Chael Sonnen was officially inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame during International Fight Week, but that did not stop him from accusing Dana White and the promotion of alleged corruption. With a social media storm on July 3, Sonnen exploded on White, claiming to have evidence of the UFC CEO “rigging fights” and favoring certain athletes.
Sonnen, a former three-time UFC title challenger, currently works with the UFC as an analyst with ESPN. The MMA icon claimed he discovered the supposed news while walking his dog in the morning from an unnamed source.
Chael Sonnen Accuses the UFC of Taking Money From Fighters
Chael Sonnen has always been a member of the MMA community with continuous activity on social media but took his account usage to another level on July 3 with a lengthy rant. Upset, ‘The Bad Guy’ held nothing back in his accusations, calling Dana White a “piece of cr*p” who supposedly took money from fighters.
Sonnen tweeted:
“This piece of c***. @danawhite has [taken] millions [of] dollars from older and new fighters including me, Nate Diaz, etc. Absolutely sickening.”
In a following tweet, Sonnen explained his thought process by stating that the stolen money was used to promote other fighters, including former champion Israel Adesanya. The 47-year-old did not specifically state where he heard the alleged information or why he believes it credible. Still, he continued his outburst by saying he found out from an unknown entity and “can’t keep it together.”
Chael Sonnen Continues Twitter Allegations
After accusing Dana White of taking money from certain fighters to promote others, Chael Sonnen continued pouring in more allegations. The retired fighter claimed he has “proof” of the UFC ostensibly rigging fight outcomes.
Sonnen wrote:
“Yep. [The UFC] also rigged many fights. We have proof. Video coming soon. $MOGUL”
Sonnen did not mention which fights he believes the UFC rigged, but it is widely assumed that he will discuss one of his five losses in the promotion. The analyst included in this splurge hefty criticism of heavyweight champion Jon Jones, whom he lost to at UFC 159.
Between criticizing White, Jones, and other members of the organization, Sonnen dropped numerous promotions of a cryptocurrency site, causing many to believe that the fighter’s account had been hacked and that he was not actually sending the tweets.
Chael Sonnen’s Post-UFC Career
Chael Sonnen only had 11 fights in the UFC and was never an undisputed champion with the organization, but he was one of the most-liked fighters in the sport during his prime. One of his three title fights — a submission loss to Anderson Silva at UFC 117 — was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame on June 27 under the Fight Wing, making the ESPN analyst a Hall of Famer.
While Sonnen retired from fighting following a loss to Rashad Evans in 2013, he returned to the cage four years later to compete for Bellator against rival Tito Ortiz. He would go just 2-3 in Bellator before officially retiring again in 2019 after losing to former UFC champion Lyoto Machida.
Since leaving his MMA career behind him, Sonnen surprisingly returned to combat sports in 2024 with an exhibition boxing match with Anderson Silva in Brazil. The fight was underwhelming, but Sonnen claimed he was looking to box at least once more against Jorge Masvidal later in the year.
Induction into the Hall of Fame
If Chael Sonnen is behind the cryptic tweets, his timing is staggering for several reasons. Perhaps the biggest head-scratcher is that the UFC recently recognized him as a Hall of Famer for his fight with Anderson Silva at UFC 117. While Silva is already a member of the exclusive group, the honor made Sonnen a Hall of Famer for his contributions to the UFC.
Because the honor meant more to Sonnen than to Silva, ‘The Bad Guy’ would accept the award during International Fight Week and deliver a memorable acceptance speech.
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