Grappling wizard Demian Maia has decided to move to welterweight.Per Maia’s Twitter account:Guys, now I ll moving down to 170 pounds. Next fight I ll be a welterwheight @ufcThis is a really smart decision for Maia for several reasons.He’s already fough…
Grappling wizard Demian Maia has decided to move to welterweight.
Guys, now I ll moving down to 170 pounds. Next fight I ll be a welterwheight @ufc
This is a really smart decision for Maia for several reasons.
He’s already fought Anderson Silva for the middleweight title, and we all remember how that one went.
I’d wager that not a single person in the entire world wants to see Maia fight Silva again after the atrocity they put on way back at UFC 112 in Abu Dhabi. That fight will go down in history as one of the worst UFC pay-per-view main events of all time, and there’s zero chance Dana White will give the pair a chance to reprise that mistake.
So no, Maia has zero chance at ever getting another middleweight title shot as long as Silva is the champion, and the Spider isn’t really slowing down despite his advancing age. That’s reason enough for Maia to drop to welterweight.
And Maia isn’t really a big middleweight. Compared with other hulking middleweights in the division, Maia cuts very little to make the weight class. Making the move to 170 will be a more difficult process, but it should also give him a bit of a size advantage on everyone not named Thiago Alves. Because, you know, that guy is actually a light heavyweight.
My only request for Maia as he makes this momentous career decision? Please start using your jiu-jitsu a little bit more.
I know you want to show your newly developed striking skills, and I can respect that. But you’re still not a very good striker, while you are one of the best in the world at taking dudes to the ground and submitting them with ease.
Please start doing more of that. We’d appreciate it.
I’ll be honest. It feels strange not having a UFC event in the immediate future to write about. As much as we fans complain about the multitude of UFC events (and the resulting non-multitude of dollar bills in our bank account) it was kind of …
I’ll be honest. It feels strange not having a UFC event in the immediate future to write about. As much as we fans complain about the multitude of UFC events (and the resulting non-multitude of dollar bills in our bank account) it was kind of neat looking forward to MMA as often as you would a regular sport, like hockey or “Full Metal Jousting.”
We’re in the doldrums of the MMA news cycle, with nothing to write about but the Meisha Tate-Ronda Rousey spat (wait, wasn’t that last week? Or the week before?) and referees who hate Joe Warren’s brain cells.
Oh, and “The Ultimate Fighter.” I heard that was back on. And luckily, Dakota Cochrane, who (in)famously was outed as a gay porn actor, lost his fight to get into the house—meaning you can now watch the exploits of 16 ripped, shitless studs living in a house together and occasionally dousing each other in bodily fluid completely secure in your masculinity.
And then there’s Quentin “Rampage” Jackson. For a guy who’s seemingly on the way out (of the UFC, or MMA—take your pick) he’s been in the news an awful lot lately. The reason? Jackson is none too happy with the UFC, and he’s letting his employers know in the usual fashion: via every MMA media outlet that sticks a mic in his face.
So, for your benefit folks, I’ve compiled a list of Rampage’s grievances with the UFC. I know a lot of folks have expressed displeasure, disagreement or most commonly, confusion at some of Jackson’s remarks. I’ll admit, that was my first reaction as well.
Then, I stayed up all night fasting and pounding Red Bulls, and the picture suddenly became a whole lot clearer. Also, I now like house music for some reason. So without further ado, here’s Rampage’s case against the UFC, as best as I can fathom it.
1. “Why are you giving me wrestlers that are gonna take me down and hump me?”
This is Jackson’s latest complaint, and it makes perfect sense coming from him. He’s a devout Christian, “God’s Street Soldier” (yes, God has “Street Soldiers”—Zeus showed you can have all the fancy artillery and air support you want, but without boots on the ground, your religion’s going the way of lawnmower worship), and, thus, has no inclination to get “humped” by another man.
But more than that, Jackson is angry with UFC matchmaker Joe Silva, for making Rampage fight all these lay and prayers! The fans want to see a fight, damnit! And besides, in a division featuring Jon Jones, Rashad Evans, Ryan Bader, Phil Davis, Dan Henderson, a Karate guy with solid wrestling of his own and “Shogun” freakin’ Rua, it shouldn’t be too hard to find a non-wrestler for ol’ Quinton!
Oh, he’s facing Shogun next? Splendid. That leads us right into grievance No. 2.
2. “I WANT MY BELT BACK!!!!!”
See, while Jackson isn’t interested in facing any wrestlers, he does want to eventually get his UFC Light Heavyweight title back. This might seem like a strange contradiction, but if you think about it, it makes perfect sense.
