AFTER FAILING TO back up his notorious brand of smack-talk against the UFC’s Anderson Silva and Jon Jones, Chael Sonnen has now switched targets (and sports) to single out NBA superstar LeBron James.
Chael Sonnen was a guest on US TV’s “The Jim Rome Show”, a sports panel show discussing all things topical, when the subject of the NBA Finals and specifically LeBron James came up. After being asked whether he was surprised by the changing of public opinion surrounding James, Sonnen bluntly replied “I think LeBron’s a dork.”
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After his controversial move to Miami Heat in 2010 it’s safe to say that James was not the most popular superstar in the NBA but he has worked hard to restore his reputation since then, winning back many fans and MVP trophies on the way, and this remark from Sonnen seemed a bit left-field. First off it seemed as if Sonnen was just being Sonnen, the man who enjoys mouthing off almost as much as fighting. But Chael later revealed in an interview with
The Bleacher Report that he had his own reasons for calling out LeBron and stood by his remarks.
The bad blood allegedly stems from the night when Sonnen fought Anderson Silva. Chael claims that LeBron requested tickets for the fight and was seated in the front row. It was LeBron’s behaviour that night that upset Sonnen as he revealed “he snubbed our fans. He’s a guest in our house and he refuses to sign any autographs or take any pictures.”
Chael then went onto allege that the NBA superstar was rude to his wife and refused to get a picture taken backstage with a child who was wheelchair-bound.
Lebron has been too busy this week winning NBA Finals with the Miami Heat to respond so we have to take these comments with the usual Sonnen-sized pinch of salt but simply listening to “The American Gangster” is every bit as entertaining as watching him fight.
Sonnen is expected to face Shogun Rua this August so expect to hear more from him in the lead up to that match-up.
