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.

The video is below.

I believe this much: he did receive a phone call from Renzo Gracie. I believe it because in one form or another, a ton of fighters – not just Brazilian – have reached out to him over the course of the past year to state unequivocally that he had gone way too far in his comments about Brazilians.

There are a myriad ways to hype a fight, and Sonnen has engaged in just about every form of it. There’s plenty to be said for hyperbole. But what Sonnen says about Brazilians at times borders on racism, and at other times runs right over that line.

Sadly, not enough people seem to be calling him out on it. Fighters prefer to say it in person, giving Sonnen the benefit of the doubt that he’s just getting carried away in the moment. Some MMA journalists have mentioned it, but not enough, because many of them either don’t have a backbone or do it to get a press pass and a good seat.

But then, just when he appears to be humbly regretting his racism, he’s right back at it on the largest sports network in the country, telling Dan LaBatard:

“The only resentment or confusion that I have is the implication is that they’ve got dentists on every other block in Brazil, you know. There’s something wrong with your tooth in Brazil, some doctor waves a fishbone in front of your face and hopes your mouth feels better.”

Despicable. It’s the sort of thing that doesn’t want make me want to see him get beat up, it makes me want to see him just disappear completely.

Intriguing and well-done. Whoever’s responsible for these can’t be paid enough by the UFC, and I’m surprised that more focus isn’t put on them.

Also, if you haven’t seen it already, my new contribution for Spike’s MMA Uncensored blog is up – Chael Sonnen & Anderson Silva: Are These Guys for Real?

Well, so much for all that.

PREVIOUSLY: UFC on Fox 2 Preview

The second installment of the UFC on Fox delivered with some exciting fights, memorable finishes, and one of the better Lightweight fights of the past month between Evan Dunham and Nik Lentz.

Too bad all of that was in the preliminaries.

The reactions I read on Twitter spoke volumes and are the talking points for various websites this morning. What was the UFC thinking in putting this main card together? Why put so many grapplers on there? Isn’t that instant death for mainstream attraction?

My initial reaction was that the show was something of a disaster from a network broadcast standpoint. One follower on twitter asked if this could have gone any worse for the UFC. I semi-jokingly replied that all that was missing was a death in the ring, while another follower suggested that Maia could have just pulled guard for three rounds. He might as well have; I didn’t like what I’d seen of him and thought he’d have issues with Weidman, but I didn’t think his cardio would be that bad. It was a very rough start to what turned out to be a largely uneventful and taxing night for all but the most diehard fans.

Those who stuck through the plodding Maia/Weidman fight or missed it entirely were then subjected to a very underwhelming performance from Chael Sonnen, who got a Unanimous Decision win based on takedowns from Sonnen that went nowhere and did nothing to improve position. Bisping, to his credit and my surprise, was the better striker in the first two rounds and was actually more effective with his grappling defense and cage clinch. So much so, in fact, that he won it 29-28 on my scorecard. Sonnen’s excuse can and should be that Sonnen spent six weeks training for Mark Munoz, a different style of fighter. But to the mainstream fan who has to accept that this guy can somehow beat the best pound for pound fighter in the world, that’s a hard sell.

I thought and was hoping the main event would have gone better for Phil Davis, but Rashad Evans is just that good. My main concern about Evans and the reason I went with Davis is that he’s a bit undersized as a Light Heavyweight, but as I said before and I’ll resoundingly state again, it only makes what he’s able to do in there that much more impressive. As we expected he was able to outstrike Davis, but surprisingly he also outwrestled and overpowered a much larger former NCAA Division 1 champion. What others have been saying to me and the UFC’s matchmakers was proven true: Davis isn’t quite ready yet for that level of competition. Some guys just have to be brought along at a steady pace, and clearly jumping from fighting guys out of the top 10 to the #2 Light Heavyweight in the world was way too much to ask of “Mr. Wonderful.” On the flip side, I was impressed with his ability to hang in for all five rounds and felt he kept his composure despite what must have been a frustrating bout. It’s the type of fight that will only make him a better fighter.

