Conor McGregor changed Chael Sonnen's opinion on him in build-up to interim title fight - "Lightning-fast"

Chael Sonnen recounted an interaction he had with Conor McGregor that totally changed his perception of the Irish fighter.

'The American Gangster' recounted the time he interviewed McGregor ahead of his interim title fight against Chad Mendes back in 2015. During an episode of his Bad Guy Inc. YouTube show, Sonnen, who admitted he knew little about McGregor at the time, said:

"I asked him a question in the octagon, 'What are you going to do with Chad Mendes, who's a wrestler?' And then I got into a fight stance. Conor hits me, at least touches me three times in well less than a tenth of a second. He knocks this hand away, knocks this hand away, and puts it to my throat.

The former three-time UFC title challenger continued:

And he said, 'This is a Bruce Lee technique I could do.' And he does something else, and again, he touches me three times in well less than a tenth of a second. He says, 'or' and then gives a third option, and again, this guy is lightning fast."

Check out Chael Sonnen's comments below:

McGregor put Mendes away in the second round to capture the interim featherweight title at UFC 189. In his subsequent fight, the Irishman famously knocked out Jose Aldo to become the division's undisputed titleholder. The rest, of course, is history.

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Chael Sonnen suggests odd matchup for Conor McGregor

As the biggest star in the UFC, Conor McGregor had the luxury of picking and choosing his fights. Over the past few years, the Irishman has only fought in title fights and high-profile matchups against fellow stars.

However, Chael Sonnen is of the opinion that a certain unheralded welterweight should be McGregor's next opponent. Looking ahead to Irishman's return fight, Sonnen suggested:

"Michael Chiesa. That’s the one that has absolutely never been discussed by anybody. I personally believe that there is a gag order. I personally believe there’s a reason that Chiesa’s never called out McGregor. But just to remind you guys when the bus incident between Conor and the dolly and Khabib [Nurmagomedov] took place, there was lawsuits that followed that, and Chiesa was one of them. Chiesa got glass into his eye – it was very bad experience."

Chael Sonnen's pitch to Conor McGregor:

Sonnen's reference is to the infamous bus attack that took place during the UFC 223 press event in 2018. McGregor and his crew went after Nurmagomedov by throwing a dolly through a window on a bus that carried Nurmagomedov and several other fighters, including Chiesa.