This scenario would have Jackson facing non-wrestlers that he can easily deal with (like Keith Jardine or Forrest Griffin). He would win these fights, then move on to a rematch with Jon Jones, who would be forbidden from using his wrestling—somehow. This would allow Jackson’s picture-perfect striking to dominate Jones standing, just like it did last time.
And Bob’s your uncle, Rampage is the UFC Light Heavyweight champion once again! Or something like that. But before you crack the champagne, hold your horses, because…
3. “the ufc makes billions off us all over the world, n pay us chump change!”
This is a tweet Jackson sent out just a few days ago, and it touches on a longstanding bone of contention between him and the UFC.
Put it this way: If Jackson was as focused on the 0s in his record as he is the 0s in his paycheck, he might still be light heavyweight champion! Oh snap! Yeah, only stayed up till 3:30 AM thinking of that little beaut.
Jackson has always hated the way the “brand” comes first in the UFC and the fighters come second. Guys bust their butts off in the gym for months, go out there and put on the fight of their lives and Dana White pays them peanuts. Or in Rampage’s case, guys get in the gym only when they absolutely have to, put on a stinker, and get paid upwards of six figures.
If only it was like the glory days of Pride, where Japanese promoters tried to pay fighters to throw fights, refused to give any cut of the merchandise and booked fights on two weeks notice. Ah, the good old days.
Still following us? Well not anymore, chump, because here comes…
4. “I’ll go fight for some other show for free. I’ll prove to the fans that I’m not all about money. I’ll go fight for some other show for five dollars.”
That’s verbatim from an interview Rampage gave only yesterday. I’d like to take this moment to recap, if I can:
– Rampage is pissed at being made to fight “boring-ass wrestlers”
– But entertains notion of again wearing title in most wrestle-heavy division in MMA
– Rampage thinks the UFC doesn’t pay him enough money
– But he’s not in it for the money anyways, so…who cares?
That’s a contradiction so complete, so total, that it makes me feel high just trying to wrap my head around it. But then I realized: Jackson is a god-damned hero.
Jackson isn’t in it for the money, because he’d fight for free. We know that. So his complaints about fighter pay weren’t about him, they were about all those other poor schlubs who are grinding away at a living in the UFC. Jackson was speaking up for the little guy and railing against the unfair business practices of evil corporate giant Zuffa.
So, not only is Rampage a communist (my politics professor defined Communism as “everyone getting ‘Anderson Silva money’ even if they are not Anderson Silva”), but he should also start writing for Sherdog.com.
And now we know the only currency Rampage respects is…respect, actually. Real, deep down, true-to-your-soul, support-you-through-anything kind of respect. On a completely unrelated note, I wonder who would have played B.A. in the A-Team movie if Dana White hadn’t taken ‘Page’s phone call after this happened.
5. Jackson doesn’t need the UFC anymore
I realize I’ve been a schmuck throughout this article, and that Rampage is probably on his way to my house right now to run my butt over (and if you are, Mr. Jackson, could you please drive a pickup truck emblazoned with your name, likeness and logo to commit vehicular crime? Because, that’s just awesome). I hope no one takes what I say here to seriously.
Here’s the bottom line: Rampage doesn’t need the UFC anymore. He’s a “name” in his own right, has a prime role in a film franchise (with more opportunities likely) and can draw money and interest in any MMA organization in the world, should he so choose.
And let’s be honest: boasts aside, Rampage isn’t going to win a UFC belt again. He’s likely in the “big fights to ride out the career” phase, and there are fights to fit that bill outside the UFC. Clearly, the motivation and drive just isn’t there for Rampage to be a full-time, elite-level MMA fighter anymore.
He should go into films, take the odd big fight (I hear Ken Shamrock is available) and, to borrow his phrase, do his thang.
But for Pete’s sake, try not to be so all over the place in your interviews. After all, this is the guy who’s run the same “stanky breath” routine on opponents for over a decade—consistency on the microphone isn’t asking all that much, is it?
The Ultimate Fighter kicked off its 15th season with 16 bouts to narrow the field down to only 16 fighters. With coaches Urijah Faber and Dominic Cruz cageside this season, things could get really interesting in the Ultimate house as these fighters com…
The Ultimate Fighter kicked off its 15th season with 16 bouts to narrow the field down to only 16 fighters. With coaches Urijah Faber and Dominic Cruz cageside this season, things could get really interesting in the Ultimate house as these fighters compete for a six-figure contract.
