For a guy who complained about having to fight too many wrestlers, Quinton Jackson‘s new deal may raise some eyebrows. This new deal guarantees Rampage will be seeing even more wrestlers. The first fighter ever to hold UFC and PRIDE championship belts simultaneously has his eyes fixed on new gold.
Rampage addressed his new contract earlier yesterday in a media conference call. Much like the contract of King Mo Lawal, the new deal includes split appearances between Bellator MMA and TNA Wrestling.
While Rampage and Bellator have yet to determine the dynamics of his first fight (potentially at heavyweight), fans have been talking about a specific matchup for years. The fighting styles and preferences of King Mo and Rampage are intriguingly similar.
Both of these wrestlers prefer to stand in front of their opponents and let their hands determine the outcome of a fight. Both warriors have acquired their fair share of scalps in the MMA world. Both boxing brawlers are also coming off losses.
King Mo faces UFC vet Seth Petruzelli June 19th in Oklahoma. With a win, a fight between King Mo and the Bellator newcomer could be one of the easiest fights in history to promote. When this potential fight was mentioned to Rampage during the conference today, he chuckled. In a nutshell his response was: “At first I wanted to knock him out, now I get along with him as long as I only see him in small doses, maybe instead of fighting each other we’ll form a tag team in TNA. “
Many moons have passed since Rampage displayed any other arts beyond boxing. The last three Jackson fights have been frustratingly similar. Each ended in defeat. Although this additional TNA contract appears to many to be an overwhelming distraction for a fighter, for Quinton Jackson fans it fancies a glimmer of hope.
Crazed Rampage fans from the days of old, have already begun making sacrifices to the fight gods that the crossover work load between both promotions will resurrect power bombs and suplexes of the past. Whether the TNA gig turns into anything serious or not, Rampage will be forced into new training styles and techniques. He’ll be submerged into a world of grappling, slamming, and submissions. Perhaps the howling monster that power bombed Ricardo Arona into unconsciousness will go bump in the night once more.
~ For the pro wrastlin loyals ~
Since King Mo and Rampage have little and no ring experience, it’s unlikely we’ll see them partake in any actual matches anytime soon. Just so the hopes of two fighters gone rogue aren’t dashed while reading this article, I offer this: some of the biggest superstars have come from humble beginnings as s member of a tag team.
Maybe the “Kings of Rampage” could generate a little pop from the crowd. Maybe the new TNA guys could help bring us back to the attitude era or the days of the N.W.O. Or maybe they’ll just get down to business and bang it out in the Bellator cage.