Forne mästaren Rich Franklin agerade som kommentator på FUEL TV under invägningarna inför UFC 144: Edgar vs Henderson och när Quinton ”Rampage” Jackson inte klarade vikten menade Franklin att det antingen kan ha berott på att Jackson var skadad eller att han inte tagit förberedelserna inför matchen mot Ryan Bader på allvar.
Jackson uppskattade verkligen inte antydningarna från Franklin.
“My friend already texted me what Rich Franklin said and Rich Franklin needs to watch his mouth for next time I see him. He’s a fighter just like I’m a fighter and he should watch what he says. You don’t question if a fighter takes his fight serious or not. I’m tired of people saying that.
So what? I get ups and downs in my fight career just like everybody else but I’m still here. I’ve been around for 11 years but I’m still here. I take all my fights seriously and I’m tired of people questioning me. I’m one fighter that I haven’t backed out of a fight yet due to injuries, if I win I win if I lose I lose. I’ve won some fights injured and I’ve lost some fights injured, so that’s just me. I’m the one that has to answer it in the end of the day.
That’s why I am the way I am, I get paid to fight, If I get injured the next thing I’m doing is asking my doctor if I can still fight and this time my doctor said no, you can’t fight. Through the grace of the most high I healed up and I kept training through my injury. I trained other things, I didn’t take time off, I kept training but my weight suffered, it happens.”, sa Jackson efter att ha hört Franklins kommentarer.
Franklin fick höra Jacksons kommentar men verkar ha tagit det hela med ro och fokuserar i sitt svar på helgens kommande matchen.
“I can understand when you start calling a fighter out like that obviously they are going to get a little upset. Not knowing the story you’re obviously going to wonder if this fighter took this fight seriously. Six pounds is a lot of weight, but he also addressed another issue being on a plane, holding water all that other stuff I had said before.
The interesting thing about this matchup now, looking at this if I was in Ryan Baders camp. I think prior to the weigh-in I think I probably advised him to take Quinton down, but now knowing that Rampage has missed weight he’s probably going back to his coaches. Does Ryan know that Quinton was injured and knowing so does that change the gameplan of this fight?
Does he go ‘Is my conditioning actually going to carry me through this fight or not’ and that’s what going to be interesting about this fight tomorrow. I think I have to go with Bader at this point.”, säger Franklin.
