Chael Sonnen wanted to fight 'Rampage' Jackson, willing to move up to light heavyweight division

Maybe he really is loco. 

Mouthy middleweight Chael Sonnen talked a big game in the lead-up to his UFC 117 title shot against pound-for-pound stalwart Anderson Silva.

He went out and backed it up, too, dominating the majority of the fight before losing via submission in the waning moments of the contest. The message, however, was clear ... his ass can most certainly cash all the checks his mouth is writing, at least in the cage. 

Following that loss, the Republican Realtor put the world on notice -- it didn't matter if he had to go on a diet to cut down to 145-pounds to fight Jose Aldo, he was coming for one of two things: a title or a big fight. It seemed like playful banter at the time, but according to his manager, Mike Roberts, it looks like the top contender is ready to back it up.

That's because Roberts tells MMAWeekly.com that when Quinton Jackson was without an opponent at UFC 130, Sonnen immediately campaigned to fight him.

"The thing about Chael is when he does all these interviews, and he sounds crazy when he says ‘I'll fight any man God ever created.' He's telling the truth. When Rampage's initial opponent went down before all this fiasco was going on, before Hamill stepped in to take the fight, when that went down I was with Chael and he was like ‘I'd love to fight Rampage.' And I was like, ‘but you're a 185-pounder' and he was like, ‘I'd fight him in a heartbeat.' Fighting big fights at 205 would not be a problem for him."

It should immediately be noted that this fight would have likely never been possible due to the myriad of issues that Sonnen still has to resolve in Nevada with Athletic Commission Director Keith Kizer.

It's also unlikely the UFC would ever agree to send one of their top middleweights up to the land of the light heavyweights for a bout against a former champion who is one or two fights away from his next title shot.

However, with talk of Anderson Silva still potentially mulling a move up to 205-pounds due to a continued lack of credible challengers to his 185-pound championship, it's not out of the realm of possibility to think a rematch could take place in an entirely new weight class.

Sure, the middleweight division would once again become the weakest of the seven major divisions but would anyone complain? And what about that Sonnen vs. Jackson match-up the former reportedly asked for?

Let's hear your thoughts on how that fantasy bout would have played out.