THE CANADIAN PRESS
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Heading into the O2 Arena in London last month for a promotional appearance prior to UFC 95, Quinton (Rampage) Jackson was recognized by a young security guard as he walked by.
Hearing the guard call out his name, Jackson turned back to meet him. When the fighter got close, instead of shaking hands, he snatched the guard’s tuque and scampered off with a maniacal grin, putting the stolen hat on his own sizable shaven head.
As the befuddled guard tried to figure out what just happened, Jackson turned around and returned the tuque, shaking hands and making friends all round.
The scene was vintage Jackson. He’s just a big kid — with a big punch when he steps into the cage.
More recently the 30-year-old Jackson had nothing but big problems, however. It was just 7 1/2 months ago that the former UFC light-heavyweight champion was booked into Orange County Jail in California for investigation of felony evading, hit and run, and reckless driving.
Forget about his fighting career, his life seemed on hold.
Today, amazingly, Jackson seems back on track. UFC president Dana White refers to the former champion’s past legal problems as “Quinton’s episode.” And a win Saturday night over Keith (The Dean of Mean) Jardine and Jackson has been promised a fight with current champion Rashad Evans.
Jackson, 30, says whatever happens Saturday in the main event of UFC 96 (available on pay-per-view), his story has a happy ending.
“I’m already a winner, no matter what,” he said Thursday. “No matter what happens in the Octagon, I’m already a winner. I’ve already succeeded in life. A lot of my friends didn’t make it to this point. I’m happy, I praise God that I made it here. I have (four) beautiful kids. … As long as I put on exciting fights, do my best, most likely I win more than I lose, I’ve already won.”
That’s almost a speech from Jackson these days.
Outside the cage, his brush with the law has left its mark. Jackson is more businesslike and guarded these days, perhaps because his legal dossier is still open to some extent. He shows his happy-go-lucky side less often, saving it for the inner circle.
Jackson’s life unravelled after losing his title via decision to underdog Forrest Griffin on July 5 at UFC 86. He fasted for several days after the bout, consuming only energy drinks. Nothing good came of it.
According to the Orange County district attorney, Jackson was driving in Costa Mesa on July 15 in his “lifted 2008 Ford truck” when — as traffic slowed at an intersection — he drove up onto the curb and sideswiped two vehicles.
Jackson failed to stop and accelerated away from police when they pulled behind him. A bizarre chase ensued with Jackson driving the wrong way into oncoming traffic, hitting cars, driving over the curb and forcing pedestrians to scatter. Jackson, all the time talking on his cellphone, ran multiple red lights while driving on three tires and only the rim of his left front wheel before being taken into custody.
Toxicology reports showed that Jackson was not under the influence of any controlled substances. Doctors determined he was suffering from delirium.
He eventually pleaded guilty to one felony count of evading a peace officer and driving against traffic and one misdemeanour count of driving recklessly. Jackson is due to be sentenced Jan. 7, 2010.
“Based on the negotiated plea agreement, the defendant could receive up to six months in jail and probation at his sentencing,” according to the district attorney’s office. “Prior to sentencing, Jackson is required to complete 200 hours of community service, attend mental health therapy, pay restitution, and comply with other terms and conditions.”
Jackson does not discuss the incident these days. But he made changes to his entourage and has left Southern California home to train in Liverpool, England, his last two fights.
He was flanked by seven members of his new crew when he came in for the pre-fight news conference Thursday.
“He’s insulated himself and he only surrounds himself with people that care about him,” said Mike Dolce, a fellow fighter who serves as Jackson’s nutritionist and helps with his strength and conditioning. “We share a mutual bond of affection.”
“I think Quinton got rid of some dead weight after his Forrest fight,” he added. “Now he keeps a really close group of guys. We’re friends before anything. We would do all this for free, just to see our brother succeed. We love each other.”
Jackson did not have that support when he fought in Japan for Pride Fighting Championship, which even billed him as a homeless man. He recalls eating fast food and then cutting 15 pounds the day before a fight.
He left Pride for the World Fighting Alliance, which promptly folded. The UFC bought the remains of WFA, essentially to get Jackson.
Jackson was grateful to White for rescuing him then. And that bond was strengthened when the UFC boss immediately flew to his aid following his problems last July.
“I always knew Dana was a standup guy, ever since I met him, but that sealed the deal right there,” Jackson said. “Dana’s the man. Anything he needs, anything he asks me for. I’ve got his back. I had people closer to me that really didn’t even help me out one ounce.”
White says he had seen danger signs for Jackson, saying he had surrounded himself with some questionable people. But he decided he couldn’t intervene.
“It’s like when your best friend is dating a girl that you think is an absolute bitch and you don’t like her. You know what I mean?” White said. “‘He’s my best friend, he likes her, he’s with her, what am I going to do?’ That’s exactly what it’s like.
“You don’t want to say anything because then he’s going to be mad at you and then she’s made at you. It’s never a good situation. And I knew he was in that situation.”
Said Dolce: “I think part of the problem is he’s such a nice guy, such a big heart, he allowed a lot of people to be around him that wasn’t in his best interest. Now he has the right people around him. He’ll ask us What do you think about this situation or that person?’ and he gets feedback not just from one of us but from all of us. And at the end of the day, he makes the final decision.”
Jackson now says the loss to Griffin — although he still thinks he actually won the fight — was actually a good thing.
“I think that loss definitely was a blessing. It was good for me, good for everything. Because it’s very motivating when you look at yourself and you see yourself getting beat by a guy that you know you can beat. It motivates you — a lot.”
Dolce agrees.
“He did all the wrong things going into that Forrest fight and he learned those lessons, thankfully. If he won that fight with Forrest, who knows where he would be at right now, because that would have reinforced those bad habits. He would have possibly thought to himself Hey I can get by eating McDonald’s and only training once a day or so.’ That Forrest fight really showed him to be the best in the world, you have to train like it.”
Jackson (29-7) rebounded from Griffin by knocking out rival Wanderlei Silva in December at UFC 92. He still wants another shot at Griffin, but may find himself fighting for the title first.
While Jackson is more restrained these days, he remains a big kid at heart — “I’ve got video of him playing the pranks to prove it too,” Dolce says with a laugh.
After fighting, Jackson is interested in trying his hand at acting — he auditioned for the movie version of “The A-Team” for the B.A. Baracus role made famous by Mr. T and says he has had to turn down roles because of his fighting commitments. A born entertainer when he lets loose, he would be a natural in the movies,
Jackson also wants to start his own clothing line and get into video games.
“I love video games, I have a lot of ideas for video game. But the weird thing is nobody wants to listen to them. I’ve got some good video game ideas. These are games I want to play. I wish they were out there.”
