Georges St-Pierre Begs Chael Sonnen as $1,000 Wrestling Challenge Could Solve His ‘Kryptonite’ Problem

In the ‘Bob & Kathy Nicolls Wrestling Room’ in Iowa, a man in jeans, socks, and a cowboy belt buckle lay belly-down on the mat. No singlet. No warm-up. Just guts, literal and figurative. That man? Chael Sonnen. And across from him stood Kaleb Young, a three-time All-American, eyes locked in, ready to twist the past into the present.

You see, this wasn’t just a friendly roll. It was a $1,000 challenge born from a bold claim and an even bolder reputation. Sonnen, who once ruled the mats as an All-American and Greco-Roman silver medalist, had claimed, “Nobody under 200 pounds can gut-wrench me. And I’ll give you the lock.” That’s not just a bet. That’s a dare thrown into the fire pit of Iowa wrestling, where humility is earned and tested every day. The catch? They had 22 seconds!

The video was shared on Sonnen’s Instagram account, and it begins with the UFC veteran asking, “What if this is a really bad idea?” Terry Brands, the Iowa Wrestling Associate Head Coach, then threw down the gauntlet to all the young wrestlers in the room, “Anybody under 200lbs can turn him in a gut wrench, 1000 dollars. You gotta do it in 22 seconds.” Before walking up to ‘The Bad Guy’ and asking him if he needed to get his ribs warm, as the room bursts into laughter.

In a subsequent section of the video, Sonnen explained, “In 1995, I could not be turned. So I made a comment, to Ryan, that nobody under 200 pounds could turn me in a gut wrench, and I’ll give you the lock. So he’s now told the guys I said that before I was here.”

Kaleb Young, the wrestler who accepted the challenge, then stepped up. Sonnen dropped into the par terre position, arms stretched, belly down, back exposed. Young was locked in. The timer started. What followed was part strategy, part stubbornness. Young pulled, shifted, and repositioned. But Sonnen didn’t budge. He rolled his arms. Twisted his body. Like a seasoned oak tree refusing to be uprooted, he stayed grounded.

The clock hit zero. $1,000 stayed in Sonnen’s pocket. But then came a comment that sent ripples through the MMA world! “U still got it,” wrote none other than the legend, Georges St-Pierre. But that wasn’t all. The Canadian GOAT added, “Please, next time I see you, you need to show me how to defend that lock because that’s my weakness on the par terre in wrestling.”

Turns out, even superheroes have their kryptonite. And for St-Pierre, it’s that gut-wrench grip from the par terre. The position where control is king, and one wrong move spells defeat. And who better to fix that flaw than Sonnen, the man who just proved, without gear, in denim and years after his retirement, he’s still got the goods?

But here’s the kicker: how many legends do you see asking for help on Instagram? Georges St-Pierre’s humility spoke volumes, and that’s maybe why he drew high praise from Joe Rogan, who even snubbed Jon Jones and Khabib Nurmagomedov for one particular honor!

Georges St-Pierre’s thirst for knowledge leads to Joe Rogan dubbing him a “real martial artist”

In the episode no. 2309 of the JRE (Joe Rogan Experience), Rogan and Joey Diaz pulled back the curtain on what made GSP different than his peers. Diaz led the charge, saying, “I was always very impressed with how every fight he showed up with something different.” That wasn’t luck or guesswork, it was GSP’s obsession with reinvention.

Rogan echoed that thought, pointing out how St-Pierre was always on the road, learning from the best. Wild Card boxing gym? Check. Phil Nurse’s Muay Thai? Done. Greg Jackson’s MMA lab? Done and done. And the best part? Even after retirement, Georges St-Pierre has kept the same mindset, which led Rogan to exclaim, “He still does the same thing, he’s really a martial artist. He comes to Austin all the time to train with John Danaher and Gordon Ryan all the time. He’s here all the time.”

For Rogan, that’s the magic that sets him apart from other fighters as he confessed, “He’s the best example of a guy who retired with millions in the bank and is living his best life. He’s a real martial artist. He just wants to learn and grow.”

After all, after watching Chael Sonnen’s denim-clad masterclass of wrestling defense, the Canadian GOAT didn’t waste a single second admitting his weakness and wanting to expand his arsenal even further. And maybe, that’s what immortality in combat sports looks like, not the highlight reels, but the willingness to keep showing up, asking questions, and daring to evolve. What do you think? Let us know in the comments below!