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By: Jason Amadi, MMATorch Columnist
Zac writes:: When Chael Sonnen fights Jon Jones in April, do you believe that Chael has any chance at all of beating the champ?
A: I definitely think Chael Sonnen is going to lose. Let's just get that out of the way. He's a very good fighter, he's an elite competitor at this point in his career, but I don't see him as a championship caliber guy. This is a guy that's found more ways to blow title fights than I've ever seen one guy pull off. I've seen Chael Sonnen tapped after dominating Paulo Filho, tapped after dominating Anderson Silva, and TKO'd after an embarrassing missed spinning backfist against Anderson Silva. In no way do I favor him to beat one of the most dominant light heavyweight champions the sport has ever seen.
That being said, I do think he has a chance. Chael Sonnen is unlikely be taken down by Jon Jones and if he is taken down, it's unlikely he'll be held down. That's a huge advantage against Jon Jones.
Another thing going for Chael Sonnen is the pressure he brings to the table. No matter what, Sonnen is going to walk Jones down and try to get the fight to the floor immediately. He won't let Jon Jones keep him at bay with his length; he's going to attack from the jump. That's something we've never seen against Jon Jones. Most of his Jones' opponents look to strike with him, whereas Sonnen is going to look to forgo the striking altogether.
Ultimately I think he'll get tapped with a guillotine, but I think Chael Sonnen will take Jones down and give him a fight unlike any other he's had to this point.
Jon writes:: I'm just curious why I never really hear anything about a possible fight between Nick Diaz and Anderson Silva. Do you think there would ever even be a possibility of that fight happening? And do you agree that it would be a hell of a match up?
A: You don't hear anything about Nick Diaz fighting Anderson Silva because Silva would likely starch Diaz in the first round. The fight would absolutely awesome for as long as it lasts, but so much would have to happen to make this fight possible that the fight just isn't worth putting together.
First and foremost, Nick Diaz is a welterweight and really, not even the second best welterweight in the UFC. I don't say that to belittle Diaz in any way, because he absolutely could end up being the top guy at 170 one day, but there's no way to justify a super fight between him and arguably the best fighter in the world (who happens to compete a weight class above him).
I don't see this fight happening, but fight fans from all over would be glued to their television sets if it were to get put together.
Joel writes:: Do you think either of the Diaz brothers will become A UFC champ? And which one do you think has a better chance?
A: I don't think Nick Diaz beats Georges St-Pierre, but I think Nate Diaz could absolutely beat Benson Henderson. In fact, I favor Nate Diaz to come out on top when they meet on Fox next month.
Henderson has great submission escapes, but we only know that because he gets caught in tight submissions in almost every fight. If he shoots a bad takedown on Nate Diaz, he's going to give up his neck and I think if that happens, Diaz is going to strangle him.
On the feet, I think the fight is all Diaz. Henderson's boxing isn't the best part of his game at all. With his length, I think Nate Diaz can keep him at range, box him up, frustrate him, and force him to shoot a bad takedown that will lead to a guillotine. It's kind of what he does.
Spencer writes:: How long do you think it will take for Maurício "Shogun" Rua to get another title shot?
A: Unfortunately, I don't see Shogun ever competing for the UFC Light Heavyweight Title again. Unlike Georges St-Pierre, Rua hasn't looked good at all after his latest knee surgery. He returned, looked terrible against Jon Jones, rebounded with a quick stoppage against Forrest Griffin, looked terrible against Dan Henderson (until Henderson fatigued), and then looked pretty bad in victory against Brandon Vera.
The bottom line is, Shogun just never returned to the condition he was in when he was battling Lyoto Machida a few years ago. He doesn't throw as many kicks (and understandably so because of the knee surgeries), his cardio is as bad as it's ever been, and since returning he's been content to stand directly in front of his opponents and exchange punches.
Even Shogun at 50% is better and more fun to watch than most light heavyweights, but unless we see a completely different athlete in the cage against Alexander Gustafsson on Fox, I can't see him ever contesting a world championship again.
Feel free to follow me on Twitter @JasonAmadi and direct your "Ask the Torch" questions to askmmatorch@gmail.
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