Chael Sonnen Doesn’t Think Sambo Is Real

Chael Sonnen doesn’t think that Sambo, the primary martial art of UFC Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov, is real.

Sonnen recently took to his podcast to comment on the potential matchup between Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira. The prospect of a jiu-jitsu specialist against a Sambo expert is certainly an exciting one.

However, on his podcast, Sonnen commented that the jiu-jitsu community is likely confident in the matchup, as he himself never really saw Sambo as a real combat sport.

“For me, that’s interesting. And I do know that the jiu-jitsu community, as a community, has been very scared to do that. I don’t know why. I think jiu-jitsu wins.

“I don’t think sambo’s real. I never have. I think there’s a reason that you can’t get a scholarship in sambo.”

“I think there’s a reason if you go and attend an Olympic games, they’re not going to have a sambo village. I don’t think it’s very real.

“But we’ve got a part of the world, headlined by Khabib and a whole bunch of bada**es out of Dagestan that say that I’m wrong.”

Sambo, of course, is the primary foundation of Khabib Nurmagomedov’s mixed martial arts (MMA) base. Nurmagomedov used it to go undefeated in his legendary career, racking up an unblemished record of 29-0.

The former UFC lightweight champion decided to walk away from the sport for good shortly after his father’s passing. Now, he coaches Makhachev, one of the most promising prospects at 155 pounds as a potential future champion.

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Quotes via Sportskeeda

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