Last Saturday, UFC on FOX 6 took place from Chicago, Ill. and it was perhaps the last time Quinton “Rampage” Jackson competed in the Octagon. Glover Teixeira spent three rounds picking apart Jackson and ended up winning a dominant unanimous decision.
Jackson’s contract is up and he has made it publicly known that he is done with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. The question is what will Rampage’s legacy be? Whether it was knocking out Chuck Liddell to win the light heavyweight title, or being chased by police while going on a “rampage” down an L.A. freeway in a monster truck, Jackson’s time in the UFC was full of ups and downs.
A few years ago, Jackson was in Vancouver filming The A-Team, a movie where he played B.A. (Bad Attitude) Baracus. Jackson abruptly walked away from a bigmoney fight with Rashad Evans at UFC 107 to film the critically panned action film. During that time he went off about how he felt disrespected by the UFC, how he should make more money, and how the sport was no longer fun. And during the last year or so, he seems to have resorted back to that same delusional philosophy. To say Jackson has some serious issues is diagnosing the obvious. Good people like Lance Gibson of Gibson’s MMA in Port Moody, and world-renowned nutritionist Mike Dolce, have had to cut ties with the MMA legend due to “personal issues” they had with Jackson and his people.
Last weekend, Dana White reflected on Jackson’s UFC legacy.
“There’s no doubt the guy ’s a roller coaster, but when ‘Rampage’ Jackson is on, there’s nobody funnier, there’s no better press conference to be at,” said the UFC president. “When he’s serious about mixed-martial arts and trains hard he’s an exciting fighter to watch. I don’t know what’s going on in his head right now, there’s no doubt the guy’s an MMA icon, the fights that he’s fought, the legends that he’s beat, the things that he’s done. Whatever he’s got going on in his head he needs to figure it out and whatever place is best for him, I’ll be happy for him.”
I will remember Jackson as a fighter who fought and beat some of the best in the world, but for some reason or another couldn’t beat the voices of paranoia in his head. I think Jackson summed it up best last weekend: “I’m a fighter. I fight everything. That’s my problem. I don’t win all my fights; I fight everything. I just say, ‘You know what, forget it.’”
_________________________________________
Follow Trevor on Twitter @TDueckMMA and keep up with the latest from MMASucka on Twitter @MMASucka and ‘like’ us on Facebook