As for Fox itself, I continue to have issues with its sports production. Red Cleatus fighting Blue Cleatus (I was hoping beyond hope we’d be spared the Fox Sports Bots) and Curt Menefee acting like the UFC was an alien race that just landed on our planet made me really miss Spike TV’s broadcasts.

My frustration could not match what the affiliates must have felt with that unnecessary overrun. To put it bluntly, Fox fucked them. They wanted to do an overrun to artificially jack up the rating, and did so by doing absolutely nothing the first quarter hour. When I say nothing I do mean nothing; Menefee talked to a charisma-less Randy Couture (great fighter, bad broadcaster) and a woefully unprepared Jon Jones about…well, nothing. They didn’t even show any pre-fight video packages until sixteen minutes into the broadcast. From a promotional standpoint, that’s inexcusably inept.

As a fan of fights, I wasn’t totally turned off. But I’m one of those diehards, and I’m also not as impatient when a fight goes to the ground as others are. Still, it was an overall frustrating broadcast, and someone needs to have a come to Jesus meeting, whether it’s Fox telling the UFC they need matchmaking that’s going to entice the casual fan or the UFC telling Fox it needs to hit the ground running and opt out of its usual bullshit pandering and bad habit of insisting professional athletes be broadcasters.

Ever get the sense that Anderson Silva is just bored with fighting? Crazy, right?

Chael Sonnen is convinced that Anderson Silva is afraid of a rematch. He tells people that, in his mind, he won that fight and that he’s the true Middleweight Champion.

It’s easy to dismiss that coming from Chael, though, because the guy’s a buffoon, a cartoon character, and a convicted liar. But when it’s coming from someone with more respect and consistency, such as Dan Henderson, people start to take it seriously.

Henderson recently went on the MMA Hour and told Ariel Helwani that he believes that Anderson Silva is, if not lying about, at least milking injuries to avoid fights with legitimate competition:

“[Silva] wants to ensure that he retires for the next how many fights he has without losing,” Henderson said. “Anybody that has a chance of beating him he doesn’t want to fight. That’s just my take on it. Obviously, Chael has show he’d probably beat him up if they ever fought again as long as he doesn’t get caught with something stupid at the end of the fight.”

Like anybody else who’s been watching the sport for more than five minutes, I respect the Hell out of Dan Henderson and value his contribution to the sport. But I don’t put too much weight into this, and I base that on my observation of Silva himself.

I personally don’t think Silva is afraid to fight Chael Sonnen. I don’t think he’s afraid of a rematch with Henderson, either, nor does he see anyone at Middleweight that provides a real challenge.

And that’s the problem.

Anderson Silva isn’t afraid of losing. In fact, he doesn’t think he’ll lose. I think he’s just bored. For the last two years he has appeared at times listless, agitated, and downright drowsy about the sport. He’s so good that he’s all but walked through fights with the likes of Demian Maia and Forrest Griffin, but having that great of a talent disparity at Middleweight means that you eventually get the mindset that you’ve done all that you need to do and no longer need to prove yourself. With that comes a diminished drive and desire to even get in the cage in the first place.

We have to start thinking about the possibility that it isn’t a case of Anderson Silva not wanting to fight Chael Sonnen. Maybe he just doesn’t want to fight, period.

For what it’s worth, preparations are being made for a fight with the winner of Sonnen vs. Munoz in the Summer, with the idea of it main eventing another card in Brazil.

*****

Tom Lawlor’s entrances
Last Saturday, Lawlor fought in the last Facebook prelim against Middleweight phenom Chris Weidman. He lost (Weidman is on a tear and I expect him to be in a position for a title shot by the end of 2012), but he won our hearts with his latest entrance. Even better, though, was his turn at the weigh-ins where he showed up dressed as Steven Seagal:

*****

Chael Sonnen’s mental illness

Sonnen  is an incredible creep, highly unlikable, a liar, a cheater, brash, and irritating. Thankfully, though, he’s also batshit crazy. This makes him at least entertaining, even when he’s being intolerable.

