Quinton “Rampage” Jackson is back in the win column following his long-awaited Bellator debut. After a three-fight losing streak in the UFC, he scored an impressive knockout of Joey Beltran, beginning his time with Viacom in style.
Beltran looked to clinch with Jackson early and found success with his dirty boxing. However, Jackson opened up in the waning seconds of the first round and caught “The Mexecutioner” with a left hook square on the chin that made him crumble to the mat. Jackson continued his assault until being pulled off by the referee as the bell rang. He then signaled the fight was over, locking the result in officially as a knockout at 4:59 of Round 1.
Jackson, former champion of the UFC’s light heavyweight division, left the promotion in a huff following years of butting heads with UFC President Dana White. He recently discussed his exit from the UFC in an interview with Bleacher Report, and detailed his gripes with his long-time home.
He was originally scheduled to face fellow disgruntled former UFC champion Tito Ortiz in the headliner to Bellator‘s first pay-per-view event, Bellator 106. Ortiz was famously forced to withdraw from the bout due to a neck injury sustained just days away from the event, which bumped back the debut of “Rampage” to today.
Beltran was recently cut from the UFC following a split-decision loss to Fabio Maldonado that capped off a 0-2 (1) run with the promotion (his total UFC record sits at 3-6 (1)).
Jackson’s future with Bellator remains murky, however, as it is unclear whether he will work toward a title through the promotion’s tournament system or simply be used to provide a decent main event in random future cards.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com