Islam Makhachev has been warned that if Chael Sonnen wants his opinion, he will ‘beat it out’ of him.
The former lightweight champion boldly mocked Sonnen in recent days, branding ‘The Bad Guy’ an ‘average athlete’ and declaring that he only made a name through ‘cheap’ trash talking. This offended the American, who has competed for UFC gold at both middleweight and light-heavyweight.
Makhachev’s critique followed Sonnen’s claim that his move from lightweight to welterweight in pursuit of a second title was a sign of ‘cowardice’. It was expected that the Russian would take on Ilia Topuria in one last fight on his already record-breaking run, but he has now vacated the belt and moved up.
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Chael Sonnen levels threat at Islam Makhachev after ‘average athlete’ jibe
After Islam Makhachev mocked him as an ‘average athlete’ who only reached a spot near the summit of the UFC due to his abilities on the microphone, Chael Sonnen was quick to respond. He tweeted a message to the Russian, and has since shared a video with a more pointed message.
“When you’re tired of rolling around in front of bored crowds and drawing fewer viewers than a Hog-Hollerin’ contest, get in touch,” Sonnen wrote in the first of four tweets at Makhachev. “You won’t be the first guy from your gym who begged me for material…”
“In fact,” he continued. “It wouldn’t be the first time YOUR guy [Khabib Nurmagomedov] and the OTHER [Irish] guy [Conor McGregor] BOTH Used material they begged me to give ’em to become interesting…”
“And check your magazine before you try to fire, SonnyBoy,” Sonnen wrote in another message. “It’s EMPTY You believed a rumor.” In one final tweet, he added: “So don’t be shy and don’t pick fake fights w/me to get my attention. Your HERO is my ACOLYTE. So is his NEMESIS. SO. ARE. YOU.”
Then in a later video posted to ESPN’s social media channels, Sonnen told Makhachev that he was his ‘guardian Angel’ as well as his ‘elder brother’. He also warned the lightweight champion: “If I want your opinion, I’ll beat it out of you.”
Islam Makhachev hit back at Chael Sonnen for ‘cowardice’ claims
The reason Makhachev was so angered by Sonnen was a comment made by the American regarding his decision to pursue Jack Della Maddalena’s welterweight title. It appears ‘The Bad Guy’ is of the opinion that the fight to make was Makhachev vs Topuria, which has now fallen by the wayside.
“Islam went up, not out of courage,” Sonnen began on Good Guy / Bad Guy. “Islam did not go up out of adding hardware to put on his mantle. He went up with one condition, which is I don’t have to fight Belal Muhammad.
“He can sit around and say, ‘I could beat Belal. I wouldn’t go up and because I can beat Belal…’ The bottom line is you entered a division openly that you said you wouldn’t face one of the top guys. That’s not a sign of courage. That’s a sign of cowardice. I don’t love the idea.”
Makhachev hit back in a tweet, writing: “Chasing hype and money is not the same as chasing greatness in sport,. But average athlete, who built his way to the top with cheap trash talk, won’t understand that. So please [sit] and watch how others doing it, uncle Chael. #doublechamp.”