Chael Sonnen, Bellator MMA Hopeful for 2017 Showdown with Wanderlei Silva

Chael Sonnen hasn’t forgotten about Wanderlei Silva, not by a long shot.While the self-proclaimed Gangster from West Linn., Ore., already has his Bellator MMA debut booked against fellow UFC veteran Tito Ortiz on Jan. 21, Sonnen is still seeking an eventual matchup with “The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 3” rival coach Wanderlei Silva. Silva signed with Bellator MMA last year but won’t be eligible to compete until May 2017, as he is serving a three-year suspension for fleeing a drug test in 2014. “The Axe Murderer” is also still healing from injuries suffered in a bicycle accident in early 2016; those injuries reportedly forced him to pull out of Rizin’s year-end open-weight grand prix. Sonnen and Silva famously brawled on “TUF: Brazil 3” and after the Brazilian recovered from a wrist injury sustained in the altercation, were booked to square off at UFC 175. However, Silva skipped a licensing hearing and of course, dodged the aforementioned drug test. Sonnen also failed a drug test leading up to the event and announced his retirement. Silva later called it a career in the aftermath before his …

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