March 18, 2025 1: 50 pm ET
Chael Sonnen refuses to believe that UFC champion Islam Makhachev is avoiding Ilia Topuria.
Makhachev (27-1 MMA, 16-1 UFC) previously said he wasn’t interested in defending his lightweight title against another featherweight in Topuria (16-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC), who is vacating his belt for a move up to 155 pounds.
Makhachev’s manager also said he’d like to see Topuria earn his shot at the title by fighting a top contender. But considering two of Makhachev’s four title defenses came against ex-featherweight champ Alexander Volkanovski, Sonnen says it isn’t fair to put him in that predicament again.
“My first sense is that’s fake news, and it’s a real insult to Islam,” Sonnen said on “Good Guy/Bad Guy” with Daniel Cormier. “I don’t believe that Islam’s scared to fight anybody. I think the evidence of that fact would be the fact that he switched opponents and took on ‘Money’ Moicano with no training camp, no preparation, just because it’s the right thing t