Rampage Jackson’s UFC Status
Thanks to FightLine.com for the following:
Quinton "Rampage" Jackson has been involved in a heated back-and-forth with the UFC ever since he passed over fighting Rashad Evans at UFC 107 for a chance to star in the A-Team movie remake. And though it appeared that the beef was squashed between Rampage and Dana White as he is now officially signed on to fight Evans at UFC 114 in May, a recent interview with Fighters Only Magazine proves otherwise.
"They've [UFC] said some things and done some things I don't agree with - that's not the way I do business," Jackson said. "I'm a loyal person so I take care of people who take care of me, but people who don't take care of me, I don't take care of them. So I'm done with the UFC.
They can't ask me for anymore favors. Nothing. I just want to finish my contract and get out of there, do my own thing. Dana lied to me. He told me I didn't have to fight Rashad and that I could fight Machida. I did the show and then after that he told me I had to fight Rashad."
Obviously there was either some miscommunication here or one of the parties involved just isn't being very truthful. Either way, it looks like this whole mess has turned Jackson sour on the sport of MMA.
"I don't know how much I ever loved the fight game, to be honest," Jackson said. "Most fighters these days join fighting because they became a fan of it. When I started I wasn't a fan of it - I've been a fighter my whole life.
I just thought it was a blessing that God could give me something I could make money doing. When I was a kid I got tired of fighting. I didn't want to be a fighter anymore. But I was just good at it. It was just something that was in my blood. Some people are fighters."
Jackson later added. "I like it a lot less than I used to. It's no secret, everybody knows about the falling out I had with the UFC, and it's just unfortunate that they're trying to blame me for doing this movie."
While this news doesn't bode well for Rampage's future in the UFC, we will at least have one more opportunity to see his infamous howl as he strolls to the Octagon on May 29th at UFC 114 when he takes on Rashad Evans.
Breaking News: Brock Lesnar To Return This Summer
They just showed Brock Lesnar and Dana White sitting in the studio, looking like they've got some things to say.
Lesnar's telling his story. Initially diagnosed with mononucleosis. He's bashing Canadian health care.
He was stricken with a 104 degree fever in Canada. Then came back to the States where they found a hole in his stomach.
They gave him an option to heal on his own or get a colostomy bag. He went 11 days without food or water -- being fed intravenously.
Then he healed -- when doctors went back in, they couldn't find a hole in his stomach at all.
Lesnar claims "there is literally no sign of anything even existing in there." Meaning presumably that he's 100% healed.
Lesnar and White say that Lesnar’s illness should have ended his career, but it is a “miracle” he has returned to full health.
UFC 111: Carwin vs. Mir winner faces Lesnar this summer if healthy. If not, Nogueira vs Cain winner will face Lesnar.
UFC Owners Comment on Competition From WWE
UFC president Dana White and co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta appeared on "Your World with Neil Cavuto" on the FOX News Channel yesterday. A common theme during the show seemed to be questions about UFC being in competition against WWE. White and Fertitta for the most-part no-sold the questions, but did end up addressing a couple of them.
White said UFC and WWE are two different things. He admitted WWE does better television ratings but mentioned that UFC was more successful on pay-per view. Feritta mentioned how UFC beat both WWE and professional boxing combined on PPV last year. They also talked about how WWE's audience skews younger.
Interim UFC Heavyweight Title Fight Announced for UFC 111
The UFC announced earlier this week that former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir will be looking to become only the second man in UFC history to win the championship three times when he takes on number one contender Shane Carwin for the interim UFC heavyweight title at UFC 111: St-Pierre vs. Hardy on March 27, 2010.
"I can’t say enough about a fight that has undefeated powerhouse wrestler Shane Carwin taking on former UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir for the interim belt," said UFC President Dana White. "This fight pits Carwin’s one punch KO power versus Mir’s fight-ending submission game. Both of these matches are ‘can’t miss’ fights in terms of action."
Winner of four of his last five fights, former two-time heavyweight champion Frank Mir has put on the necessary muscle and weight to face the biggest challengers in the heavyweight division, and he is refocused on earning back the world title. A Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt with immensely improved striking, the 30-year-old knocked down feared striker Cheick Kongo at UFC 107 and then proceeded to submit the French contender with a guillotine choke, putting him firmly back in the title picture.
"Shane Carwin is an extremely dangerous opponent and being matched up against him is an honor," Mir said. "It’ll be a great challenge to face him and get to match wits against his coaches. Greg Jackson is like the ‘Yoda’ of mixed martial arts and I will need a strong gameplan heading into this fight."
