Former UFC title contender Chael Sonnen has signed with Bellator MMA, according to the Associated Press.
The 39-year-old MMA veteran is fresh off a two-year suspension after testing positive for multiple banned substances in 2014.
According to the AP report, Sonnen signed a multiyear, multi-fight deal with the promotional company.
Despite repeatedly saying that he was uninterested in fighting to numerous outlets of the media while suspended for the past two years, Sonnen said to the AP in typical “American Gangster” fashion, “I’m a heel. Heels lie.”
In a recent appearance on The MMA Hour, Sonnen revealed that he was undergoing testing with USADA just to see if he was even eligible to fight.
“That’s the thing. You only get called if you fail the test,” Sonnen claimed. “If you called these guys up like I want to do and say ‘Hey are those results back?’ They start going, ‘Why? Why would you not know that you are going to pass?’
“Guys! It’s because I took everything in the world that you can’t take! Will you just tell me if I passed or not and every time I ask someone like that they act like it’s the most corrupt question in the world.”
“I just need to, one test. If I pass one, I’m smooth sailing. But yes, this happened and I need to know and it doesn’t matter how many times I ask Ariel. It’s like they think I’m kidding or something. But no, this is what truth is. You guys just have never heard it before.”
Sonnen has fought in the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions in the UFC.
According to the AP report, Sonnen is willing to fight at any weight class and against any opponent.