that Sonnen might be overshadowing Ngannou’s exceptional performance. Sonnen countered by suggesting that Helwani might be subtly criticizing UFC CEO Dana White under the guise of praising Ngannou.
During the argument, Sonnen ended up threatening Helwani and said that he would strangle him. This surprised both fans and viewers.
It even drew the attention of former UFC welterweight title challenger Jorge Masvidal. Masvidal branded Sonnen a “dirty” competitor and “bit*h” while also referencing Sonnen’s history of failed PED tests.
Masvidal asserted that Helwani emerged victorious in the verbal exchange, pointing out that a combatant lost his composure and threatened a journalist.
Naturally, Masvidal’s comments triggered a swift response from Chael Sonnen. He countered with a barrage of snarky tweets. One such tweet took aim at Masvidal’s knockout loss to Kamaru Usman at UFC 261.
He said: “Did you go to a Miami Car Shop to have them pull the dent Kamaru Usman put in your face out? On a related note-shouldn’t they just have replaced your entire face?”
The 46-year-old’s response to Jorge Masvidal’s input on the Sonnen-Helwani feud ignited a flurry of reactions from fans.
One exclaimed, “Dark Chael has been unleashed”
Another coined it a “Chael Twitter rampage.”
Yet another fan dubbed it “Scorched Earth Sonnen.”
Sonnen didn’t stop there. He continued to dissect various aspects of Masvidal’s career, including the legal case with Colby Covington and his past UFC BMF champion status.
Sonnen also highlighted Masvidal’s unanimous decision loss to Colby Covington at UFC 272.
Sonnen posted a tweet implying that Masvidal should reconsider before challenging him, given that Colby Covington happens to be one of his “students.”
He wrote: “Jorge if you want to scrap. You [have to] beat one of my students first. Colby Cov… Ummmm… Scratch that! Let’s stick to things that are possible.”
