Chael Sonnen has 28 wins in his professional MMA career and competed for the UFC middleweight title. He's a former All-American wrestler. But no matter who you ask, the first thing people describe when his name is brought up is his mouth.
He loves to talk.
Take Thursday's news conference for Bellator NYC -- an event headlined by Sonnen (28-15) and longtime rival Wanderlei Silva (35-12-1) -- for example. The Oregon native had more sound bites in the one-hour gathering than most do in the entire buildup of a fight. At the stare-down minutes later, the two nearly went at it once a few words were exchanged.
Getting into the head of an opponent is not easy. But Sonnen relishes the opportunity each time.
"Some guys came into this talking about honor and respect, and I have no idea where any of that came from. This is a cage fight," Sonnen said. "I'm just a truth-talker. I would never manufacture conflict. If I didn't mean it, I wouldn't say it."
Sonnen believes "verbal warfare" is a key part in any event's promotion. Though he claims to have never watched an entire basketball or football game in his life, he admits this realization was developed over the years watching both politics and professional wrestling.
"People argue who the greatest promoter in the world is ... is it Don King? Is it Bob Arum? It's Vince McMahon," Sonnen said. "He's the only guy to take a fake product and sell out arenas Saturday after Saturday. But he does it by creating an emotion from the crowd. That's the piece of the puzzle that you need, but you either understand that or you don't."
Not everybody is suited for that role, however. It takes a lot to say these types of things and actually be able to back it up in the cage. For the most part, Sonnen has done his job. Other times, he hasn't, and it's come back to bite him. But if you are willing to take those risks, being a 'heel' to help promote yourself, your fight and the organization you're representing is worth it.
"You'll never see a movie that does well in the history of time that doesn't have a bad guy," Sonnen said. "But nobody wants to be the bad guy. That's the problem -- they want their cheers louder than the other cheers. Boos are a heel's cheer.
"I've worked so hard -- I've had sodas thrown at me, I've had people make signs telling me what a dirtbag I was. That was a skill. That was an absolute skill. I'd walk into arenas, see that, and it warms my heart. I'd pass them and think, 'Got you.'"
Simply winning fights isn't going to take you from star to superstar. If you look at the MMA landscape right now, the sport is in dire need of the latter. Conor McGregor is boxing. Ronda Rousey has lost two times in a row and might not return to the Octagon. Jon Jones hasn't fought since August 2016, time partly spent on suspension by the UFC. Georges St-Pierre, who hopes to compete later this year, was out of the sport for nearly four years.
Who will break out and join that select list? The fighters, according to Sonnen, can use their voices to take their careers to the next level.
One person he cites is Kevin Lee, who meets Michael Chiesa at UFC Fight Night in Oklahoma City on Sunday. The matchup is a good one, but many fans wouldn't be as interested in it if both fighters didn't get into a brawl earlier this summer at a news conference. The verbal altercation between them led to punches being thrown. Video of the incident went viral.
"I don't like the physical side of it only because there's a procedure and protocol and a time and place," Sonnen said. "But I do think Kevin was on fire. He was doing great work that day. I thought it was funny.
"I think it helped Michael Chiesa's stock, as well. I didn't even really know that fight was happening. Now I can't wait for that fight. When you see those real things, no scripts involved, it is compelling."
As for Saturday's battle against the 40-year-old Silva, Sonnen believes the fight has everything you need for an epic headliner. There's the personal grudge between the two, who briefly fought outside of the Octagon years ago. There's the comeback story of Silva, who has not competed since 2013. And it's the top fight of a stacked card.
Not much more is needed to pump up the fight. But it won't stop Sonnen from trying.