Quinton Jackson

Quinton “Rampage” Jackson is one of Mixed Martial Arts’ most charismatic and successful fighters of all time. Quinton began his MMA career after realizing that he wanted more than a professional wrestling career. He fought for numerous organizations until he got an opportunity to fight in the Pride Fighting Championships, where he rose to prominence with a storied career. He has fought the best in the business, including Wanderlei Silva and Kazushi Sakuraba.

Jackson’s record stands at 27-6 and his only losses since 2001 have been to Wanderlei Silva and Maurico Rua, whom he had previously beaten. He is known for his devastating take down slams and brutal ground and pound. Jackson is very strong and it’s difficult for anyone to control him on the ground. His striking ability was displayed with a couple of kick-boxing bouts that he controlled from beginning to end.

After leaving Pride amid public turmoil, Jackson signed with the now-defunct World Fighting Alliance. UFC then bought out the WFC and Jackson became a UFC fighter. He beat Marvin Eastman at UFC 67, and then Chuck Liddell at UFC 71 in a first-round TKO to win the UFC Light Heavyweight Title. He next will look to defend his title at UFC 75 on September 8, 2007 in London against Dan Henderson, who is a Pride welterweight and middleweight champion.

Jackson has stated that he stayed away from the UFC for so long because Tito Ortiz is a close friend of his. He didn’t want to step in and steal Tito’s thunder, but feels that it’s time for him to mix it up now. What Jackson brings to the UFC will only be able to be measured in the future.

His combination of being both an entertaining speaker and a talented striker create a force that will help promote the UFC to heights that only Dana White can imagine. There is no fighter in the sport today that will do a better job promoting the UFC and himself in the future, and the addition of Jackson may be one of the best moves the UFC has made yet.