Sonnen needn’t worry about Brazilian fans’ hostility

Chael Sonnen doesn’t mind having his Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight title rematch with Anderson Silva moved from Brazil to Las Vegas, but that has nothing to do with feeling safer.

A common storyline surrounding what was supposed to be the UFC’s first-ever stadium show in June was whether Sonnen would need protection from angry Brazilian fans he has alienated with a barrage of insults and barbs directed mostly at their star fighters.

Sonnen admits being a bit nervous, but not necessarily any more than when he is fighting in the United States.

“Of course it’s a risk to go to Brazil. It’s a risk to go to Las Vegas, though,” he said. “I was in Chicago for my last fight and this guy asked me about the threat of going to Brazil and I said, ‘You might want to check your local paper.’ You guys aren’t a haven for civility. I wouldn’t let my mother or girlfriend just roam around the streets there.”

Sonnen said the biggest disappointment in having the fight moved to UFC 148 on July 7 at the MGM Grand is missing out on what would have been a historic event in front of 80,000 fans in Brazil.

UFC 148, however, was shaping up to be one of the biggest cards in UFC history until Monday when it was announced bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz tore his ACL and will be unable to defend his belt against Urijah Faber.

Sonnen is just anxious to get another shot at a belt that was within his grasp in 2010 when he dominated Silva for 4½ rounds before getting submitted by a triangle choke in the final minutes.

“I don’t think there’s any other reason you should be in the sport than to be champion,” Sonnen said. “The UFC is for guys who want to be champion, not guys who want to put on their little tough guy T-shirts and cut in line at the local strip club.”

Sonnen wants the title so badly, his desire to get it has driven much of the bitterness from his side of the rivalry.

“I want everything that (Silva) has. I’m jealous and I’m envious and I will never apologize for that,” he said. “There can only be one champion and you have to fight it out. He’s not going to give it up and I’m not going to give up. You’ve got to fight this thing out.”

■ CRUZ INJURY – Cruz was injured in Las Vegas while coaching the current season of “The Ultimate Fighter,” on which he is opposing Faber as coaches.

The title fight was to be the completion of a trilogy between the fighters, with Faber winning by first-round submission in a World Extreme Cagefighting bout in 2007 and Cruz defending his UFC belt by decision in July.

A replacement opponent is expected to be named for Faber.

■ TOP CONTENDERS COULD WAIT – Nate Diaz and Johny Hendricks each became No. 1 contenders in their weight classes with victories on the UFC on Fox 3 card on Saturday night and indicated a willingness to wait out title shots.

Diaz became the top lightweight contender with a second-round submission win over Jim Miller, but lightweight champion Benson Henderson must first defend the belt against former champion Frankie Edgar, likely in September.

Hendricks, now the top welterweight contender after a split-decision win over Josh Koscheck, is now next in line after champion Georges St. Pierre returns to take on interim champion Carlos Condit, which is likely to happen in November.

A case could be made that Diaz should fight Anthony Pettis around the same time Edgar and Henderson fight to determine the true No. 1 contender.

Hendricks’ wait for a title shot would be much longer, so he could be matched against the winner of a June fight between Jake Ellenberger and Martin Kampmann instead of waiting for the title situation to be resolved.

Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509. Follow him on Twitter: @adamhilllvrj.