Rampant Rampage

By MasterSplinter July 21, 2008 1 Comments

Mixed martial arts is constantly credited as one of the fastest growing sports today. Since the debut of the Ultimate Fighter television show on Spike TV, MMA has been in nothing short of the limelight. Fighters such as Roger Huerta and Chuck Liddell have donned the covers of Sports Illustrated and ESPN The Magazine, respectively. Fight organization EliteXC has since signed a network television deal with CBS. I think it is safe to say that this sport is now officially on the verge of "mainstream." And congruent to every mainstream sport, mixed martial arts has its share of superstar athletes, none more prevalent than Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.

Since winning the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship from Chuck Liddell in May of 2007, Jackson has been pushed to the forefront of UFC promotion and has embraced the role with open arms. Sporting a rugged beard and chain-link necklace makes him easily recognizable, while his outlandish, media-friendly personality instantly increases his likability. Everything seemed to be on the right track for Jackson until July 5, 2008 when he was derailed by number one contender, Forrest Griffin.

Coming in to the fight, Rampage and his trainer Juanito Ibarra were confident (maybe overly confident) that Griffin couldn't compete with the champ. They were soon humbled when the first Ultimate Fighter winner swept all three of the judges scorecards for a unanimous decision victory. The bout ended in a cloud of controversy as some felt Jackson had won and the sold-out crowd openly booed the decision. Regardless, the outcome was set and there was a new champion crowned that night.

I didn't think much of it because with the constant backlash from fans and the supposed protest of the decision from Ibarra, I had assumed there would be an immediate rematch. Forrest Griffin himself agreed with the idea. If anyone in the sport knows what the people want to see, it is UFC President Dana White. All should have been copacetic in the Jackson camp, but unfortunately that wasn't the case.

On Tuesday the 15th, Quinton Jackson was arrested in Costa Mesa, California after being chased by the police. He was driving with a flat tire while talking on his cell phone and when asked to pull over, he ignored the officer and fled in his pick-up truck. Jackson was eventually arrested five minutes later, ending the pursuit.

I can't remember whether my first response was shock or confusion, but regardless I was experiencing both after I digested the news. Just two weeks prior, Rampage was the biggest star in the sport and now he is on news channels, lying face down on a street, being handcuffed by police. Jackson went from fame to misfortune in the blink of an eye and nobody wants to see that happen. I think the biggest question for me was, "why did this happen?" This was so out of character for Jackson and I believe everyone was taken aback.

Yahoo! Sports was able to talk with Dana White about the incident and his statements painted a clearer picture.

"Rampage doesn't do drugs. Rampage really doesn't even drink. This whole thing made no sense to me. (Then) when I got there it made a lot of sense. As this thing continues to grow and people will get more famous. Fame isn't easy to deal with. Harder for all the fighters are all the cling-ons. I can't police every fighter. As soon as something goes wrong I'm there and I'll help them."

Rampage was very popular in Japan when fighting for PrideFC, but that is a bit different than being the poster boy for the number one MMA organization in America. The process of becoming the best in an individual sport is arduous, but the pressure of staying at the top is almost unbearable. It takes focus to deal with new-found fame and I truly feel that Rampage lost it all after being defeated. I never pictured Quinton to be in the predicament he is in now, but I hope that he has a support system that will help him recover and recapture championship status once again.

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