UFC 149's Urijah Faber: "I think this sport needs guys like Chael Sonnen"

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

"I think this sport needs guys like Chael Sonnen... The guy was coming over from the WEC as world champion and then came over and got put on the undercard for the UFC. I think he chose to make a switch and said 'I need to stand out in this sport and just being the nice, intelligent guy that I am is not enough.' He probably won't admit to that, but the guy made a switch and decided, 'hey, I'm gonna stand out in this sport. I'm gonna create my own opportunities,' and he does it in an interesting way that people either really hate or really love."

-UFC 149 headliner Urijah Faber gives his thoughts on UFC 148 title challenger Chael Sonnen during a Q&A session (transcribed by MMAWeekly.com).

Penick's Analysis: There are a lot of things that can be said about Chael Sonnen, but Faber hits on the real point in that final line: people either really hate his schtick or they really love it. Either way, they have an opinion, and he drives interest. It's a very different spot from where he was upon his entrance into the UFC. He had come off a bizarre fight with Paulo Filho in his final WEC bout, and even then he wasn't considered to be a thrilling fighter to watch, nor one worth paying much attention to. He changed that into the first Silva fight, and he's brought out even stronger opinions on both sides in the time since then. More fighters could certainly learn something from his approach, though it's not an easy thing to pull off. Still, at a time when the UFC is in need of more marketable fighters, having a few more names who can drive interest outside the cage as well would be a big boon to the organization.

[Urijah Faber art by Grant Gould (c) MMATorch.com]

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