Chael Sonnen is known for his deceptions and jokes on the microphone, and it appears looking back on his career that he did them in the ring as well.
The ‘American Gangster’ came within inches of two UFC world titles at middleweight and light-heavyweight during his time in the cage. However, one of his forgotten title wins happened at Gladiator Challenge in November of 2003.
Sonnen took on eventual UFC star Jeremy Lambert in a title fight at light-heavyweight, with famed referee Herb Dean overseeing the bout. On route to a decision win, he managed to run out the clock with one particular move that left Dean in hysterics even years later recalling the story.
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Chael Sonnen pretended to be locked in choke to waste time in fight
Over the length of his title fight at Gladiator Challenge, Chael Sonnen had been dominating Jeremy Lambert with his impressive wrestling skills. As Randy Couture worked the corner, he took control of the fight and seemed to be cruising to another victory.
However, one key moment arose when Lambert appeared to lock in a rare Ezekiel choke from his back. This kind of submission, Dean noted while telling the story on Inside MMA, is difficult to do in MMA without a gi, and is more common in grappling contests.
But Sonnen knew that trying the choke would both tire his opponent out and keep them on the ground, where he was scoring by just being on top under the old rules. So, the ‘Bad Guy’ began making fake choking noises, which encouraged Lambert to continue with the choke even though it wasn’t in.
Herb Dean’s hilarious run-in with Chael Sonnen after fight-winning trick
Eventually, Herb Dean stood them up, which irked Lambert who felt that he was seconds from a finish. The fight ended with a Sonnen decision, which was confirmed moments after he had shared a brief run-in with the referee.
“Chael tells me, and I didn’t know much about his personality, ‘nah that choke wasn’t anywhere near’,” Dean recalled back in 2014. “He said he was just milking it, making out that it was bad but he was milking it.”
However, the true humor came moments later when he threw Dean under the bus. “Then he walks towards Jason and he doesn’t see that I’m right behind him,” the referee continued.
“So when he gets to Jason he says ‘you got screwed man, you almost had me out with that choke. That right there was one of the funnest moments.
“Even though he’s throwing me under the bus, even in the middle of this fight he’s still taking the time to have a little fun and make some mischief. It was a little bit of insight into his personality also.