Rampage Jackson was a legendary figure in Japan as he competed in Pride from 2001 until 2006 as he had 19 straight fights in Japan.
With Jackson being a beloved figure in Japan, he met a member of the Yazuka Gang, who was running Japan at that time. The gang was involved in gambling, drug trafficking, and extortion and they allegedly had ties to Pride.
After some time, Rampage Jackson finally met a gang member who found out he had a Japanese kid, and the gang member gave him a unique gift.
“I had a friend out there. His name was 36 and the guy took a liking to me. He was super cool all [tattooed] up. I think he was super rich. When he found out that I had Japanese kids he said, ‘Your son needs this’. It was like a gold samurai helmet,” Jackson said on The Joe Rogan Experience.
Jackson says his ex-wife told him the gift was worth around $30,000 to $40,000.
Rampage Jackson did return to Japan for his last MMA fight back in 2019 as he suffered a first-round knockout loss to Fedor Emelinaneko.
Rampage Jackson teases boxing return
Rampage Jackson was linked to a boxing match with Shannon Briggs last month in Qatar but the fight was scratched due to some concerns the promotion was scamming them.
Although Jackson is hopeful he still can box Briggs, he doubts it will happen and instead is turning his attention to a boxing match against Rashad Evans.
“He and I are talking about doing a boxing match against each other in November,” Jackson said. “We’re trying to get that going.”
Evans has also expressed interest in the boxing match with Jackson and it does seem likely it will happen soon.
Jackson is 38-14 as a pro-MMA fighter but hasn’t fought since 2019. He is the former UFC light heavyweight champion.