Sonnen’s Spidey Senses

---

Nearly 18 months have passed since Chael Sonnen had middleweight king Anderson Silva teetering on the brink of defeat, only to succumb to a fifth-round triangle armbar from the Brazilian in one of the most dramatic finishes in Ultimate Fighting Championship history.

Silva remains champion to this day, but in the tumultuous year-and-a-half that followed their encounter at UFC 117, Sonnen tested positive for suspected steroid use, served a California State Athletic Commission-imposed suspension, pled guilty to federal money laundering charges and submitted former WEC light heavyweight champion Brian Stann upon his return to the Octagon.

As he approaches his impromptu bout with “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 3 winner Michael Bisping -- Sonnen was originally booked to meet Mark Munoz, with the Brit toeing the line against Demian Maia -- in the UFC on Fox 2 co-main event on Saturday in Chicago, the Team Quest mainstay sounds like a man resigned to the idea that his shot at middleweight gold has come and gone.

“I can guarantee you Anderson Silva and I will never cross paths again. Our business is done,” Sonnen said during a pre-fight teleconference. “We will not fight under any circumstances. No matter how many rules or fake restraints he puts on it, he’s not getting in the ring with me -- ever. I don’t know if he’s going to retire or if they’re going to retire him.

“I think the plan was, if I could get past Munoz [before he got injured] and Mike was successful against Demian, that they were going to do an interim championship between Bisping and [myself],” he added. “I know Anderson’s not going to fight. The folks at the UFC know he’s not going to fight. I’m all for promoting and marketing and all that good stuff. I don’t want to throw water on a perfectly hot flame, but Anderson Silva’s not going to fight anybody.”

UFC officials have already stated the Sonnen-Bisping winner will secure a crack at the 185-pound crown, which Silva has held since he demolished Rich Franklin in October 2006. Sonnen, who claims Silva has declined a rematch with him on multiple occasions, has his doubts.

“I think that they’re sincere. I think that they mean it, but I can tell you, behind the scenes, they tried to put me and Anderson together four times, and four times, he said no,” he said. “I called him out publicly [at UFC 136]. You call out a Brazilian publicly, [and] you’re going to be fighting that Brazilian. That’s in their culture, and he sat there and covered his mouth and hid behind [NBA hall of famer] Charles Barkley, which is a smart move -- it saved him a trip to the hospital -- but Anderson Silva is not going to fight me. I don’t believe he’s going to fight Bisping. I don’t believe he’s going to fight again. That’s my personal opinion.

“What I know is a fact is [that] he’s turned me down four out of four times, and he even said no to [UFC CEO] Lorenzo Fertitta’s face -- face-to-face, not over the phone,” Sonnen added. “Lorenzo brought him out, sat him down and said, ‘This is the fight we want.’ And Anderson said no.”

The UFC wants to plan Silva’s return around a soccer stadium show in Brazil sometime this summer. Sonnen -- who has competed in Canada, Costa Rica, Japan and England during his 38-fight career -- welcomes such a challenge.

“I don’t fight Anderson in Brazil. I don’t fight him in Chicago. I don’t fight him in Las Vegas,” he said. “I fight in the Octagon. They can set that sumbitch up wherever they want. When my music hits those speakers, I’ll make that walk, regardless of the city.”

By most accounts, Sonnen won four rounds against Silva, three of them handily, the first time the two fought. The 34-year-old Oregonian scored with takedowns in the first, second and third periods and, according to FightMetric figures, outlanded the champion by a staggering 89 to 29 count in terms of significant strikes. Still, it was not enough to dethrone Silva, as Sonnen grew careless inside Silva’s spidery guard and found himself trapped inside a submission from which he could not escape. The result left him to ponder what might have been.

“The Spider” has fought twice since -- he flattened Vitor Belfort and Yushin Okami -- before shoulder and back injuries put him on the shelf. Sonnen has his theories as to why a rematch has not yet materialized, and they are admittedly self-serving.

“I can only give a guess,” he said. “I’d like to pay myself a compliment and say it’s because I stomped him the first time, and I’m going to stomp him worse the second time. The reality is maybe he just doesn’t want to do it. I really don’t know, and I don’t want to guess. He’s not on my radar anymore.”

In response to his steadfast belief in Silva’s reluctance to face him a second time, Sonnen has put forth a rather radical idea of moving up or down a weight class in order to vie for promotional gold, either against welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre or light heavyweight titleholder Jon Jones.

“I’m moving on,” he said. “If I become the number one contender and can get past Bisping, I’m going to sit down with [UFC President] Dana [White] and we’re going to have a talk about GSP or Jon Jones. I’m not under any illusion that it’s going to be Anderson Silva.”

First, Sonnen must deal with Bisping. The 32-year-old Brit, who, like Sonnen, has spent much of his career being cast as the villain, will enter the cage on the strength of a four-fight winning streak. Often criticized for the lack of marquee opposition on his resume, he last fought in December, when he smashed through Jason “Mayhem” Miller at “The Ultimate Fighter 14” Finale in Las Vegas. Only three men have defeated Bisping: Rashad Evans, Wanderlei Silva and Dan Henderson. Only Henderson finished him.

“Bisping says he wants a title shot, and people try to say that he doesn’t deserve one,” Sonnen said. “I’m sitting on my couch going, ‘Well, he’s beat up everybody they’ve put in front of him.’ So then the big complaint is, ‘Well, he hasn’t beaten Top 10 guys.’ Well, that’s not up to him. He fights anybody they ever ask him to fight. He fights [in] big fights. He’s never not [in] a main event, and if he’s not [in] a main event, he’s [in] a co-main event, and he gets his hand raised time and time again. I don’t know how you could deny a guy that continually goes out and wins.

“I’m not delusional. I’m a pretty smart guy,” he added. “Bisping gets the job done, and for somebody to come out and say that he shouldn’t get his opportunity is silly. He should get his opportunity. He’s beat everybody. He even went up to light heavyweight to start his career, and he beat everybody there, except for Rashad. So how you could ever deny Bisping ... I’m just not on that bandwagon. I plan to do everything I can do to stop him, but I’m not going to sit here and act as though the guy’s not a great fighter. He is.”

Long viewed as one of the sport’s preeminent trash talkers, Sonnen has remained uncharacteristically quiet ahead of the bout. The late change in opponent, from Munoz to Bisping, might have curtailed such antics.

“Before you go pick on Michael Bisping, you’ve got to get ready for Michael Bisping,” he said. “He brings a lot to the table. I’m in the gym, and I’m focusing my energies elsewhere.”

Sonnen, who has won 11 of his last 14 fights, then took a not-so-veiled swipe at Silva in complimenting his UFC on Fox 2 foe.

“I don’t think Michael Bisping behaves like a coward,” he said. “I don’t think he carries himself in a shameful way. I don’t think he wears pink T-shirts, earrings and crooked hats. I don’t really see a lot in the guy I don’t like. I’m not going to go out and make something up. I’m going to go out and do my job, and if my skills are good enough, I’ll win, and if they’re not, then God bless him.”