Quinton ”Rampage” Jackson och UFC har inte direkt varit glada på varandra på senare tid. Rampage har varit öppet kritisk mot UFC och har velat lämna organisationen sedan ett tag tillbaka, men han har fortfarande en match kvar på sitt kontrakt. Tanken var från början att han skulle gå sin sista match mot Glover Texiera på UFC 153 i oktober, men tvingades dra sig ur matchen på grund av en skada. Men nu är Rampage tillbaka och kommer istället att gå sin efterlängtade match mot Texiera på UFC on Fox 6 den 26 januari.
Under telefonpresskonferensen inför galan så hade Rampage ett par väl valda ord till organisationen och hävdade att de bland annat hindrat honom att kunna skaffa sponsorer.
”My reasons for wanting to leave the UFC is still the same,” förklarar Rampage. ”Matchmaking is just one of the reasons. It’s nothing about money. I’ve done this interview several times before and don’t want to go into it. I have a new reason. I’m sponsored by Reebok and UFC says I can’t wear Reebok in the cage. Stupid stuff like that. It’s not about money, it’s about respect. I’d rather take a money cut to go to another show and get appreciated. I’m sponsored by Reebok, just not allowed to wear it in the cage. I can’t wear Reebok while I fight.
I think in my opinion, the fighters do a lot for the sport and we’re not taken care of well enough. I feel like they’re getting rich off of all of us. We’re having surgeries and injuries and some of these guys can’t afford to pay sparring partners and stuff like that. I don’t want to be a part of the sport like that. I want to go where they treat their fighters like human beings.”
”Jag har inte varit nöjd med UFC på länge”
Rampage har varit verbalt missnöjd med UFC länge nu, sedan flera galor tillbaka, men eftersom han varit bunden till ett kontrakt har han inte kunnat skriva ett nytt kontrakt med någon annan organisation. Men samtidigt så verkar det ha påverkat honom själv väldigt negativt.
”I haven’t been happy with the UFC for a long time,” berättar Rampage. ”It turned me into a very negative person. I need to get all the negativity out of my life, negative friends, negative family members and the UFC. I just want to be a positive person and be a positive role model for my kids and everyone else in my life. No matter what the outcome is on January 26th, I’m gonna be happy because I trained very hard. I trained every aspect on the ground, on the feet, everything. I want to leave the UFC on a positive note and let the UFC be in my past.”
Men innan han kan lämna UFC så kommer han att möta Teixeira, en näst intill obesegrad, ganska nysignerad, UFC-fighter som numera kommer från 17 raka vinster. Men inom UFC har han endast hunnit med tre matcher, och tre vinster.
”I think the reason why people didn’t want to fight him is, ”who is he?” People haven’t really heard of him. If you look at Glover’s record, who has he really fought? He hasn’t fought any top names. The biggest guy he fought was Ricco Rodriguez and he’s past his time. I fight for my career and I never turn down a fight the UFC offered me. The only person I tried to duck was Matt Hamill because he was a boring fighter. I seen the videos of him trying to hold me against the cage and wrestle me. He’s not a real fighter. Shogun probably didn’t want to fight him because he doesn’t respect him.”
”Enligt mig så utnyttjar UFC oss och jag vill inte stanna i en organisation som det”
Men oavsett vinst eller förlust så förväntas Rampage nu att lämna organisationen för gott.
”I’m over it. I gave them time and time again to keep me happy. Honestly, I think the UFC’s happy with me leaving as well. It’s a mutual thing. I just don’t agree with the way they treat the fighters. In my opinion we’re taken advantage of and I dont’ want to stay in an organization like this.
I think I’ll have fun once I leave the UFC and fight for an organization where I feel appreciated. My objective is to fight and put butts in seats and have people give me a pat on the back and thank me, fighting injured when I could have pulled out. I have a few more years in me. My training camp is going really well and my knee is strong. I feel really, really strong. I think I’ve got a few more years in me.”
Men när han väl lämnat organisationen så är det inte längre säkert att det är en MMA-match vi kommer se honom härnäst i. Han har börjat fundera lite på det här med boxning.
”I’ve put my time in. I did my thing. I think my next challenge if I go somewhere is I want to be exciting. Maybe I’ll do some boxing, some kickboxing and stuff like that. I’ve done jiu-jitsu tournaments, wrestling tournaments, kickboxing fights and I’ve never done boxing. Kimbo Slice is doing it and he’s doing pretty good.”
Oavsett vinst eller förlust så kommer matchen den 26 januari förmodligen att bli den sista matchen i UFC för Rampage. Men var han kommer att gå är oklart, även om flertalet organisationer förmodligen kommer att visa intresse för honom.
