Two legends of MMA will finally meet on Saturday night at The Forum in Inglewood, California and while it may be several years too late, it will be an interesting night for the fans.
Chael Sonnen (29-14-1) and Tito Ortiz (18-12-1) will headline Bellator 170 in a fight that features two of the biggest names in the sport’s history. This could, also, be the biggest night in the history of Bellator, as they will have the stage to themselves on this night as they feature a fight with two big names on free national television.
But this fight has a lot of uncertainty to it, as both fighters are well past their primes and are coming off of long layoffs. Ortiz, 41, is the former UFC Light Heavyweight champion and has not fought since September 2015, when he as submitted by former Bellator 205-lb. champion Liam McGeary. That layoff, though, seems short compared to that of Sonnen’s. “The American Gangster”, 39, has not competed in a professional MMA fight since November 2013, when he was knocked out by former UFC champion Rashad Evans.
Now, they will meet at least in Sonnen’s Bellator debut. There have been tumultuous times for Sonnen since the last time he had stepped into the octagon. In 2014, he had a fight with Wanderlei Silva fall through and then was suspended two years for failed drug tests.
This fight represents an interesting match-up as there are such unknowns with both guys. What we do know, is that Sonnen is a top-level wrestler and can get the fight to the ground. But he will have to avoid getting into bad position once he gets there, as Ortiz is dangerous from top position with his ground-and-pound. As far as the stand-up goes, it appears to be anyone’s battle.
As far as the stand-up goes, it appears to be anyone’s battle. Sonnen, a southpaw, could have the edge from a technical standpoint but Ortiz is the naturally bigger guy and would seem to have a power advantage. But the advantage in striking is totally unknown.
Outside of the cage, this has been an entertaining build up, largely because Sonnen is one of the best trash talkers in the game. He put on a show at the final press conference on Thursday, producing some great lines:
Chael Sonnen gets under Tito Ortiz's skin during his lion tale at the #bellator170 press conference pic.twitter.com/J7yMLRD5rG
— MMAFighting.com (@MMAFighting) January 19, 2017
Sonnen also took jabs at Ortiz’s personal life, with a nasty burn regarding Ortiz’s ex-girlfriend:
Chael Sonnen makes 'nasty' slam of Tito Ortiz's ex at the #bellator170 press conference. pic.twitter.com/xGAdBW7UEV
— MMAFighting.com (@MMAFighting) January 19, 2017
These two fighters will not be remembered by what happens in the cage on Saturday.
Ortiz is one of the true pioneers of the sport, and will be remembered by is fights with the likes of Forrest Griffin, Chuck Liddell, and Ken Shamrock, among others. He claims that this will be his final fight and while this is not his first retirement announcement, this is a very important event in the sport’s history if that is the case.Sonnen gave us an epic battle with Anderson Silva and scored wins over Michael Bisping, Brian Stann, Nate Marquardt, and Mauricio Rua.
Sonnen gave us an epic battle with Anderson Silva and scored wins over Michael Bisping, Brian Stann, Nate Marquardt, and Mauricio Rua. He eyes another legend after his encounter with Ortiz, as he claims to want to fight Wanderlei Silva, whom he coached against on The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America in 2014 and has bad blood with.
Neither man will have their legacy deeply affected by what happens on Saturday night, but this is still a big event with big names. It should be a fun night, and an important one for Bellator MMA.
