UFC Star Chael Sonnen Sentenced to Probation in Money Laundering Case
by Nate Wilcox on Apr 8, 2011 5:28 PM EDT
in UFC News
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UFC middleweight Chael Sonnen -- the only man to seriously threaten champ Anderson Silva in the latter's four year run -- has been sentenced on federal money laundering charges. Those charges have been hanging like a cloud over Sonnen's head since he entered a guilty plea in January and the UFC "suspended" his contract.
Sonnen had earlier been suspended by the California State Athletic Commission for failing a drug test after his stellar UFC 117 performance against Silva.
Mike Chiappetta reports:
U.S. attorney's office spokesperson Gerri Badden told MMA Fighting that Sonnen was sentenced on Friday to 24 months probation, a $10,000 fine, and forfeiture of his real estate license as the result of his Jan. 3 guilty plea.
In his plea, Sonnen admitted that he was part of a financial transaction that was conducted or designed to disguise the ownership of funds due to wire fraud. The charge had carried a possible fine of up to 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine.
Sonnen was sentenced in the case by Judge Michael W. Mosman in the district of Oregon's Portland courts.
Sonnen and the UFC can now get together and figure out his future with the organization although this will likely do nothing to improve his chances of getting a second's license in Nevada -- the key step to coaching on The Ultimate Fighter.
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Is his number blacked out
Because it’s his legit number? I don’t get why it matters really. Especially since you can get it wherever that video is posted.
by silent.bisonte33 on Apr 8, 2011 5:32 PM EDT reply actions
Yea I called before too
Mailbox is full, but its funny to here him.
by silent.bisonte33 on Apr 8, 2011 8:44 PM EDT up reply actions
why not?
it’s not like it was a violent crime or has anything to do with what happens in the ring.
Exactly. People always wonder why certain criminals especially white collar criminals don’t go to hard core jail. Because they aren’t going to stab some dude in the shower and don’t need the security
by Rabbit915 on Apr 8, 2011 6:46 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
he's not on parole he's on probation
and probably since it isn’t a violent crime
Conducting an experiment on knocking people out in particular ways would be unethical.
Of course. People on probation can get jobs.
I like using semi-colons; they make me feel smart.
by Llewdor on Apr 8, 2011 7:13 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
He's not on parole he's on probation.
either way he would still be able to fight.
Learn JiuJitsu, it's fun.
"Quhzks! That's what's the ducks says." - Toki
by Solidus on Apr 8, 2011 5:45 PM EDT reply actions 6 recs
Why move it to accomodate a fighter who screwed up his license?
Especially since Sonnen failed to get licensed due to STUPID.
To save me some time on 25% of all threads, here's the universal answer to the Fedor-debate: Fedor is the most accomplished MMA fighter ever. That is a fact. If he still is the best fighter at this point in time is up for debate.
Turn that problem into and opportunity!
Everyone knows the current TUF house and the UFC gym… but what if the next season of TUF took place on a DESERTED ISLAND and work out at the COCONUT GYM!?
Ratings would skyrocket!
by Pyrgz Krum on Apr 8, 2011 5:59 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
No reason they couldn’t do the show at the UFC gym in So Cal.
In the clearing stands a boxer And a fighter by his trade And he carries the reminders Of ev'ry glove that layed him down Or cut him till he cried out In his anger and his shame "I am leaving, I am leaving" But the fighter still remains
Because that's a whole different kind of gym
It’s like a 24 hour fitness with a cage and some MMA classes instead of jazzercise classes.
Can someone explain why Chael needs a license to coach on TUF?
I’m sure it’s obviously something like to corner a licensed fighter even in an exhibition bout, you also need to be licensed, but really…If zuffa want to make sure the next season digs it self out of the grave it’s currently being put in with season 13 they’ll fight to come up with some way to get him this license.
Besides, every season the TUF coaches are more like cheerleaders.
He's going to have to work a corner
And cornermen are subject to licensing.
Follow @MMARocks and @tjmarciniak
by greco-roman airlines on Apr 8, 2011 6:00 PM EDT up reply actions
Same thing I was thinking, do you really need a licence to coach on TUF, they are amatuer bouts anyway? Then when you have the fight you could do it in another state besides Nevada or California.
