Former UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson will likely return to action at UFC 91 in Portland, Ore., on November 15, according to recent statements attributed to promotion president, Dana White, in a recent Yahoo!Sports.com article.
This latest news comes hot on the heels of a recent court appearance, during which Jackson was charged with two felonies and four misdemeanors for a bizarre traffic-related incident that took place just last month.
He’s currently free on $25,000 bail. His troubles outside the cage, however, won’t appear to slow his road back to championship gold inside the Octagon.
Here’s a snip from White:
“Of course he’ll fight. If he was doing drugs, if he had been drunk, if he had gone out there and done what he did because he was pissed off at someone, that would be a completely different story. But he was ill. And in this company, we support our friends and anyone who works for us when they’re ill and have problems. He was ill, the incident occurred, and now he’s fine. Rampage feels awful about the woman’s baby, but he had nothing to do with it. And the (traffic incident) occurred because he was very ill and not with him in control of his faculties.”
For more background on “the incident” feel free to get up to speed right here.
Of course, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua has been beating his war drum recently, telling several media outlets that he intends to return from a serious knee injury and face Jackson in December. It would set up a rematch of a fight under the Pride FC banner back in 2005, which Rua won in lopsided fashion with a crushing first round knockout.
That’s news to Jackson, however, according to a recent interview with Fighters Only Magazine.
Here’s his reaction:
“I didn’t know anything about Shogun, I was trying to get Wanderlei Silva, I was told I might be fighting him. But to be honest with you, I don’t really give a damn who I fight, I just want to fight and show the world that Rampage is the best when he gets the best elements around him and the best training.”
Therefore, unless Rua intends to come back sooner rather than later, it appears that his plans for a rematch on New Year’s Eve weekend could be dashed.
That’s because UFC 91 currently lacks a main event-caliber headliner. And the addition of Jackson would likely be the missing piece to putting together a solid pay-per-view (PPV) main card puzzle that already includes a lightweight clash between Kenny Florian and Joe Stevenson, as well as a potential heavyweight showdown between Brock Lesnar and Cheick Kongo.
Stay tuned for more details on this developing story.
96 Comments »
Add to that that news on Wanderlei recently said that he isn’t fighting until 2009. They better not rush Shogun back for this fight and not have him at 100%. It would be a waste.
If you’re right about Wandy and Rua that doesn’t leave many top choices for him to fight. Machida and Silva are already booked too close to that event, as are Liddell and Evans. Personally, I think there are too many top LHWs to give Rampage an immediate title rematch, so that eliminates Forrest. That only leaves Sokoudjou and the Techno Viking of Mean as top 10 opponents.
Get Shane Carwin in there!
Carwin is a HW.
FOREST! People bitch that there are not enough title fights well there ya go…Forest can fight in November/December then again in early 09
Sokoudjou is actually fighting in UFC 89 and dean of mean is fighting Vera coming up soon. So ya only opponents that make sense for Rampage is Wandi or Rua.
I’m a retard…
PW: GOod ideas but it wont work. Soko is booked to fight Luis Cane at UFC 89 and techno Viking is fighting Vera on the same card. they cant fight in back to back months
Didn’t know about those. I guess that leaves him with a big pile of zero.
what happened to wandy VM? I thought he wanted to fight on NYE!
I don’t remember exactly where I saw it, more than likely it was somewhere on this site. I just remember reading that he is done fighting for 2008. I tried searching around for a source, but I was unable to find. Hopefully I am mistaken and he will indeed fight in December.
While surfin, I did come across this clip. Its a prank call with someone pretending to be Wanderlei Silva calling into this MMA talk show. “Chicken and rice, rice and chicken” LOL If you have 3 minutes to spare, its worth the potential laugh.
http://www.cagetoday.com/video-raw-las-vegas-wanderlei-silva-prank-call/
yeah, I saw that one, funny as sh*t! I hope you’re wrong about wandy being done in ‘08 too, he needs to fight, he’s been off for a while now. Hope to see him back in the cage by the end of the year!