*****

More “free” MMA than ever before
With UFC on Fox now behind us, we’re set to see more specials on Fox, Fuel, and FX in the next few months. As a bonus, they’ve learned their lesson from JDS/Cain, and Fox Network specials will have a minimum of two fights. It’s little consolation for those who decided to forego the Facebook prelims or didn’t know about them and missed a fantastic display from Benson Henderson and Clay Guida.

*****

Too much MMA
One of the things MMA fans have complained about over the past year – and I’m certainly one of them – is burnout. At certain times the UFC has operated at a blistering pace, putting on as many as six events in as many weeks. Add that to the weekly (and fantastic) Bellator cards and it becomes a bit too much to take. But let’s put this in perspective: remember when we’d get a UFC once every six to eight weeks? Not only was the wait killing us, but if you’re like me and had the occasional obligation on a Saturday night and missed a card, you had to wait another month or two before you got to see a decent fight again. In that sense, maybe too much MMA isn’t such a bad thing after all.

More Fight of the Year Candidates in the next five weeks (or would be if Shogun and Henderson hadn’t fought last Saturday)
UFC 140 is just two weeks away – I know – and features Mark Hominick taking on the Korean Zombie, Chan Sung Jung, on the undercard. As star-studded as the card as a whole is – it’s a triple bill featuring Jon Jones vs. Lyoto Machida, Frank Mir vs. Antonio Minotauro Nogueira, and Tito Ortiz vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira – Hominick and the Zombie are all but guaranteed to steal the show. Then, just a few weeks later, we get Brock Lesnar taking on Alistair Overeem in the main event of UFC 141 and in the semi-main event a fight featuring two of the most aggressive Lightweights in the world, Donald Cerrone and Nate Diaz. And a lot of people seem to be sleeping on the main event of The Ultimate Fighter 14 Finale between coaches Michael Bisping and Jason “Mayhem” Miller, which I think is going to surprise a lot of people with its intensity. It could be a thoroughly competitive, entertaining affair. Well, so long as Bisping doesn’t stick his chin out and skip in a straight circle like an idiot.

*****

Am I missing something? Probably. But clearly, there’s a lot to be thankful for and a lot to look forward to in the weeks, months, and years to come. So when you’re at your table tomorrow and your elderly grandmother asks you to lead the family in saying grace, take the hands of those next to you and tell everyone that you’re thankful to God and everyone else for the Minotauro brothers, the Korean Zombie, horse meat, and Mayhem.

Amen.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR GRAY MAYNARD?
The easy answer is Nate Diaz. Diaz’s win over Takanori Gomi at UFC 135 had everyone ready to proclaim him the #1 contender, which confounds me considering his inconsistency and the fact that Gomi is nowhere near the fighter he was six years ago (and even then he was overrated). However, it does give matchmaker Joe Silva an excuse to make the fight with Maynard to settle their long-standing grudge. Surely Nate, who has been asking for this fight since January of 2010, would love to see it happen. Thing is, though, Maynard is not anything resembling the fighter he was when they first met in the fifth season of the Ultimate Fighter. While Diaz has been jumping up and down in weight and trying to find his place in the fight world, Maynard has matured into an elite 155er and improved his striking tremendously. Be careful what you wish for, Nate.

JOSE ALDO: THE FEATHERWEIGHT RODNEY DANGERFIELD
Aldo can’t get any respect. He was dismissed after he was unable to dispatch Mark Hominick and gassed in the championship rounds, and his win against Kenny Florian is being seen as another chink in the armor of a guy who was being called the Featherweight Anderson Silva in the WEC. The problem is that many fans and almost as many self-professed pundits are unwilling or unable to put both fights into their proper context. His fight against Hominick was coming off an injury to his cervical vertebrae. It’s the type of neck injury that could sideline an athlete for quite some time, yet Aldo was defending his title just four months after the initial diagnosis and rehab. It’s still not one hundred percent, and yet he was able to stave off his biggest figurative and literal biggest challenge yet in Kenny Florian. Was he cautions? Of course. He had to be against a guy who, despite his (slightly unfair) reputation as a guy who chokes, had a tremendous size and grappling advantage. Yet Florian wasn’t able to get him to the ground, and the best he could muster after the first round was to occasionally muscle Aldo around the cage without inflicting any damage or attaining anything resembling a dominant position. Even if Aldo himself was unhappy with the outcome, it sent a message to 155ers: don’t count on a weight cut to win the Featherweight Championship. With all due respect, if Kenny Florian couldn’t topple him, the other UFC Lightweights eyeing 145 don’t stand a chance.

