Rampage Jackson tries to regain UFC title against Jon Jones
The well-diversified skills of 24-year-old Jon Jones have made him the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s youngest champion.
In preparing for his first light-heavyweight title defense Saturday at Denver’s Pepsi Center, Jones (13-1, eight knockouts, three submissions) has been forced to deal with an instrument rarely used in the octagon but bothersome nonetheless:
The mouth of Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.
Jackson, 33, is Jones’ predecessor as UFC champion, and he has done as much as he can to engage the young champion in verbal warfare.
Jackson, who has acted in films, knows how to maintain a menacing glare. Jackson (32-8, 14 KOs, seven submissions) says he’s motivated to recapture his title by being “the first guy to beat Jon.” Jones’ defeat was a disqualification for excessively pounding an elbow to the head of a badly beaten foe, Matt Hamill.
Jackson has accused Jones of placing a spy in Jackson’s camp and claimed Jones disrespects him. He has also dismissed the acrobatic champion’s skills.
“I react the way the guy acts toward me,” Jackson told reporters recently. “When I first met Jones … he was real cocky … saying he doesn’t fight like me. … I treat him the way I treat him because I’ve got no respect for him.”
Jones said Jackson’s accusation that he paid someone to watch Jackson train is ludicrous.
“I’m aware of what I’m up against, aware of the character I’m up against,” Jones told reporters. “This is just educating me and making me a better champion.”
Jones is better than a 4-to-1 favorite to win the fight, according to Las Vegas sports books.
Said Jackson: “The kid [hasn’t] really fought anyone like me.”
The battle is a snapshot of how mixed martial arts has developed from Jackson’s peak, when he dominated foes a decade ago with heavy punches, body slams and disciplined wrestling.
By contrast, Jones is a polished college wrestler and he has trained extensively to perfect hard-to-defend kicks, back-handed punches and high-flying strikes to complement his speed and fitness.
He beat veteran champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua to take the title in March, and he is back in the ring after letting a hand injury heal.
The card Saturday also includes a welterweight fight between former champion Matt Hughes and former title contender Josh Koscheck.
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