Video: Chael Sonnen Says His Career Will Be A Failure If He Doesn't Win UFC Gold

By Mark Wayne | January 13, 2012

Source: MMA:30

Chael Sonnen got into MMA for the same reason he got into wrestling all those years ago: To find out just how tough he is.

The top middleweight contender recently spoke with MMA:30's Dave Farra about his entrance to the sport of mixed martial arts, explaining that, in addition to just being a fan of the sport, he saw it as the new most legitimate way to determine the baddest man on the planet.

"I got in as a fan. In 1993 the UFC came out on VHS and I loved it, I was in," Sonnen said. "I was a wrestler my whole life, came from a family of wrestlers. But, the only reason we did wrestling was to find out who was the toughest. That was the only point of wrestling. If you were the Olympic wrestling champion, you were the toughest guy in the world. Then the UFC came along and that kinda changed everything. Well, now whoever wins that is who's the toughest, not the greatest wrestler."

And until the 34-year-old Sonnen becomes a UFC champion, thereby proving himself the toughest man on the planet, he'll be unsatisfied with his career as a mixed martial artist.

"One night, one moment, twelve pounds of gold," he said when asked what he hopes his legacy will be. "This will all be a colossal failure if I don't have that one night."

Check out the full video of Sonnen's interview with MMA:30 below: