First, let's get one thing
straight: I am a HUGE Chael Sonnen fan. And yes, it's because he
has a loud mouth. Truth be told, I think his in-fight ability leaves a lot to
be desired once he takes somebody to the ground. In his last two fights, he
displayed a lack of urgency in harrassing Anderson Silva on the ground,
and was viciously outworked by a seemingly more motivated Michael Bisping
(who I will talk about more later on).
Right now, my problem is with Joe Silva and Dana
White. Their latest decision to cast Sonnen and Jones as
opposing TUF coaches may make fiscal sense, but come on! Chael
has spent the greater part of his middleweight career picking apart
the LH division as nothing more than a curious joke, where cowards shy
away from the top in order to protect their pride. To allow Chael a free
pass to the top spits in the face of men like Randy Couture, Chuck
Liddell, and Tito Ortiz (and people who know me should know
I'm not the biggest tito fan). I can name a couple of hard workers who I
would love to see get a shot at ol' Jonesy. Gustafsson,
Hendo, and Evans come to mind, but the one person I'd LOVE to see take on
the Bones is Mr. Wonderful - Phil Davis.
Problem is, Bonesy is hurt and some may
doubt the validity of a Davis-Jones fight. Honestly, I'm one of those people.
I see the POTENTIAL in Davis and his last showing against Wagner Prado
was nothing short of awesomeness. BUT, before that Rashad Evans
dominated the larger competitor in a tune-up fight leading to Evans' futile
octagon showing against Jones. In order to see if Davis is ready for the
championship rounds, this is what I propose:
December '12 - Chael Sonnen
vs. Lyoto Machida - Why? Because Chael could and would
talk up a storm about "the karate guy" who once dominated the division. And
after turning down the match with Jones at UFC 151, Lyoto needs to
prove to me that he wants to go head to head with Jones. The heat Chael
could generate from this could transcend the heights established against
Anderson Silva. And the best part? Lyoto is Brazilian. Go to town with
that, Chael. Go to town.
December '12 - Phil Davis vs. M.
Shogun Rua - Why? Here's your test Phil Davis. Shogun has the
credentials as one of the best on the octagon right now and is a legitimate
contender to the belt. However, him shying away from Jones at UFC 151
left a bitter taste about his desire for the gold, especially after his
disgruntled reaction to Lyoto being named #1 contender following their
dual main events against Bader and Vera, respectively. If Phil can get
past Shogun, it would send a clear signal that he's ready for a shot at the big
time.
TUF Coaches -
Well, Bones is hurt, so this is the perfect opportunity for him to take some
time off to mentor young (or old, depending on the format) talent. We'd need to
find an opponent for him though, and one who could draw interest, and in turn
ratings. Without Chael, we need some form of drama. I think that void
is filled by the one-time friend and training partner (and ex-TUF
coach), Rashad Evans. Rashad's been quiet ever since his loss to
Bones, and since we're catapulting people to the top regardless of their last
few fights, why not toss Rashad in there?
UFC TBD - Jones
vs. Rashad Co-Main Event along with (winner of Chael vs.
Lyoto) vs. (winner of Davis vs. Shogun).
UFC TBD - (Winner
of Jones vs. Rashad) vs. the last man standing out of Chael,
Lyoto, Davis, and Shogun.
The time frame is much longer, but it gives Jones
time to heal and properly prepare, and lets us legitimately see if
either Sonnen or Davis is the contender we've been looking
for.
Bleh, too bad I'm
not Joe Silva.