Following a Tuesday announcement that he
failed a Nevada State Athletic Commission-issued drug test,
Chael Sonnen (28-14-1 MMA, 7-7 UFC) has retired from MMA competition.
Sonnen used his co-host platform on today’s edition of FOX Sports 1′s “UFC Tonight” to make the announcement, bringing his 17-year career to an abrupt end.
“I want to take an opportunity to officially announcement my retirement from competitive mixed martial arts,” Sonnen said. “I had a great time.
” … I want to thank FOX. I want to thank the leadership of the UFC. I want to thank a man named Bill Brady, who gave me a second wind, if you will. He’s a member of the Nevada State Athletic Commission, and he believed in me at a time when I really needed somebody to, and I owe the second wind of my career to him. I am proud to call him a friend. I also want to thank the most important opponent I’ve ever had. I couldn’t have got here without this dance partner, and that is of course you, Anderson Silva. Thank you for the opportunity. Thank you for the memories. Thank you for the invitation to the barbecue, even though I didn’t take you up on it. “
A random drug test admitted to Sonnen by the NSAC this past month resulted in the 37-year-old testing positive for two banned substances. Sonnen later explained the positive results were a product of him taking fertility medication and to help taper off testosterone-replacement-therapy, which the NSAC banned earlier this year.
According to Sonnen, that medication worked. However, it came at the price of a positive test.
While Sonnen admits his first reaction was a defensive one, he now takes full responsibility for the results.
“I absolutely take responsibility,” Sonnen said. “The one thing when I spoke with (UFC President) Dana White yesterday when Dana White went and spoke with (America’s Pregame host] Mike Hill, he was very clear to say, ‘Chael needed to talk to the commission.’ Now I do agree with that, and I am well aware, as is my management team, that we do need to talk to a commission.
“This was out-of-competition testing. This has never happened to me. I’m only the third athlete ever that’s had to go through this. There’s also a bit of an expectation on my behalf that the commission will understand as I’m transitioning off testosterone as we’ve talked about a number of times. In the meanwhile, my wife and I were having problems with fertility. This is a matter of health, and this is a matter of being a parent and being able to live the next chapter of my life. At no point was there an attempt to slip around the system.”
Even though Sonnen is one of the UFC’s top-drawing fighters and has a tremendous following, he feels the importance of raising a family far exceeds his need to continue his professional career.
“I want to stay within the rules,” Sonnen said. “I don’t fully understand them, and I have to put my health first. I have to put my family first.
“ … There is going to be a day where I’m going to no longer have the title of fighter. That’s the reality. But I don’t ever want there to be the day where I can’t have the title of parent and father and husband. My health has got to come first.”
Sonnen retires from the sport with 43 professional fights and a 28-14-1 record, including a 7-7 mark in the UFC. He fought three times for a UFC title but came up short to former middleweight champ Silva (twice) and reigning light-heavyweight titleholder Jon Jones.
Sonnen’s 35 takedowns landed in middleweight competition are the most in UFC divisional history. His 1,300 total strikes landed at middleweight rank second all-time in the UFC.
