Hyden's Take
HYDEN BLOG: Chael Sonnen Has A Lot of Bark, Probably Not Much Bite
Aug 4, 2010 - 9:00:29 AM HYDEN BLOG: Chael Sonnen Has A Lot of Bark, Probably Not Much Bite

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By: Frank Hyden, MMATorch contributor

Chael Sonnen is a reporter's dream. He's a walking quote machine. He's a lot like Rex Ryan, head coach of the New York Jets. The major difference is that Rex is in on the joke, he knows that he's not the greatest coach of all-time. However, he also knows that he needs to act like he's the greatest coach of all-time.

Great players, great fighters, people who are great at what they do, all share a common trait. They all believe that they are the best, they all strive to be the best. Most of the greats choose not to pump their chests that much, but that's a personal choice. That's why I don't have a big problem with Chael talking himself up like he is as good as he says. The problem lies in that I think that Chael actually believes that he's that good when he's not. I don't think he's in on it.

To go back to my Rex Ryan example, last summer he engaged in a war of words with Miami Dolphins linebacker Channing Crowder. Ryan made all of his barbs and comments either smiling or laughing because he knew the absurdity of what he was saying. My favorite Ryan quote was, "I love it. The only thing I can say is, and let's see if he can top this one, I've walked over tougher guys going to a fight than Channing Crowder." Ryan was laughing as he said this because he knows it's about entertainment. Crowder was responding seriously to all this, which made him appear ridiculous.

I understand that Chael wants to gin up interest, he's a huge underdog, but he wants people to think that he has a chance. The reality, though, is that he has very, very little chance. Chael Sonnen is going to be destroyed by Anderson Silva.

How long the fight lasts is up to Silva. If Anderson wants to beat Chael in the first thirty seconds of round one, he'll do it and Chael won't be able to stop him. If Anderson wants to prance and showboat around for all five rounds to get the boring decision, he'll do that.

There is absolutely nothing that Chael can do to stop Silva. Anderson Silva has the best stand-up of any fighter I've ever seen in MMA. Silva is also a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Judo, and Tae Kwon Do. The only advantage that Chael Sonnen has is his wrestling, which he uses to grind out decisions.

Chael has made a bunch of ludicrous statements that sounds as if he's lost touch with reality. If Chael Sonnen is somehow able to beat Anderson Silva, if Silva slips on a banana peel or something like that and loses, it will be one of the biggest upsets in MMA history. It will be the MMA version of Buster Douglas knocking out Mike Tyson. If Anderson Silva wants to, he will beat the living hell out of Chael Sonnen, and there isn't a damn thing anyone can do about it.

There's a part of me that wishes that Chael would beat Silva, just to prove to Silva that he's not unstoppable. The problem is that Chael is not the guy to do it, he doesn't have the tools. Great wrestling alone isn't going to be enough to knock Silva off his perch.

Someone will come along eventually and beat Silva, I just can't imagine the world where Chael Sonnen is the one that finally does it. Dana White isn't going to be the one to do it, either. For all his tough talk, there's no chance that Dana cuts Silva, regardless of how Silva acts in this fight. There's no way in hell that Dana cuts the man who's considered either the best, or the second-best fighter in the world.

Georges St. Pierre is the only other fighter out there that can be put into that discussion. You can maybe put Brock Lesnar in that discussion if he wins his next couple of fights, but his career is so young that we don't have a big enough sample size. Other contenders to the throne of Best Fighter In The World all have holes in their resume. There's no way Dana White lets Anderson Silva walk out of the UFC and straight over to Strikeforce. He'll put him in free fights on Spike TV before he lets that happen.

There's been a lot of talk surrounding this fight, that's a good thing. We also get to see them settle things in the cage. The bad news is that the fight could be a boring suckfest if Silva decides to toy with Chael for five rounds. I hope Chael can back up his words regarding this being an exciting fight. No matter who you're rooting for, that's what we really want.

Comments and suggestions can be e-mailed to me at hydenfrank@gmail.com