Champion Silva Finally Dishes Back to Sonnen

Chael Sonnen was in top form with his usual barrage of one-liners, insults and predictions at the UFC 117 pre-fight press conference on Thursday in Oakland, Calif., but middleweight champion Anderson Silva was able to land a few verbal jabs as well.

Everyone else in attendance, including UFC President Dana White and the rest of the fighters from Saturday’s deep card, was able to sit back and enjoy the show.

"I gotta say this is the funnest press conference I've ever been in," remarked UFC welterweight legend Matt Hughes as the proceedings wound down.

It got started when “the Spider” was asked what he thought about all the talk from Sonnen leading up to the fight.

“To talk about me is easy. Try beating me,” Silva replied, although when translated by Ed Soares, it sounded like the middleweight champion’s manager said “being” instead of “beating.”

Sonnen made sure to help clear up any confusion.

“And by the way Soares, that was not a correct interpretation. Anderson did not just say it’s easy to talk about me, try being me; he said it’s easy to talk about me, try beating me. You’re not the only one in the room that speaks Portuguese, even though you act like you are. It’s a step harder picking up that language than it is understanding Pig Latin.”

Silva, however, said he has not been fazed by any perceived disrespect from his opponent leading up to their bout.

“I’m relaxed for this fight. I’m used to fighting idiots like him that are talking about me. It’s a constant battle. I’ve fought idiots all over the world. Some have respected me. Some haven’t,” he said. “I can’t tell you who’s gonna win Saturday night. We’ll see how he’s acting tomorrow at the weigh-ins. That’s when it’s gonna start, and we’ll see how it goes.”

Sonnen has been a vocal No. 1 contender for some time now, but White hasn’t been bothered by any of the manufactured pre-fight hype by the Portland, Ore., native.

“I think there’s a big difference between what you say before a fight and what you do in an actual fight. People aren’t paying for what Chael’s saying right now. People are going to pay for the fight on Saturday night,” he said. “...They’re buying this thing to watch a fight. They’re not paying anything to listen to Chael talk.”

Silva received harsh criticism from White following his most recent performance against Demian Maia at UFC 112 in April, where he toyed with his overmatched opponent for five rounds. That type of disrespect drew White’s ire more than anything Sonnen has done while promoting Saturday’s main event. The Brazilian, who is unbeaten in 11 UFC fights, has been his usual reserved self despite continual prodding from Sonnen.

“If you’ve followed my career you’ve seen that this is the way that I’ve been since I’ve started in the UFC. I’ve never been much of a talker. My focus is going in and doing my job inside the Octagon,” he said.

Silva has been mocked in the past by Sonnen for his attire, and on Thursday he wore a pink sweater, a color that has been the object of the top contender’s derision. There was no meaning behind the choice of attire, Silva said.

“I like pink, so does my wife,” he said. “I don’t know if he (Sonnen) likes it or not, but I like it. I just basically put it on because my wife said, ‘Put it on, you’ll look nice next to him.”

Sonnen’s surprising victory over Nate Marquardt earned him a shot at Silva’s belt. He says that he now feels pressure unlike any before in his career.

“Absolutely, there’s a lot of pressure on me, and that’s exactly where it should be. If you’re carrying a card and you’re gonna fight for the world championship you should have pressure. I don’t care; I’m like a wounded animal. If you back me in a corner I’ll do anything to get out of it. That’s the way it goes,” he said.

“I’ve been calling this guy out for four years. And he still doesn’t want to fight me. I became the No. 1 contender on Feb. 6, and Feb. 7 he put out a press release as to why he shouldn’t have to fight me. If it takes pressure to get that fight to happen that that’s what it’s going to take.”

As for ending the beef with Silva in a show of mutual admiration at the end of Saturday’s contest, Sonnen was skeptical.

“I don’t fully know what respect means,” said Sonnen. “That sounds like something a kid on the street says after he’s getting ready to take your coat and shoes. You want to talk about respect, I don’t do that stuff. I’m here to fight...”