I know, the UFC FINALLY signs Wanderlei Silva and they have him fight a total of 35 seconds against a single opponent in an entire calendar year (2007). We are being deprived of seeing the Axe Murderer in action!
Here it is. But 1 week earlier he said he wanted to fight in December. Who knows????
Cut n Paste:
White also penciled in the inevitable showdown between BJ Penn and Georges St. Pierre for UFC 93 on January 31, 2009 (Superbowl weekend). That fight was rumored to be at UFC 92 in December, much like the next fight for light heavyweight superstar Wanderlei Silva.
“The Axe Murderer” went on the record during an August 8 session with UFC Fight Club members about fighting at UFC 92, but White was very non-committal about the date and instead hinted at something early in 2009 for the former PRIDE star.
that sucks BNF, if he fights at UFC 93, that would make 8 months without fighting! Prior to watching him against chuck, that’s the most I have waited to see him in action…
I don’t know where they got this bit about White “hinting” at an 09 return. I read the transcript that was posted on bloodyelbow or some site and all White said was he wouldn’t commit to a UFC 92 return and immediately these people take it to mean a later return. Uh, why not sooner?
There’s only two opponents that make sense for Jackson right now and that’s Wanderlei and Shogun and it has to be either one at UFC 91 because they need a main event for that card.
THAT’S IT BNF!!!! That was exactly what I remember reading.
did you really like that quote mike? War Machine. Anyone who didn’t see it, it’s in the babalu thread!
absolutely! Great find and thanks for posting it! Were you really checking out Jon Koppenhaver’s MySpace page in your free time? or did you find on another site? just curious…
dude, my wife has a myspace. If anyone wanted to see my family, I’d invite them to be her friend! I would NEVER be gay enough to check out myspace pages period. The only myspace correspondence I have is making fun of my wifes lame cousin who is on myspace 12 hours a day and a tattoo artist! I got it on sherdog!
His legal name is no longer Jon Koppenhaver. He legally changed it to War Machine because the WWE has a fighter that they call War Machine and threatened to sue. The UFC stopped calling him War Machine because of this so he legally changed his name so they have to with no legal reprocussions.
thanks for joining the discussion. scroll to yesterdays babalu thread…I posted it there. what exactly did you think we were talking about?
That is some crazy shit…
Hey Kev.. I have myspace page under PhilQNY.. you can check it out if you want… Send me a friend request.
I can honestly say that the only time I have ever been on a MySpace page is when their is an article on this site that links to a fighter’s MySpace page. Occasionally I’ll click the source link and check on the whole article or what not.
Every page that I have seen on there looks like total cheese.
yeah, I dont have myspace either
I don’t know where you heard that, but if its that interview that White gave Yahoo’s Iole like a week ago confirming the UFC schedule and GSP/Penn, I think his comments towards Wanderlei were taken out of context. When White wouldn’t commit to a December return for Wanderlei, the writer immediately assumed that it would be later but why couldn’t it be earlier?
I think White really wants Wanderlei/Jackson showdown at UFC 91 in November and that’s why he wouldn’t commit to a December return.
And besides, why couldn’t Wanderlei return this year? He hasn’t fought since May and he’s not dealing with any injuries or taking time off. The guy is in the gym right now training his ass off.
F*ck the injuries! Why can’t it always be like it is in video games where the fighters are never injured?!?LOL! …And why do I get this funny feelin’ that there’s a hidden stage in GTA 4 wherein Rampage is drivin’ a monster truck and sideswipes the pedestrians while bashing all the cars while all this time the cops are chasin’ him? Must be in one of my alternate universes…
LOL
Why doesn’t he fight Forrest on Nov. 15th?? What is Forrest doing with his time?? Is he fighting anyone? Is he hurt? Or is he just going to wait till the winner ” Chuck “. at UFC88 to be announced as his next opponent.. cuz IF..I mean IF Rashad finds a way to beat Chuck.. I highly doubt he would be getting a title shot.
