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January - 2015
SCRAPP! FIGHT MAGAZINE
24
This past week, Jeff Sherwood,
founder of Sherdog.com broke
the news that Rampage had
resigned with the UFC. What
has followed has been noth-
ing short of a media hail storm.
Every major and minor mixed
martial arts media source is
reporting on it and many fans
are chiming in via social me-
dia. Reason being that Bellator
MMA and Viacom are contest-
ing Jackson’s decision stating
that he is still under contract
with them. So, what does this
all mean and why the media
frenzy?
Never has there been a rival
organization that could swing
it’s financial weight in the same
way as Zuffa, LLC (owner of
the UFC) until Viacom acquired
Bellator MMA. Since ousting
Bjorn Rebney, the overall feel-
ing has been that Viacom is
taking more ownership and
more pride in their MMA pro-
motion.
This is the first real battle that
we have seen between the UFC
and any organization that can
match their financial and legal
strength. This isn’t a war be-
tween Bellator MMA and the
UFC, this is a battle between
Zuffa, LLC’s legal team and Via-
com’s legal team. The question
is if they are picking a fight that
they can win.
The subject matter of this war
is Quinton “Rampage” Jack-
son. This is a man that has been
fighting professionally since
1999. He was brought into the
UFC after Zuffa, LLC acquired
Pride Fighting Championship.
One of many acquisitions that
will certainly be brought to
light in the antitrust cases that
have been filed against the
UFC.
By fighting this legal battle,
Bellator MMA and Viacom are
helping the UFC no matter the
outcome of the case. Jackson is
stating that Viacom has failed
to meet the terms of his con-
tract and also that his contract
provided an out in the case this
sort of scenario after he provid-
ed forty five days notice. Zuffa,
LLC also seems to be confident
that Jackson is in the right.
Whether Bellator MMA loss-
es this fight or wins, the UFC
will ultimately be the victor. A
strong argument against the
accusation that the UFC is a
monopoly is that Bellator MMA
is a competitor. This legal case
puts a spotlight on the fight
between the two organizations
for an athlete. Not a bad situa-
tion for the UFC no matter the
outcome.
No fighter has sacrificed more
and given more of himself for
the love of fans than Rampage.
He fought for a long time in
Pride, an organization with
different rules and no athletic
commission. True danger was
the name of the game and he
put himself in it for the love
and respect of the fans. He is
still a very competent competi-
tor, but it seems to be a battle
of were he will end his career.
That is far from a slight on
Rampage as he is closer to forty
than he is to thirty and he has
given the MMA community
so much. The fear is that get-
ting caught up in a legal battle
between two multi-billion dol-
lar corporations will keep him
on the shelf for long length of
time.
No doubt the clock is ticking
on his career and hopefully the
fans get a little more Rampage
before it’s too late.
QUINTON “RAMPAGE” JACKSON:
MUCH ADO ABOUT
NOTHING OR MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE?
Article By: Michael Davis
Quinton “Rampage” Jackson
(Dave Mandel/Sherdog)