Chael Sonnen Says Anderson Silva Isn’t As Good As People Think He Is

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On this week’s edition of his “You’re Welcome” podcast, Chael Sonnen invited Nate Diaz on to be his guest and offered advice to Nick Diaz for his upcoming fight against Anderson Silva.

Sonnen believes that Silva is hyped up to be more than he is.

“I don’t think [Nick Diaz] knows that,” said Sonnen. “I don’t think he’s going to realize that until a few minutes out there. Anderson Silva is very good, this is not meant to be a knock on Anderson Silva. He is not as good as they say he is. That’s also a true statement. When guys go out there and fight him they will come away with that opinion.”

Sonnen even went so far as to suggest some of Silva’s opponents have faked going down because they were too afraid of battling him inside the Octagon.

“Everybody calls me before they fight Anderson Silva,” said Sonnen. “I tell them, ‘The guy’s a good fighter’ all that nice stuff, ‘He’s not near as good as they say he is.’ He’s not near as good as they will tell you that he is. If you go out there and waste half of the fight before you realize that, like what Demian Maia did, you’re not going to be able to beat him in a decision.”

The former middleweight contender did say that Silva was a good fighter, but warned not to award him the title of ‘the best.’

“I don’t mean to bash Anderson Silva,” said Sonnen. “I think the guy’s fantastic. All I’m saying is he’s not as good as they say he is. If you’re going to call a guy ‘The greatest of all time’ you need to be real careful with that dialogue.”