Chael Sonnen

Chael Sonnen
Sonnen in 2018
Born (1977-04-03) April 3, 1977
Clackamas County, Oregon, U.S.
Height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight205 lb (93 kg; 14.6 st)
DivisionMiddleweight (2005–2012)
Light Heavyweight (2002–2005, 2013, 2017, 2019)
Heavyweight (2018–2019)
Reach73 in (185 cm)
StyleWrestling
StanceSouthpaw
Fighting out ofWest Linn, Oregon, U.S.
TeamTeam Quest
Gracie Barra Portland
RankBlack belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Fabiano Scherner
WrestlingNCAA Division I wrestling
Olympic Greco-Roman trialist
Years active1997–2013, 2017–2019 (MMA)
Mixed martial arts record
Total49
Wins31
By knockout8
By submission4
By decision19
Losses17
By knockout7
By submission9
By decision1
Draws1
Amateur record
Total2
Wins2
By knockout2
Other information
OccupationMixed martial artist, promoter and entrepreneur
UniversityUniversity of Oregon
Websitechaelsonnen.com
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
Medal record
Men's Greco-Roman Wrestling
Representing the  United States
World University Championships
2000 Tokyo 85 kg
Dave Schultz Memorial International
2000 Colorado Springs 85 kg
2001 Colorado Springs 97 kg
2002 Colorado Springs 84 kg
Collegiate Wrestling
Representing the Oregon Ducks
Pac-10 Championships
1999 Stanford 197 lb
2001 Eugene 197 lb
YouTube information
Channel
Subscribers1.34 million
Views838.7 million
Last updated: January 16, 2026

Chael Sonnen (/ˈl ˈsʌnən/; born April 3, 1977) is an American sports commentator, mixed martial arts (MMA) analyst, submission grappling promoter, and retired mixed martial artist. Beginning his MMA career in 1997, Sonnen competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he became a top contender in both the light heavyweight and middleweight divisions and challenged for both the UFC Light Heavyweight and UFC Middleweight Championships. Sonnen has also fought in World Extreme Cagefighting, Pancrase, and most recently for Bellator MMA. Sonnen is often considered one of the best mixed martial artists never to have won a major MMA world championship and one of the sport's greatest trash-talkers.

In 2014, Sonnen began working as a MMA analyst for ESPN and two years later, in July 2016, founded Submission Underground (SUG), his own submission grappling promotion. He is currently the lead commentator for Real American Freestyle, a professional freestyle wrestling promotion.