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Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones isn't scheduled to fight Chael Sonnen. He never has been.
On the contrary, "Bones" has been locked into a title bout with Sonnen's friend and mentor Dan Henderson for some time now. The champ will look to successfully defend his belt for the fifth time in a row when he takes on "Hendo" at UFC 151 in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Sat., Sept. 1, 2012.
But, that hasn't stopped the always opinionated Sonnen -- who has a fight of his own versus Forrest Griffin at UFC 155 in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Dec. 29, 2012 -- from making Jones the subject of his verbal wrath in recent weeks.
Some have speculated that it's all been a ploy by Sonnen to talk his way back into a title bout, though UFC President Dana White was quick to shoot down that possibility.
Sonnen appeared on FUEL TV's "UFC Tonight," where he looked to settle matters muddy the water once and for all once again.
Check out the latest from "The American Gangster" after the jump:
Sonnen was quick to state that he feels a match up between he and Jones will never happen, but the reasons he gave were ones you might not expect:
"Look I will never fight Jones. He will never fight me. He is surrounded by a bunch of yes men. Is Chael better than me, they say yes. Will Chael beat me, they say yes. Will Chael take my title, they say yes."
Somewhat surprisingly, Jones fired back at Sonnen via Twitter, going as far as to call him a "coward" and a "cheater."
Sonnen finds it all very amusing:
"Well you know I am not a cheater, I am a gangster and we follow our own set of rules and it's up to other gangers to attempt to stop me...duh. I think that whenever Jon does anything, it's very cute. I used to protect kids like him in school. If Jon was here right now, I'd put him in a headlock and give him a little 'noogie,' maybe a sucker, then pat him on the back and send him on his way. That's about as much time as I spend thinking about Jon Jones."
In reference to whether or not Sonnen thinks his comments will fire Jones for his fight with Henderson, the former two-time number one Middleweight title challenger had no real opinion one way or the other.
As far as he's concerned, Jones shouldn't need him or his comments to get motivated for a title fight:
"I didn't understand the whole thing. He has to focus to beat Dan Henderson, which he won't do. I don't think he should be focusing on me he should be focusing on Dan Henderson's right hand. He says that I provided him with motivation, but Jones, isn't that your coach's job? I mean do you want me to give you the number to the bat phone and you can just call me and pay me 10 percent for my rhetorical skills? The only thing we need to know about Jones, is which hospital we need to send the flowers too."
Before he called it a wrap, Sonnen had one last parting shot for "Bones." According to Sonnen, he doesn't need to fight Jones, but he really wants to, anyway:
"Look, Jon. I don't need to fight you. I'm the highest paid fighter in the UFC. I shatter pay-per-view and television records. I don't need to beat you up, Jon. I just want to."
For all the latest news. notes and anecdotes for UFC 151: "Jones vs. Henderson" click here.
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