Good forecast there Phil. That is indeed true! What if Rashad pulls the upset? I’m sure he’ll still be standing next in line behind the MAchida/Silva fight. Sure is borin’ to line up for that title shot line if your name is not Liddell or Rampage, or anyone of “Dana’s babies”!
Yeah I agree, I want to see Rampage get in there and SMASH Forrest after that last fight.
I’m pretty sure I remember Rampage saying he would rather fight Wanderlei because Shogun was tougher than he was. He said it in his Rampage-jokingly way, but he of all people would know better than anyone I guess lol.
dana just got chucks d*ick out of his mouth and promised him a title shot. I’m not quite sure how he’s getting a shot or how forrest gets such a long break, but it really makes you like guys like kenny florian who beg to get right back in there.
I gave up.. on this MMA/UFC being political correct.. this whole UFC picture at times don’t nkae no sense.. It’s Dana’s Show. I jsut hope for good UFC cards like 84,85,87,89..that on paper looks good, and the fighters come through with elite performance’s.
I otld you guys yesterday, Forrest isnt fighting anytime soon. He is going to milk is title reign for as long as he can without defending it. Seems like everyone wants to fight for the title but not too many people want to defend the title. THats why u have to love champs lkike Anderson and BJ
Forrest wont fight for a while! At least not until Febuary, my guess is he will be out until Spring!
BJ? He has one title defense and his next fight is not a title defense. Who knows when he’s defending again…
exactly…enough coddling the champs…Anderson fights every 3 months why should Forest…Forest has fought 1 time in a year…thats not enough
Truth.
Obviously he’s waiting to fight Chuck in December, I’m pretty sure that the UFC and Dana have all of this planned out like from the moment Griffin won in July. That’s just the marquee fight right now, I mean Liddell/Griffin could be record-breaking huge with how popular the two of them are.
Punk man VS Alfred E Neumann[boy from Mad Magazine]!
Winner of Liddell/Evans should fight Rampage for #1 contender while the winner of Machida/Silva should get title shot
I agree, but it won’t happen.
As long as they put him against a worthy opponent and not some chump just to get him back on track then im satisfied.
Have Wanderlei or Shogun ever said they wouldnt fight each other? There were both Chute Box (I believe), but I know Wandi is at Xtreme Couture now so I dont know. Anyone know?
when they were both CB, both wouldn’t fight each other. once they left CB, wanderlei said he wouldn’t fight shogun and asked shogun if he felt the same way. Shogun answered wandy by saying he would not fight wandy. Since that interview though, shogun has said that both him and wandy would be professionals about it and put friendship aside and face each other (according to shogun). so I’m still confused if they would or wouldn’t face each other LOL.
I hope they never fight each other.. to me it would just be weird.
off the subject : MMAweekly’s MMA top10 list updated as of August 27th.
Couture is nowhere to be find in th top 10 HW list.
http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/dailynews.asp?articleid=6976&zoneid=13
yeah Phil, I’d be weird about it too, only because I don’t want to see either one loose. Wandy is my fav, and I know shogun has the tools to beat the crap out of him. it would be like my heart would tell me wandy would win, and my mind would tell me shogun. It would definitely be a drama fight for me lol. MMA Crossfire, the thing about hendo and page is that their good friends, but not close (close) friends as wandy and shogun. They’re like real blood brothers.
BTW, I’m glad couture is off that list, he doesn’t deserve to be in there!
Yeah, its because he hasn’t competed in 12 months. What postion would you place him in if he had?
