UFC
Forrest Griffin on Chael Sonnen: "Why fight your way to the top when you can talk your way to the top?"
Oct 16, 2012 - 10:00:20 PM Forrest Griffin on Chael Sonnen: "Why fight your way to the top when you can talk your way to the top?"

DISCUSS ALL THIS IN OUR NEW MMATORCH FORUM

...OH, ONE MORE THING - PLEASE BOOKMARK US & VISIT DAILY!

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Despite both Jon Jones and Dana White stating unequivocally this summer that Chael Sonnen's mouth wouldn't get him a title fight in the light heavyweight division, Chael Sonnen's mouth has gotten him a title fight in the light heavyweight division.

The UFC's announcement on Tuesday that Jones and Sonnen would coach The Ultimate Fighter's 17th season, then meet in a fight on April 27, means Sonnen is out of a bout against Forrest Griffin at UFC 155. The bout had been planned for some time, but Sonnen managed to talk his way into a feud with Jones, and due to several other things falling into place for him, he's getting the fight as well.

Now without an opponent for Dec. 29, Griffin commented on Tuesday's news during Fuel TV's "UFC Tonight" program, getting in a few digs at Sonnen along the way.

"I'm not mad at him," Griffin said of Sonnen (transcribed by MMAFighting.com). "Why fight your way to the top when you can talk your way to the top? ... I'm actually happy I'm not fighting him anymore, because watching his fights was boring and tedious."

Penick's Analysis: Pointed digs at Sonnen, and feelings that will be shared by many regarding this news. Sonnen certainly didn't do anything to deserve the fight from an athletic standpoint, and the UFC latched on to a vocal minority of fans who want to see Sonnen against Jones. They also seemingly misinterpreted why people were mad at Jones for not fighting Sonnen at UFC 151; it certainly wasn't because Sonnen was a deserving opponent. Ultimately, Sonnen managed to do what few others have the chance to do, and that's rise up the ranks without doing anything in the cage to earn the move. That will get him 13 weeks of exposure on FX, and another likely high profile beating on pay-per-view.