They're not amateur bouts. They're exhibition bouts.
I like using semi-colons; they make me feel smart.
Why don't they just have him sit out the fights?
and have someone else from his coaching staff corner them. All viewers really know of the coaches being present at the fights are their annoying voices…not a big loss IMO.
by Matt Nelson on Apr 8, 2011 6:13 PM EDT reply actions 4 recs
on a spectacularly tangentially related sub-topic
Listening to Lesnar’s voice squeak during the fight was pretty funny.
Then to the mainstream audience it's just another reminder that Sonnen's a crook and MMA is shady
And in the bigger picture, of a sport trying to legitimize itself and become considered a more than a “fringe” sport, that’s bad business
I don't imagine the mainstream audience has any idea about his extra curricular problems
Conducting an experiment on knocking people out in particular ways would be unethical.
They could even film close shots of him sitting next to the ring later on and edit them in as if he was actually there at all the fights.
I see no reason he couldn't sit with the rest of the fighters during the fight
he just couldn’t go into the octagon between rounds.
I sorta think it’s only a matter of time before Sonnen is released from the UFC. If he can’t get licensed in Nevada because he is too stupid to apologize to Kizer for his idiotic lies, coupled with his steroid use and fraud conviction, I don’t imagine he’ll be with the UFC for very long.
Sure, Sonnen gets ratings but I think Dana White will acknowledge his good working relationship with the NSAC is more important than any one fighter.
by Christopher Bradley on Apr 8, 2011 6:26 PM EDT reply actions
So… Chael’s career gets thrown under the bus so Dana and Kizer can be buddies again? That’s… something.
Eventually, you’ve got to cut your losses. Sonnen isn’t playing ball in the UFC’s backyard. Has the UFC every worked around a person’s licensing issues? I can’t think of a case where they’ve put up with that kind of nonsense. If Sonnen can’t get licensed in Nevada, I suspect that UFC will drop him, because the UFC has never changed it’s business operations for the sake of one fighter.
And Sonnen’s career would be thrown under the bus as a direct result of his arrogance and lies . . . because of his inability to get licensed in the state where the UFC does most of its business. He probably should have thought of that before roiding up and lying.
by Christopher Bradley on Apr 8, 2011 6:45 PM EDT up reply actions
Never underestimate the value of a Self Promotion Machine.
The UFC makes exceptions for guys that can add a few hundred thousand eyeballs.
"It is hard to free fools from the chains they revere."
Yeah, that could happen, but . . . I’m just wondering how many second chances they’ll be willing to give this guy, y’know? I don’t think White’s tolerance is inexhaustible, shall we say.
by Christopher Bradley on Apr 8, 2011 7:20 PM EDT up reply actions
Iuno man.
Look at Rampage’s… Rampage. And Leben getting popped for Juice and like 3 DUI’s.
And Carwin’s name coming up on a Steroid mailing list…
Chael is a huge name, and can earn the UFC millions, and apparently the only one that can give Anderson a fight (As long as Anderson decides he has something to prove about Nog Happy Meal BJJ that is).
It’s disgusting, I agree. But what can you do? Incredible Hulk Chael will probably get a TuF gig, a title shot, huge press, be seen as an American Hero as a foil to Bisping, and lots of weed and pussy.
The world is a fucked up place.
"It is hard to free fools from the chains they revere."
Yeah, but Rampage, Leben and Carwin didn’t piss off Kizer.
I mean, there’s a ritual athletes have when they’re popped for steroids. They invent some bullshit reason they were taking them that isn’t, y’know, “Hey, I wanted to win and this shit gives me an edge”, so they say their back was hurt and they shot up roids to help with that or they never went through puberty (ha ha!) and then, and this is the important part, they acknowledge what they did was wrong and they apologize. It’s just a ritual, but Sonnen broke the ritual. Rather than admitting contrition after his BS excuse, he just blamed other people and then called the reduction of his sentence an exoneration while at the same time being confrontational to the most important athetic commission director for MMA.