KENNY FLORIAN: RETIREMENT?
Rumors of a retirement have yet to materialize, but this one had to sting. Florian was convinced that he’d finally found his route to championship gold, only to be out-grappled by a deceptively strong and agile champion. Unfortunately it’s another argument that he’s a choker, which I don’t think is entirely fair given the way the MMA media has undersold his most recent opponent and the fact that his last championship loss was to BJ Penn who was at the height of his dominance at 155. Still, it does make it clear that Florian is simply the best of the rest. There are fighters who are championship material, but in this young sport most are seemingly a full generation ahead of all other fighters in their weight class. Georges St-Pierre and Anderson Silva are the most obvious examples, but guys like Frankie Edgar are establishing themselves as well. While being second-best in a crowded field at any weight is nothing to be ashamed of, it’s clearly not good enough for Florian. I think it’d be a shame since he obviously still has plenty of gas left in his tank, but I’d also understand if this was the last time we saw him inside of an Octagon. Well, except when he’s doing post-fight interviews in a beige three-piece suit, anyway.

CHAEL SONNEN: PROFESSIONAL CLOWN SHOES
I’m glad that everyone’s amused by Chael Sonnen’s interviews and challenge to Anderson Silva. As a former professional wrestling junkie, I appreciated him laying down the “loser leaves town” stipulation. That’s where my praise begins and ends, though, for the guy who continues to thumb his nose at the integrity of the sport. His continued defiance and insistence that he has a right to use performance enhancing drugs under the guise of a phony disease is no laughing matter, and it’s a shame that so many people whose job it is to cover this sport are instead giggling along with him and slapping him on the back as he boasts about his ability to circumvent Athletic Commissions and tarnish the reputation of MMA. I would say that it won’t be a laughing matter when a healthy Anderson Silva gets into the Octagon with him, but I don’t find much to laugh about now as it is.

MELVIN GUILLARD IS A WORK IN PROGRESS
Guillard will be the first to tell you that he was a reckless personality when he first came into the UFC, and he’s matured by leaps and bounds as a fighter but especially as a human being since then. However, he clearly underestimated Joe Lauzon and paid for it. He’s no different than a multitude of other fighters, but a champion knows his victory is only as secure as his focus. Still, credit where it’s due to Lauzon, who kept his cool and fought smart.

———————

RESULTS – MAIN TELEVISED PORTION
Frankie Edgar def. Gray Maynard via TKO (Punches in R4) to retain the UFC Lightweight Championship
Jose Aldo def. Kenny Florian via Unanimous Decision to retain the UFC Featherweight Championship
Chael Sonnen def. Brian Stann via Submission (Arm Triangle in R2)
Nam Phan def. Leonard Garcia via Unanimous Decision
Joe Lauzon def. Melvin Guillard via Submission (Rear Naked Choke in R1)

UNDERCARD
Demian Maia def. Jorge Santiago via Unanimous Decision
Anthony Pettis def. Jeremy Stephens via Split Decision – Good to see Pettis get back to his winning ways, but a split decision win over Jeremy Stephens isn’t going to send him shooting up the rankings.
Stipe Miocic def. Joey Beltran via Unanimous Decision – Someone in the UFC dropped Miocic’s name as a Heavyweight prospect and everyone thought he was going to come out like a monster and knock Beltran’s head off. What little video I’ve seen of him gave me the same impression this fight did: he’s got potential, but he’s not quite there yet.
Darren Elkins def. Tiequan Zhang via Unanimous Decision
Aaron Simpson def. Eric Schafer via Unanimous Decision
Mike Massenzio def. Steve Cantwell via Unanimous Decision – Sadly, this will probably be the last we’ll see of the former WEC Light Heavyweight contender.