Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (32-10) has been out-spoken on the UFC and their matchmaking of him and his recent opponents, but the former light heavyweight champion will get a much-wanted fight against Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (20-6) for his final fight in the Octagon.
UFC president Dana White announced the decision on UFC Tonight, just a few weeks after Jackson’s lackluster defeat against Ultimate Fighter winner Ryan Bader at UFC 144.
Before fighting Bader, Jackson suffered a knee injury that kept him from getting in his best shape during training.
His lack of training and conditioning showed before and during the fight. After coming in over-weight, Jackson was easily out-wrestled for three rounds before losing a unanimous decision in front of a favorable Japanese crowd.
Following the fight, Jackson took to twitter to give his position on not wanting to fight in the UFC anymore. White tweeted that he had one fight left and had to take that bout before he was allowed to leave.
The loss to Bader was his second loss back-to-back with the other coming against reigning champion Jon “Bones” Jones at UFC 135. Many fans began questioning where his motivation was after the loss, but the 33-year-old called out “Shogun” for a rematch.
Rua defeated Jackson in brutal fashion at Pride Total Elimination 2005. The Brazilian muay-thai specialist went on to win the tournament before becoming a UFC champion himself in 2010. Losses against Jones and Dan Henderson have Rua also looking for redemption in the 205 pound division.
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