And THEN, when given a chance to say the right thing, which would be some variant of, “It was a crazy time in my life, and I misspoke, I was wrong and I’m sorry, Mr. Kizer,” instead of saying that he refuses to relent.
Which, AFAIK, is the difference between Sonnen and the rest of those cats. They fucked up but they did the ritualistic bullshit to be “forgiven”. Sonnen hasn’t, because . . . I don’t even know, some combination of pride and stupidity, I think.
by Christopher Bradley on Apr 9, 2011 1:05 AM EDT up reply actions
Largely true, although
I think Sonnen was dead in the water as soon as he brought Kizer’s name into it and didn’t immediately admit he was wrong.
"Sometimes I wonder if the world is being run by smart people who are putting us on, or by imbeciles who really mean it." -Mark Twain
"Life is tough, but it's tougher if you're stupid." -John Wayne
by The American Ronin on Apr 9, 2011 9:54 AM EDT up reply actions
Yeah
No kidding. That confused me. If he’d shown immediate contrition, it would be over by now. shrugs
by Christopher Bradley on Apr 9, 2011 9:21 PM EDT up reply actions
Good call on the Kizer angle.
But renting out a TuF house in L.A. would be a nominal fee considering (Ugh) what Chael brings to the table.
With Zuffa assets it’s pretty safe to say that Chael could have a very long and fruitful career, including a stint on TuF, without coming within 1000 miles of Nevada.
God I hate that guy.
"It is hard to free fools from the chains they revere."
It's not about money
I think. I mean, the UFC isn’t going to stand or fall based on what Sonnen does, one way or the other. Sure, the UFC COULD rent a house in California or New Jersey or Morocco, for that matter, but . . .
OK, I’m a little drunk, so if I ramble more than usual, that’s the reason why. Anyway, I think that Dana White really loves fighters and, without a doubt, Sonnen is a fighter. I don’t like the guy on a PERSONAL level, but he’s game. But I think that Dana’s a Las Vegas guy . . .
Full disclosure. I was raised in Las Vegas. Everything Dana is and does makes total sense to me, in the sense that he’s a Vegas guy. It’s a little hard to explain, at least right now, maybe I’ll try when I’m more sober.
Anyway, it is my experience that Vegas guys are pretty tolerance of bullshit right up until the point it’s in their lawn. My FEELING, based on what I know of Dana and Las Vegas is that Dana must be incredibly angry with Sonnen for his refusal to do the “right thing”, which is to acknowledge the flow of power and flow of money. Everyone’s human and Dana loves game fighters, which Sonnen is, but above that Dana’s a Las Vegas guy, which is an insider town, and he’s not going to risk his rep with another Vegas insider, Kizer, over some guy that’s, at best, going to be with the UFC a couple more years.
Did that make ANY sense? :)
by Christopher Bradley on Apr 9, 2011 9:26 PM EDT up reply actions
Let’s see if he gets UAed twice a month like I do.
When a true genius appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that the dunces are in a confederacy against him. - Jonathan Swift
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UAed?
(for those of us not currently on probation)
Conducting an experiment on knocking people out in particular ways would be unethical.
thanks guys
I figured that but couldn’t figure out what UA actually stood for for. I’m having a slow(er) day
Conducting an experiment on knocking people out in particular ways would be unethical.
Do people usually take steroids to launder money?
by crazybones on Apr 8, 2011 7:17 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
He's on probation, now
Which means he doesn’t have a whole bunch of rights. I’d actually be surprised if they UA’d him, but if they did, he couldn’t say much about it.
by Christopher Bradley on Apr 8, 2011 7:22 PM EDT up reply actions
Make some muthafuckin noise!
"Every time I talk on the phone with someone who doesn’t know me, they call me "ma’am"." - Scott C. Broussard
what about sonnen's mom?
Sonnen’s mother ran the plumbing company that performed fraudulent repairs. Does anyone know how she came out in all of this?
by it never gets better on Apr 9, 2011 12:17 AM EDT reply actions
She's probably knee deep in shit too.
"Every time I talk on the phone with someone who doesn’t know me, they call me "ma’am"." - Scott C. Broussard
by Earl Montclair on Apr 9, 2011 12:27 AM EDT up reply actions
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