Very few moments in UFC history come close to what transpired inside the Octagon during UFC 194: Aldo vs McGregor and the ripple effect it generated. Not only it cemented the Irishman as the biggest draw in the promotion, but also inspired a certain Swedish wrestler who then embarked on his MMA journey. Notably, Khamzat Chimaev burst onto the UFC scene in 2020 and hasn’t looked back since. Hence, it was only a matter of time before he would become the current ‘media darling’; as labeled by UFC veteran, Chael Sonnen.

The submission grappler, on the latest segment of Beyond the Fight, talked about the 4 most popular fighters in the UFC. Markedly, Sonnen, 45, referred to Paddy ‘The Baddy’ Pimblett‘s list, which includes Conor McGregor, Khamzat Chimaev, and Sean O’Malley, and also threw himself in the lot. However, the presence of ‘Borz’ in the list attracted his attention as he further drew a parallel with Ronda Rousey.

What did Sonnen say about Ronda Rousey?

The MMA analyst stated the Swede had been the media darling for the last three years. Following this, he added, “Unlike anything I have seen aside from the rise of Ronda Rousey. When Ronda got the media, she got it and she got it all and she kept a hold of it. And it was red hot. “

Later on, the fearsome submission artist stated that aside from the former UFC champion, he didn’t witness somebody within MMA elect as the media darling like Chimaev.

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Lastly, he claimed that if one got the media darling tag, then they were going to become a ‘massive star’.

‘I Text With, Dana… I Don’t Know What’s Happening’ – Khamzat Chimaev Provides Major Update on Colby Covington Matchup

Afterward, in the same segment, Sonnen bluntly put that apart from the ‘Notorious’, none of the other 3 guys were main events guys. However, he recalled an interesting incident from the 28-year-old fighter’s fight against Gilbert Burns at UFC 273.

Khamzat Chimaev and his UFC 273 appearance

Chimaev, at 12-0, faced the Brazilian fighter in a back-and-forth fight on April 9, 2022, in Jacksonville. However, the Oregon-born fighter claimed he witnessed the Swede blow the roof off the building when he entered to fight the ‘Durinho’.

Similarly, he pointed out that Chimaev‘s fight was third from the top and two world champions came after him. Sonnen further mentioned, “The reception that the world champions received was not close to the reception that Chimaev brought in.”

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What do you think of these comments by Chael Sonnen? Do you agree with these comments? Let us know in the comments below.