"I have never liked Usman more" - Chael Sonnen praises Kamaru Usman for saying GSP is the 'ghost that haunts the welterweight division'
Chael Sonnen recently praised Kamaru Usman for stating Georges St-Pierre is the ‘ghost that haunts the welterweight division'.
In an edition of Beyond the Fight, Chael Sonnen addressed Usman’s assertions. Sonnen stated:
“Usman, when he was doing this interview, was very honest. Honesty has always served Usman. It’s the one thing that no fighter ever tries, Fighters, they think they have to jab all the time.” Sonnen added, “Sometimes, be a real guy, which is what Usman does. I have never liked Usman more, and I love him after this interview. Listen to what he said. He got asked about (Georges) St-Pierre, listen to what he said. He said, ‘Georges St-Pierre is the ghost that haunts the entire division.’ Wow! Yes, he is. That is a very accurate statement. It’s also not fighting words. It’s also what helps to diffuse the narrative that I wish existed of St-Pierre vs. Kamaru.”
Sonnen explained that Kamaru Usman and GSP will likely never face. 'The American Gangster' noted the dominant welterweights belong to different eras. St-Pierre is also long retired from MMA.
Sonnen added that since Usman and GSP would not fight each other, there’s no way for ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ to prove he’s better than the Canadian MMA legend.
Regarding the debate as to whether or not Usman is better than St-Pierre, Sonnen said:
“Just let it go. Don’t ever let this get off the ground. Let it go. And that is what complimenting Georges and admitting that he is the ghost that hangs over the whole division is very appropriate. And then Kamaru furthered this thought. Kamaru furthered the thought and said, ‘It doesn’t exist anymore.’ Now, his reasoning for that – He said when T-Wood was champion, everybody knew the real champ is Georges. When Lawler was champion, when Hendricks was champion, everybody knew who the real man was. It was Georges. But enough time has passed, and Georges has become of the age and inactive enough that it’s not something I have to deal with.”
Sonnen then suggested he’d like to see Usman and GSP take jibes at and tease a fight against one another.
‘The Bad Guy’ insinuated that although an Usman-GSP fight may never materialize, it’d be fun to watch them go back and forth and fuel the debate regarding who’s the true MMA welterweight GOAT (Greatest Of All Time).
Moreover, Sonnen revealed that he’d tried to book a Kamaru Usman vs. GSP grappling match for his Submission Underground promotion. He noted both Usman and GSP agreed to the fight, but the latter was unable to agree on a date, which is why the fight hasn’t come to fruition.
Watch Chael Sonnen address Kamaru Usman’s statements regarding GSP in the video below:
Kamaru Usman could defend his UFC welterweight title against longtime rival Leon Edwards next
Kamaru Usman is forging his own legacy as a dominant UFC welterweight champion. Usman has gone 3-0 in 2021, is unbeaten in the UFC, and looks to continue his impressive run in 2022.
The consensus is that Usman is likely to defend his UFC welterweight title against Leon Edwards in 2022. However, this matchup hasn’t been officially confirmed.
Should this fight come to fruition, it’d be their second meeting inside the octagon. Kamaru Usman defeated Leon Edwards via unanimous decision in 2015. Many MMA insiders also believe Usman could defend his belt against undefeated Khamzat Chimaev next year.