Bellator MMA president Scott Coker unsure of Rampage Jackson’s promotional future

Quinton “Rampage” Jackson may not have won his rematch with Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal last night (Fri., Mar. 31, 2017) at Bellator 175, but the former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) king looked good enough to warrant more in-cage appearances. Even at 38 years of age, Jackson can still mix it up quite nicely. That said, Bellator MMA president Scott Coker doesn’t know if “Rampage” will be mixing it up inside the Bellator cage in the future or forced to live out his current UFC contract.

“That’s the confusing part of this relationship,” said Coker during the Bellator 175 post-fight press conference. “I know this is our last fight with Rampage Jackson, I currently don’t even know what his status is over there [UFC]. I’ve heard rumors that he has four fights left over there.”

If that’s the case, Jackson won’t be able to sign another contract with Bellator until he lives out his agreement with UFC. But that’s assuming UFC would actually want Jackson back. His contract certainly isn’t cheap and he’s an aging veteran far removed from his prime. However, UFC’s new management is driven by star power and “Rampage” can certainly deliver on that.

“So I think he’s got to go finish his obligations, and then I don’t know if he’s a free agent after that or what his situation is,” added Coker. “But at the end of the day he guy is a legend – he’s done so much. I followed him back in the Pride days, before that, in the King of the Cage days when he used to fight for King of the Cage. I’m happy to have him fight for us. You guys saw what happened today, three years ago, when he fought [Satoshi] Ishii. He’s definitely in the fourth quarter of his career, but the people love him. The fans love him. I thought he put on a hell of a fight tonight.”

Wherever Jackson ends up competing, it’s safe to assume he’ll never get back into position to contend for a title. Climbing UFC’s light heavyweight division is certainly out of the question and Bellator seems to put Jackson in winning scenarios. Stacking him up against a Phil Davis or Ryan Bader isn’t going to bode well for the power puncher.

Still, “Rampage” is a fighter capable of headlining shows and bringing in solid numbers for Bellator and Spike TV. We’ll have to wait and see how this all plays out.

Quinton “Rampage” Jackson may not have won his rematch with Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal last night (Fri., Mar. 31, 2017) at Bellator 175, but the former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) king looked good enough to warrant more in-cage appearances. Even at 38 years of age, Jackson can still mix it up quite nicely. That said, Bellator MMA president Scott Coker doesn’t know if “Rampage” will be mixing it up inside the Bellator cage in the future or forced to live out his current UFC contract.

“That’s the confusing part of this relationship,” said Coker during the Bellator 175 post-fight press conference. “I know this is our last fight with Rampage Jackson, I currently don’t even know what his status is over there [UFC]. I’ve heard rumors that he has four fights left over there.”

If that’s the case, Jackson won’t be able to sign another contract with Bellator until he lives out his agreement with UFC. But that’s assuming UFC would actually want Jackson back. His contract certainly isn’t cheap and he’s an aging veteran far removed from his prime. However, UFC’s new management is driven by star power and “Rampage” can certainly deliver on that.

“So I think he’s got to go finish his obligations, and then I don’t know if he’s a free agent after that or what his situation is,” added Coker. “But at the end of the day he guy is a legend – he’s done so much. I followed him back in the Pride days, before that, in the King of the Cage days when he used to fight for King of the Cage. I’m happy to have him fight for us. You guys saw what happened today, three years ago, when he fought [Satoshi] Ishii. He’s definitely in the fourth quarter of his career, but the people love him. The fans love him. I thought he put on a hell of a fight tonight.”

Wherever Jackson ends up competing, it’s safe to assume he’ll never get back into position to contend for a title. Climbing UFC’s light heavyweight division is certainly out of the question and Bellator seems to put Jackson in winning scenarios. Stacking him up against a Phil Davis or Ryan Bader isn’t going to bode well for the power puncher.

Still, “Rampage” is a fighter capable of headlining shows and bringing in solid numbers for Bellator and Spike TV. We’ll have to wait and see how this all plays out.