It appears that UFC are looking to put two “trash talking” veterans head-to-head on the next edition of The Ultimate Fighter. In what would be season 14 of the popular MMA-based reality series, Michael Bisping and Chael Sonnen could be set to coach against one another, that according to a recent report written by Dave Meltzer for f4wonline.com.
The plan from Spike TV and UFC for the next season of Ultimate Fighter, which would air September through December, is to have Chael Sonnen and Michael Bisping as coaches to build to a PPV match in December. The winner would likely be in line for the first middleweight title match of 2012.
Bisping and Sonnen have already started publicly trash talking. Neither UFC nor Spike can publicly announce this due to Sonnen not being licensed in Nevada. Keith Kizer, Executive Director of the commission has said he would not rubber stamp Sonnen’s license due to his contention that Sonnen lied in his California State Athletic Commission hearing in December when he claimed he and Kizer had spoken and that Kizer had approved his testosterone use exemption for Nevada due to a claimed medical condition.
The decision, rumored for weeks, is controversial and will likely be heavily criticized if it does happen. Some will say Bisping and Sonnen are being rewarded at a time when both should not be rewarded. On the flip side, the belief is that the two, because of their strong personalities and interviews, can create another dynamic similar to Rashad Evans and Quinton Jackson, or Ken Shamrock and Tito Ortiz, which resulted in not only the two highest rated seasons in the history of the show, but also huge PPV numbers in each case.
What this ultimately looks to come down to is how commission members will vote on Sonnen, or if UFC wants to risk Sonnen going before the commission given Kizer’s assertion, that all evidence is true, that Sonnen lied, using his name, to get his California suspension for failing a steroid test reduced … This could go a lot of different ways. If the feeling is Sonnen won’t get the votes to get a license, rather than him apply and be turned down, I would think they will change plans.