Originally scheduled to face UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar, No. 1 contender Shane Carwin has been on a tear ever since he stepped foot into the Octagon. A former national wrestling champion with dynamite in his fists, Carwin has made quick work of all three of his UFC opponents, finishing Christian Wellisch, Neil Wain and Gabriel Gonzaga within 91 seconds each. Now he takes the next step in his career against Frank Mir.
"It’s an honor to not only fight for the interim UFC heavyweight title, but to do so against a respected former champion like Frank Mir," said Carwin. "This is going to be a fight to remember for the fans, and I plan on making it one of my most memorable performances as well. Beating Frank is going to be a test, but I’m confident that it’s a test I will pass with flying colors."
The highly anticipated bout will be one of two title fights at UFC 111: St-Pierre vs. Hardy. The card also features UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre defending his title against Dan Hardy.
Dana White Staying Quiet on Lesnar’s Status
Despite UFC President Dana White stating last week that UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar would meet with his physician this week to determine his condition, White has decided to not reveal any details on his status.
"Brock asked me not to talk about it," White told Fanhouse.com. "I have to respect that."
White went on to offer "no comment" when asked if he could make any statement about Lesnar. He had stated last week that they should know the status of Brock Lesnar this week.
Update on Shane McMahon & UFC
Dana White recently said that Shane McMahon was looking to do some consulting work for UFC but did not know if they would make a deal. Apparently Shane, through intermediary and former WWE employee Carl DeMarco, has been looking at getting involved with the Strikeforce MMA promotion.
UFC To Go After Internet Pirates
The Vancouver Sun talks to the prez about his stance on internet piracy:
"When people start going to jail, people will stop doing it."
"It's going to be a battle, man. It's going to be a battle, but I'm ready to [expletive] fight. "We're gonna go after them, we're gonna go after them hard, and we're gonna hurt them."
"[Piracy] hasn't cost us anything compared to what it's going to cost us to go after these guys." "It's gonna cost us a lot of money, but guess what" it's gonna cost them a lot of money. It's gonna get to the point where it's like, you know what, [expletive] it, maybe we shouldn't pirate MMA any more.
"You got these websites like Justin.tv, and they pirate all kinds of things. They play all kinds of [expletive] on there. Well, we're gonna make it where it's not worth it to put UFC events up on the website."
Dana White Talks About Going Head-to-Head With WWE Raw
Following this past weekend's UFC pay-per-view, President Dana White was asked about going head-to-head with RAW on 1/11, and how Vince McMahon has got Mike Tyson as the Guest Host for that night. White responded with the following:
"I mean we're not trying to go against him. That night is the night Spike wanted the fight. Spike wanted the fight that night, so that's the night they called for it and Vince goes into (expletive) war mode. He's calling up (Mike) Tyson. He's bringing this guy back and the Rock might come back. I love it. He's a (expletive) animal. You've never heard me say we're going to kick the (expletive) out of Monday Night Raw. You've never heard me say that. I think we're two totally different, pro wrestling is totally different than the UFC and mixed martial arts. And I respect this guy. I like Vince McMahon. I've had breakfast with him. He's a good guy, but he is a (expletive) animal. I'm not trying to beat him on Monday night. I don't think we would beat them. Those guys pull killer ratings. It's been like the highest rated show on television forever. We're just putting a fight on Monday night because Spike wants us to."
Brock Lesnar’s MMA Future To Be Revealed This Week
Brock Lesnar's future will be revealed this week.
UFC president Dana White announced during the UFC 108 post-fight press conference last night in Las Vegas that Lesnar will finally be meeting the doctor that will tell him if the major surgery is required.
Based on the result, we'll pretty much know this week whether or not Lesnar will be back in 2010, out for a few years getting fixed up, or forced into retirement.
Dana White Claims MMA Will Be The Biggest Sport in the World By 2020
UFC President Dana White talks to The Las Vegas Sun about where he sees his baby being by the year 2020:
"UFC will be the biggest sport in the world by 2020. People were saying I was a lunatic 10 years ago when we first got this going, but the stuff we’re working on right now on so many levels is mind-boggling.... The sport was just sanctioned in Massachusetts and Vancouver. We’re going to get it done in Ontario and New York in 2010. And we’re already working on taking the UFC global. We’ve already done Germany, England and Ireland, and we just sold 22,000 seats for an event in Australia in 15 minutes.... Right now we are on some form of television in over 175 countries. We’re all human beings and we all 'get' fighting.... Me and Lorenzo Fertitta will sit down and figure out a game plan for the next 10 years, and we’ll execute it. So, is 10 years enough time to make this the biggest sport in the world? Hell, yeah."
Calendar
Tag Cloud
Control Panel
