Tag: Quinton Jackson

UFC 130 was to be event in which the next five rounds of the epic duel between lightweight champion Frankie Edgar and challenger Gray Maynard took place. In terms of fighting style, both men were tailor made for one another, and the second rematch was one of the most intriguing bouts of the year.

Unfortunately, this bout was canceled due to both fighters being injured at nearly the same time. Because of this strange and unfavorable coincidence, the event’s co-main event—Quinton “Rampage” Jackson vs. Matt “The Hammer” Hamill—was bumped up to the main event slot.

Is this fight truly main event-worthy, though?

The answer is twofold and complicated.

While Rampage has historically been a draw, he is getting up there in age and has not done anything to really “wow” MMA fans in quite some time—his recent controversial decision victory over Lyoto Machida notwithstanding.

As for Hamill, his five-fight win streak is great for marketing, but does not really hold up when scrutinized. One of those “wins” is a questionable disqualification victory over current light heavyweight champion Jon Jones.

So, even if the DQ is ignored, that leaves four straight victories. That means Hamill is a contender, right?

Wrong.

Out of those four victories, two came over lackluster opponents who are no longer in the UFC, and one came over a Tito Ortiz long past his prime. The only really noteworthy victory is a head-kick knockout of Mark Muñoz at UFC 96 back in 2009.

The fight may be billed as a matchup between two perennial contenders for Jon Jones’ light heavyweight crown, but such a billing is very generous; both fighters have neither the skills nor the time (Rampage is 32 and Hamill is 34) to become a force in the division.

In that sense then, the fight is not main event-worthy. However, the UFC has grown to such a size that the main itself is not as important as the UFC brand itself.

The UFC has—arguably since UFC 72—been selling cards on brand name alone and will likely continue to do so.

Is this a sordid practice? Hardly, unless you are one who believes in “Zuffa zombies.”

The UFC usually puts on quality fights regardless of the name value of the fighters. Despite the fact that Rampage will likely never own a belt again, and Hamill will likely never own one to begin with, the card will still sell because of the brand name attached to it.

For better or for worse, any main event attached to a UFC card is main event-worthy by virtue of it being the main event of a UFC-caliber card.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC 130 was to be event in which the next five rounds of the epic duel between lightweight champion Frankie Edgar and challenger Gray Maynard took place. In terms of fighting style, both men were tailor made for one another, and the second rematch was one of the most intriguing bouts of the year.

Unfortunately, this bout was canceled due to both fighters being injured at nearly the same time. Because of this strange and unfavorable coincidence, the event’s co-main event—Quinton “Rampage” Jackson vs. Matt “The Hammer” Hamill—was bumped up to the main event slot.

Is this fight truly main event-worthy, though?

The answer is twofold and complicated.

While Rampage has historically been a draw, he is getting up there in age and has not done anything to really “wow” MMA fans in quite some time—his recent controversial decision victory over Lyoto Machida notwithstanding.

As for Hamill, his five-fight win streak is great for marketing, but does not really hold up when scrutinized. One of those “wins” is a questionable disqualification victory over current light heavyweight champion Jon Jones.

So, even if the DQ is ignored, that leaves four straight victories. That means Hamill is a contender, right?

Wrong.

Out of those four victories, two came over lackluster opponents who are no longer in the UFC, and one came over a Tito Ortiz long past his prime. The only really noteworthy victory is a head-kick knockout of Mark Muñoz at UFC 96 back in 2009.

The fight may be billed as a matchup between two perennial contenders for Jon Jones’ light heavyweight crown, but such a billing is very generous; both fighters have neither the skills nor the time (Rampage is 32 and Hamill is 34) to become a force in the division.

In that sense then, the fight is not main event-worthy. However, the UFC has grown to such a size that the main itself is not as important as the UFC brand itself.

The UFC has—arguably since UFC 72—been selling cards on brand name alone and will likely continue to do so.

Is this a sordid practice? Hardly, unless you are one who believes in “Zuffa zombies.”

The UFC usually puts on quality fights regardless of the name value of the fighters. Despite the fact that Rampage will likely never own a belt again, and Hamill will likely never own one to begin with, the card will still sell because of the brand name attached to it.

For better or for worse, any main event attached to a UFC card is main event-worthy by virtue of it being the main event of a UFC-caliber card.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com