For MMA fans the thought of professional wrestling is beyond comparison with the real sport of the UFC. ?Yet, if you want to see pro wrestling in MMA, you need only look to Chael Sonnen.
?Anderson Silva you absolutely suck.? ? Chael Sonnen post-fight Octagon interview at UFC 136.
In my opinion, the best start to a promo in UFC History with GSP?s admonishment of Matt Hughes: ?I?m not impressed by your performance,? coming in second. Sonnen liberally uses old school pro wrestling microphone techniques to add a unique spin to get his point across.
While we may scoff at Sonnen?s antics, his brash, trash-talk has grabbed himself headlines and main events. ?How is it that Sonnen was on the short list of fighters sought to replace an injured Dan Henderson at UFC 151? ?At that time, Sonnen was competing in the Middleweight division. ?He was chosen (after Lyoto Machida) because the UFC knew he was reliable to sell the fight.
When Jones passed on taking the match with Sonnen, UFC 151 was off and Jones and Greg Jackson took the brunt of the blame for the cancellation. ?Sonnen took to social media to call out Jones and rail on the champ. ?Seeing this as an opportunity, the UFC put Jones and Sonnen together as coaches on The Ultimate Fighter. ?Hoping for the social media beef to continue on television, the adversaries actually became friends on the show. ?As a result, the ratings did not do as well as expected. Thus, no momentum was gained from the show to the fight. ?Yet, Sonnen has picked up the banter for UFC 159.
Sonnen has done the media rounds from The Jim Rome Show to ESPN. He?s bragged, he?s boasted, he claims to be making?$10 million?in the Jon Jones fight. ?Is it because of the delivery that no one seems to challenge Sonnen on his proclamations?
He?s helped promote this fight despite receiving little assistance from the champion. ?But then again, does the one man sound-bite need a partner?
Sonnen?s unabashed mouth has paid dividends for his career. ?He will eventually become a full-time talking head for the UFC?and will be the best at doing that job. ?He looks the part on the set of UFC Tonight of television anchorman. ?He?s composed, articulate and even if he doesn?t know what he?s talking about, it sounds like he does.
While there have been claims that Sonnen may use inferences of race in promoting himself to subtly remind people that he is white and his opponent is not, it is hard to verify the truth or falsity of the claim. ?Old school pro wrestling is known for racial insensitivities (YouTube any wrestling promotion in the 1970s-80s?90s?) and you will find the divide between good and bad may be based just on that. ?We?re not saying this may be the cause for the inferences of race, but its a possibility. ?But, the defense or the accusations of race baiting are set aside here. The purpose is to address the promotion ability of Sonnen.
In the end, will Sonnen sell pay per views as he claims he will? ?Let?s take a look from when he first had the chance to get an extended amount of time in front of a microphone ? his fight at UFC 117 with Anderson Silva.
UFC 117: Sonnen-Silva I ? 600,000 PPV Buys
UFC 136: ?Sonnen-Stann ? 225,000 PPV Buys
UFC 148: ?Sonnen-Silva II ? 925,000 PPV Buys
This does not include Sonnen?s fight with Michael Bisping at UFC on Fox 2 in January 2012. ?Still, Sonnen sold UFC 117 almost all by himself. ?He put the heat on Silva and almost pulled off the upset. I suggest watching the documentary ?Like Water? to see that fight from Silva?s perspective. ?Silva did assist in providing some heat to the rematch at 148. ?Yet, Sonnen was still the center of attention.
However, UFC 136 seemed like an anomaly. ??It marked the return of Sonnen from suspension. ?It was headlined by Maynard-Edgar and Aldo-Florian yet only received 225,000 buys. UFC 159 should do well because of Sonnen?s constant sell for the fight and Jones? ability to fight.
Do people tire of Sonnen?s gimmick? ?Yes. ?Will people stop watching him because of it? ?Probably not. ?Sonnen?s tactics in promoting fights are questionable but one thing is certain, he makes his presence known and tries his best to make you take notice.
Source: http://mmapayout.com/2013/04/the-pr-of-chael-sonnen/
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