Chael Sonnen will appear before the California state athletic commission (CSAC) today to appeal the steroid allegations from his title bout back in August. Sonnen was sent notice of his failed drug screening on September 16th of this year. He was also fined $2,500 and suspended until September 2nd, 2011, knocking him out of his rematch with UFC middleweight king pin Anderson Silva.
Leading up to the title fight between Sonnen and Silva at UFC 117, Chael could be found any and everywhere doing interviews and guest appearances. He proceeded to talk trash about Anderson, the Nogueira brothers, Black House, BJJ, Brazil it self, and even Lance Armstrong. The man was on a PR rampage, running his mouth to anyone with a mic and camera that would listen to him. One thing is for sure, love him or hate him Sonnen did exactly what he set out to do, and that’s get your attention.
Walking into the fight I remember everyone sitting in anticipation, waiting to see if Sonnen would be able to back up the trash talk leading up to the fight. For over 20 minutes of the scheduled 25 minutes, he did exactly that. Taking Silva down at will, landing devastating ground and pound, and ultimately doing exactly what he said he was capable of doing to the 185 pound champion. Sonnen was with in minutes of proving to the world he was the best, when Silva slapped on a tight triangle from the guard and submitted Sonnen just before the end of the last round. Sonnen may have lost at the last second, but he gained the respect from just about everyone for doing what no one has ever done before, dominate Anderson Silva for four and half rounds. But that would all come to an end very quickly for Sonnen, as he tested positive for PED’s from drug screening prior to the bout.According to the documents, on Aug. 6th (the day of his drug test) Sonnen admitted to event supervisor Frank Munoz that he had taken testosterone the day prior to coming in for the test. Chael Sonnen listed "1 shot" of testosterone on the form, which he stated he took on Aug. 5, just two days before his title match with Silva. On Sept. 2nd the lab informed the CSAC that Sonnen's testosterone to epitestosterone ratio (T/E) tested at 16.9. Testosterone is natural in all human’s, however the maximum T/E ratio for a normal person that is not taking steroids is almost 3 times less than that of Sonnen’s. (Maximum T/E level for a normal person is 4.1)
Today is D-day for Chael Sonnen. He will stand before the CSAC and attempt to prove he is innocent in hopes to reduce his suspension. He is likely to claim testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) as the reasoning behind the elevated testosterone levels, but even then CSAC requires necessary documentation form a physician well before the fight and drug screening take place. Also it was noted that Sonnen never asked for an exemption for TRT prior to the fight with Silva, nor has he ever in the state of Nevada for that matter. Below is a copy of the actual form Sonnen filled out at the steroid screening prior to his UFC 117 title bout.
Written by: Rudy Mogavero FNMMA
First let me say, Great article, and you are right, Sonnen did cause a ripple in the effect, intentionally like you said, I myself was won over by the display, yet, I find it disheartening to hear of the steroid use, and collectively, It has muddied the water for the entire Sports Industry, Nevertheless, I wish Sonnen well, hope he can recover, and I would like to see the Rematch, Sonnen first round knock out by the way, my prediction.
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