The Ultimate Show got an exclusive interview with Jay Glazer, an NFL Insider for FOX Sports and the co-founder of MMAthletics. Glazer talked about how MMA training has become a big part of athletes’ training for the NFL and other sports.
James Wilks takes us through his move of the week. This week Wilks shows us how to get your opponent to the ground with a low-ankle grip takedown.
Ian McCall gives us his thoughts about the controversial ending to his fight with Demetrious Johnson that was improperly scored. McCall also talks about how he is preparing for the rematch.
Check out this week’s Twitter buzz regarding Rampage Jackson.
Last but not least, Bleacher Report’s top MMA contributors debate about who has the advantage in the upcoming McCall vs. Johnson rematch.
Demian Maia was last seen in action at UFC on Fox 2, where he dropped a unanimous decision to up-and-comer Chris Weidman.In that fight, Maia looked lackluster, and didn’t appear to have much to offer against Weidman. Soon after the fight, people began …
Demian Maia was last seen in action at UFC on Fox 2, where he dropped a unanimous decision to up-and-comer Chris Weidman.
In that fight, Maia looked lackluster, and didn’t appear to have much to offer against Weidman. Soon after the fight, people began to speculate as to whether or not Maia should drop to the welterweight division.
Maia himself publicly contemplated it, and he has now made it official.
On Wednesday morning, Maia tweeted and told the world that he would be dropping 15 pounds to compete in the welterweight division.
With the announcement, Maia adds more fuel to the fire in a suddenly stacked welterweight division.
With Georges St-Pierre injured and out of action for an undetermined amount of time, it seems like new contenders are emerging with every card.
Maia’s announcement immediately makes him a contender at welterweight, and arguably the best jiu jitsu specialist in the division.
There is no official opponent announced yet—only that it will be a welterweight.
Anybody up for a Maia vs. Jake Shields fight?
Tim McTiernan is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. For the latest news on everything MMA, follow him on twitter @TimMcTiernan.
Remember last week when I said that Ben Fowlkes was the best MMA writer in the game? He proved it once again with yesterday’s excellent story on the mental and physical downfall of long-time MMA veteran Gary Goodridge. It’s a poignant story, a loo…
Remember last week when I said that Ben Fowlkes was the best MMA writer in the game?
He proved it once again with yesterday’s excellent story on the mental and physical downfall of long-time MMA veteran Gary Goodridge. It’s a poignant story, a look at the day to day life of a fighter who stayed in the game long past his expiration date and is now suffering the consequences.
These days he spends most of his time in bed. He watches a lot of TV, probably ten hours a day, according to friends, and he’s more or less glued to his iPhone, which he uses as a sort of exterior memory bank. It reminds him who he needs to talk to and where he needs to be. At the same time, even the iPhone can only help him so much.
I’ve gone on trips with him and we’ll be in the hotel at night and he’ll ask me, ‘What did we do today?’ said Dorsey. I won’t give it to him right away and he’ll sit there and try to rack his brain and remember.
Much has been made about the effects of CTE (Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy) on the lives of former football players, hockey stars and professional wrestlers. The disease affects the brain of otherwise happy and healthy men and has been named as the culprit behind the suicide deaths of numerous athletes.
When their brains are examined after death, they display the same kind of brown splotches—caused by the spread of tau proteins—as much older patients with advanced cases of Alzheimer’s disease.
Goodridge is the first notable MMA athlete to have his name and condition linked to CTE, but he won’t be the last.
The sport as a whole is a much safer environment than it was during Goodridge’s heyday, and fighters generally take much less punishment in the cage or ring than guys like Goodridge or Don Frye did.
Athletic commissions have gotten much better at identifying problem areas with fighters, and they have the power to deny licenses to guys who shouldn’t be fighting any more.
And Dana White has even taken it upon himself to police the sport, as evidenced in the forced retirement of Chuck Liddell—another superstar fighter who has displayed the mumbled speech often linked with CTE or pugilistic dementia.
We can still see the dangers of cage fighting and combat sports, though.
The horrific beating Joe Warren took last Friday night at the hands of Pat Curran is a perfect example. In Warren’s case, terrible refereeing was to blame, and Warren is attempting to fight safer by moving to his natural weight of 135.
We’ll never completely rid the sport of concussions and punishment to the head. It’s a combat sport, after all, and this kind of thing is unavoidable. But we should continually strive to identify fighters like Goodridge, who shouldn’t be in the cage, guys who have taken too much punishment over the course of long careers.
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 t…
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.
Grappling wizard Demian Maia has decided to move to welterweight.
