Chael Sonnen was once again part of another big show for Bellator earlier this month, as he hosted the Bellator 300 press conference among other duties. That’s become a common task for Sonnen, who has always been entertaining on the mic.
When it comes to the milestone event, Sonnen told Cageside Press recently that it had not sunk in until the day of the press conference.
“It was completely normal. It was the day of the press conference. I was talking with Danny Brener, and that is when I realized, Hey, wait a minute, nobody has done this before. Chatri is cranking them out, but he is a decade away from hitting 300. Dana is coming up on it. Bob Arum, Eddie Hearn, and Don King—none of them have done 300.”
“The American Gangster” had been apart of the WEC, UFC, and Bellator, just to name a few, and had never realized how crazy doing a 300th show was.
“300 is a remarkable number.”
While reflecting on that milestone event in California, Sonnen also did some reflecting on the possible sale of Bellator.
“There is this big elephant floating around, and tensions are high with the rumor of the Bellator sale, and I do understand that, but I will tell you that every wonderful experience and memory that I have with Bellator is because Scott Coker took a risk, worked his ass off, and made something. And if he did that and it is so good that someone would like to buy it, he deserves a compliment and a pat on the back. I hope that people tell him congratulations and good job, and I hope that he is proud of himself because he should be.”
Coker would not give out any direct answers to the media in regards to Bellator’s sale during fight week. Instead, he suggested that when he has answers, he will let everyone know.
“He may play, and he may pretend as though he is not always paying attention, but he knows everything that is going on. I assure you, it’s an act when he does that, and he is a tremendous leader,” Chael told Cageside Press.
Despite the rumored sale of Bellator, Chael had some things to say about one of Bellator’s rising stars: Bryce Meredith.
“I just got done with a conversation before we turned this camera on with a young man named Bryce Meredith; he’s undefeated. He was one of the top collegiate athletes to come over, and he’s got the right attitude. I was with him yesterday, and that is the day before the weigh-in, which is the worst part any athlete has to go through. His attitude was good; he had a plan and a strategy for how he was going to get his body down and his spirits down so that he could recover. It was a very mature standpoint. He’s had some great opportunities, but he also uses them.”
Bellator 300 was a massive week and event for Bellator, and it seemed to be a very successful one. Nobody knows exactly what will happen with the promotion, with the rumors still unanswered, but their 300th show remains, as Chael Sonnen said, a remarkable number.