Wow, i don’t like it.. How is Pulver not a top 10 FW, when he’s the only guy to go 5 rds with Faber since he became FW champ in WEC (maybe lack of FW fights on his rec i guess). And Marquardt is above Hendo? I don’t know about that either, but I’d definatley want to see that fight happen. Then there’s Hughes at #6, I’m willing to bet that Sanchez and Condit could both tool the old man, he’s not well rounded enough for either of them, and depending on how Karo looks this next fight I bet he could take Hughes too. I guess I’m ok with the LW rankings though i could possibly see Frank Edgar, Tyson Griffon or Grey Maynard sliding in there soon. And I don’t see how Sherk isn’t even on the list, the guys like 32-3 or some shit and his only loss’s are GSP, Hughes and Bj Penn… HW I have no problems with, and LHW, I guess Forrest can enjoy his 15 sec’s of fame at #1, cause that ain’t gonna last long; for damn sure..
depends on who he’d have faced and how well he did UKmmaBoy. I’m not hating on couture for his skills, the dude has more skills than anyone in the game will ever have once they hit his age (I still don’t think he would survive a minute with fedor though). My beef with him is because of the contract issue with the UFC and ducking big nog. It’s just straight up hate from me, nothing to do with his skills as an mma fighter.
linx - Sounds like they will fight each other, then. If Rampage and Hendo were willing to fight, then I think Wande and Shogun could do it.
MMA Crossfire, the thing about hendo and page is that they’re good friends, but not close (close) friends as wandy and shogun. They’re like real blood brothers.
I dont EVER want to see Shogun vs. Wanderlei! THey are 2 of my favorites and they are like4 brothers. I dont not want to see them fight.
FYI linx, I agree, Shogun would probably win
Thanks for the clarification linx, appreciate it.
War Page!
Since they allow murderers to fight, why dont the UFC hire Charles Manson to fight? I mean, he was just “ill”
Are you joking???
Manson had an entire house of people killed, including having a pregnant woman..stabbed to death!!!..plus had some more people killed.
Rampage is not a murderer!!! He is not the brightest guy out there and he did F’d up.. but all the details of his incident have not been broadcasted to the world.. Page was cleared that his F’up did not directly or in directly cause that woman to loss her baby..he was not charge with any of that… but you CAN NOT put him in the same sentence as that WACko!!
I can’t believe you responded phil…that said, manson didn’t even technically murder anyone! I say give em Goldie’s job!
Dude.. Kev.. he masterminded the whole thing.. he G’d up the whole group.. I mean he must of had some strong “G”.. cuz tey didn’t go to that house.. for the hell of it. He is a WAKed out Muderer.
I know phil, I was joking. But he’s the man! When you can get some women to murder for you and F*ck you…BIG PIMPIN!
Yes Sir Kev.. STRONG G my dude.. STRONG G.
Manson’s move would be the “Evil Eye”. Then he would just convince about 5 people to beat you up for him.
Phil, don’t respond to this douche, ever, trust me. He/she just puts up random BS to get a worthless arguement going. The other day it was a blatant racist comment. He’s a troll!
lol, I haven’t mentioned your craziness the other day chef! were you having a rampage moment?
Good looking out Chef.
kevin, I was having an absolute BLAST with that!!!! I truly enjoyed knowing some people could get so annoyed and be so mentally weak as to actually threaten me over stupid (but true) posts. I might get irritated with some stuff on here, but in all reality, how can people who one doesn’t know, couldn’t pick out of a lineup, and will in all liklihood never meet incite one to violence? Lol. That’s ridiculous. My repeated posts got as many responses as the original thread. It was a bit OC, I admit, but I posted why I did it that way later on.
If this would have happened to any less famous fighter, say one of those who fight on the ufc undercards, they would not be allowed to fight in the UFC ever again.
If this would have happened to another very famous (but white) fighter, say Liddell, he would have been allowed to fight in the UFC again just like Rampage except then the legal system would actually punish the fighter (because they dont have to worry about being called racists or having the NAACP on them)
So there you have it.
Buddy, you are such a douchebag.
So, the legal system doesn’t punish black people? Don’t know about that one… I know several people that would disagree from first hand experience
If this would have happened to any less famous fighter, say one of those who fight on the ufc undercards, they would not be allowed to fight in the UFC ever again.
