Trainer’s Comments Fuel Speculation That Chael Sonnen is Retiring from MMA

Tito Ortiz might not be the only fighter done after Saturday night.

Speculation is mounting that Chael Sonnen could be making a hasty exit from the fight game following his second loss to Anderson Silva.

The ballyhoo that Sonnen spit out last year regarding his exit from the sport if he lost a second time may have been an unintentionally self-fulfilling prophecy, if one of Sonnen’s grappling coaches is to be believed:

“I don’t know what Chael’s plans are, but I got a feeling he’s done fight,” Melanson said (thanks to MMAMania.com for transcribing). “I don’t know. I’ve just got a feeling he’s done. Maybe I’m wrong, but I think he was serious when he said, ‘If you beat me, I will leave forever,’ and there’s a very good chance of that.”

A lot of sites are running with this, but I’m a bit skeptical. It seems strange that Sonnen would just walk away from what could be some very lucrative paydays at 205. Hell, even a rematch with Bisping at 185 would put some handsome digits into his checking account.

On the other hand, he was roided the fuck out for that fight with Silva and the best he could manage was a first round that Silva looked like he was literally giving to him, with the champion flying at him recklessly and literally laying under him for the rest of the round with his eyes closed. There’s also the issue that I don’t see a lot of other people talking about, which is that the bullshitty Therapeutic Use Exemption granted to him by the Nevada State Athletic Commission is only good for that state. Were he to fight elsewhere, say New Jersey or California, he’d have to go through the whole process over again and in the case of Jersey I don’t think they’d give him the green light for it. That limits the UFC’s options in terms of booking him if he were to continue with this pathetic charade.

Keep your ears to the ground on this one.

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