If this would have happened to another very famous (but white) fighter, say Liddell, he would have been allowed to fight in the UFC again just like Rampage except then the legal system would actually punish the fighter (because they dont have to worry about being called raci$ts or having the NAACP on them)
So there you have it.
This is not a race issue. Its the UFC (a company) protecting and promoting its as$ets. Rampage still has a court hearing and judgement should be passed then.
Probably half true…
Shogun or Wandy. I don’t care which one. Make it happen.
This is not a race issue. Its the UFC (a company) protecting and promoting its assets. Rampage still has a court hearing and judgement should be passed then.
Should have been a reply to RandonTask
no kidding….imagine how much Money Rampage brings to the UFC…of course they want him fightiing again! He’s the reason they bought the WFO or whatever it was called.
It doesn’t matter which guy Rampage fights, he will get killed by either one. The new Rampage is no more. He has already proved that mental strength is not his fortay. With his legal toubles hanging in the back of his mind it it will tough to mentally prepare. Combine that with the fact that both of them gave him some of the worst beatdowns I have seen. He will probably crumble under the pressure again.
Interesting analysis.
Those are the reason why I would want to see either of those fights BNF! To see someone put a whoopin on Rampage!
Me too man. I kept having to hear about how Rampage would hold the belt for a long time. He had 1 unimpressive title defense and lost his belt. He will get beat down by Wandi or Shogun. Anybody who debats otherwise is just blinded by their love of Rampage.
agreed….I’m a big Liddell fan and I knew when Rampage/Liddell 2 was booked that Chuck was losing that belt…no one is indestructible…except maybe Fedor, Silva doesnt count he been beat 4 times already
It’s really only 3 times.
right forgot the DQ thing
I don’t know. I can’t say for sure that Rampage is done. It may be the case, but wait till he loses again to say somthing like that.
spelling forte’ is not your forte’ Sorry BNF. I’m just not finding the Rampage stories so interesting these days.
It would be fun to see him fight his last fight before possible jail time live and in person. I have a feeling that this Portland event will have a good variety of fights from all weight divisions.
Does anyone know who he’s training with? If he’s joined a major camp?
there seems to be some sugar on your coat. my brother truly is skitz. he talks to himself and been on medication for years. our family needs to keep him on a tight leash and when he does go out and get into trouble, he gets locked up and we need to bail him out to give him his medication. we recently filed him as mentally disabled through the state just so that he’d go into the looney bin instead of jail if it comes down to that. he WISHES he could flip burgers at McDonalds but he’s not capable of contributing to society. so when normal people are basicly under the influence of malnurishment for a day, I can see how its more convenient to use the word “ill” as a legal term.
Did I call this or did I call this? Go back and look at the Kongo post where he says Lesnar doesn’t pose any threats or whatever from like last week, I clearly called this main event.
has the fight been signed?
its annoying that there are mma fans on here saying they wouldnt want wandi v shogun to happen??? are you for real!!!!
Maybe they could squeeze in rampage v a silva after his october fight, hes already said he wants to fight at 205 next!
Other than that get wandi in there, im almost certain hed fight. If friends is gony be an issue for the future then there are so many fights that cant happen and thats just shit! that would mean, machida/wandi/shogun/a silva wouldnt fight??! who does that actually leave to fight then?? rampage,liddell,forrest,jardine,sokojuo,thiago,bonner,evans almost as seperates groups fighting against these guys as there is always gony be a wait if thats the case!! This where we could still do with tito if you ask me!! hes just a fun attraction if you ask me and id always watch his fights
your whole post is on point. we need SHOGUN vs. TITO!!!!!!
oh shit portland take cover. stay off the sidewalks. keep your pregnant women home. look out for big jacked up 4 wheel drive trucks with a picture of a crazed black man on it. take your energy drinks off the shelves.
It’s the biggest fight in mixed martial arts history! 3-time UFC Heavyweight Champ Randy “The Natural” Couture returns to the Octagon and puts his title on the line against the biggest opponent of his career, wrestling powerhouse Brock Lesnar. Can the legend prevail? Or will a new hero rise?