When is Wandy gonna fight again? his last fight was so short you figure he would be able to get back at er right away. I saw on mmajunkie someone says he said he was gonna fight in Decembers big card but you gotta figure theres gotta be a fight sooner.

I give up.

Dusty Rhodes?


*****************************

"I'm a limousine ridin', jet flyin', kiss stealin', wheelin' dealin' son of a gun. WHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!"

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writ...kson/index.html
On July 15, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, the former UFC light heavyweight champion, lived up to his nickname. But not in a positive light.

After treating the 55 Freeway near Newport Beach, Calif., as a demolition derby, crashing into multiple cars with his raised Ford truck (which had his image emblazoned on the side), Jackson soon found himself behind prison bars.

"I was very scared for him," said a source close to Jackson who asked not to be identified.

Rampage's seismic shift from an idolized mixed martial artist began after he relinquished his title on points to Forrest Griffin UFC 86 on July 5. The decision to fire Juanito Ibarra, his trainer, manager and occasionally spiritual mentor, came shortly thereafter. A lack of food and sleep compounded unsettling behavior, and TMZ photos of Jackson face down in the street at the rear of his Bigfoot-inspired truck -- its left front tire shredded -- documented the result of a dangerous chase with police

Word of Jackson's arrest spread quickly, and within hours, Ultimate Fighting Championship President Dana White flew in from Las Vegas with $25,000 cash in hand. Finding a bail bondsman, Ibarra, who has ignored repeated attempts for comment since the incident, also appeared ready to bail Rampage out of jail.

Upon Jackson's release, the plan was to make the switch from a Costa Mesa jail cell to a psychiatric hospital bed. He refused help, and no one was going to convince him otherwise. The only place he was headed was home.

Rampage demanded silence when he wasn't offering words of faith. He spoke of a "wolf in sheep's clothing" and people aligned with the devil.

"Mentally he wasn't there," said the source. "It was almost as if he was possessed. He heard voices. He thought he was a God."

Talk amongst people in the house turned to the need for medical help. At first, they tried convincing Rampage to head for the hospital. That failed, tempers flared and police, thankfully, intervened. Several hours later, the fighter was under psychiatric hold.

"He went very easy" with police, said the source.

Three days later, rested and nourished, Rampage was reunited with friends.

"He would still make comments that were slightly weird," said Jackson's longtime associate. "You could tell that he wasn't all the way there, but each day you could tell he was better."

Against lawyers' advice, Jackson has gone out several times. Fan requests for autographs at a local mall have been happily fulfilled. His only other trips are to outpatient treatment, which he attends daily.

"He knows what he went through," said the source. "He knew he had an emotional breakdown that led to a mental breakdown. Not eating and not sleeping kind of helped with that."

In 2004, Jackson experienced a similar incident when he claimed he was touched by Jesus in a dream, scaring him enough to bolt from his apartment with his son D'Angelo in tow. That night he was born again.

Jackson, a Memphis native, was hardly a modest man. With his MMA success, family and friends wondered how he was going to deal with a life that now demanded giving so much to something other than himself.

In reality, the answer could have applied to D'Angelo, born from a relationship during his wrestling days at Lassen Community College in Northern California. And his faith.

The pressure to live an evangelical life weighed heavy. Jackson became celibate and focused his mental and physical energy on training for his Oct. 31, 2004 fight against Wanderlei Silva, the PRIDE 205-pound champion who had previously caved in Jackson's head with over 20 consecutive knees roughly a year prior.

While the first month of balancing his new-found faith with everyday life was a cakewalk, the same could not be said for the second month. After reading on the Internet that fasting would keep the devil away, Jackson abstained from food for three days, ingesting only water and keeping details of his diet secretive.

What Jackson didn't realize was his fast had depleted his body and virtually killed any chance of defeating Silva. An inspired opening round gave way to fatigue in the second for Jackson, while Silva, not needing any kind of edge to begin with, brutally beat Rampage until he was unconscious and lay motionless between ropes.

But the loss in the ring did nothing to quell Rampage's relationship with the higher power. Rather, news that his father, who had abandoned him when he was 10 years old and was also born again, provided additional proof that everything happens for a reason. The loss to Silva was, therefore, easier to deal with, and the backdrop for Jackson's future relationship with Ibarra slowly unfolded.

In talking with Jackson about leading his promising career, Ibarra preached his faith as if he were leading a congregation. His gospel-like tune continued to play throughout their time together, as each training camp featured religious themes were displayed prominently around the gym. Ibarra's "son" believed in himself again, and pieces appeared to fall into place when Jackson defeated Chuck Liddell for a second time May of last year.

The victory, Rampage would tell me in a rambling late-night call from Ireland a month later, was already decided.

"Ya'll don't see how it was just perfect timing?" he asked. "Ya'll don't see that it was written? Ya'll can't see that that was planned? That that was destiny? Ya'll don't see that cause ya'll don't have the eyes that I have. You don't know what God stored in me. I'm God's street soldier. No matter what happens I will always be God's street soldier, and I always know he's going to take care of me. And everything's going to be OK."

Everything, save the pact between Jackson and Ibarra. With defeat as the impetus, Jackson responded to rough terrain by relieving the trainer of his duties, though "bottom line, somehow, someway it all involves money," said the fighter's friend.

As an Aug. 15 court date approaches for the 30-year-old father of four, a search for a new representation is underway. And, though he is only two weeks removed from an incident that allegedly sent pedestrians scurrying for their lives, the UFC is said to be interested in a November return for Rampage with a third fight against Silva.

His appearance in the cage will depend primarily on his mental state. But, as Jackson says himself, everything happens for a reason.

Ok guys, I for one am not happy with my results in the last two UFC's. Granted I can blame variance, bad decisions, etc. But at the end of the day, a loss is a loss. So......here are the current lines for the three major fights. Plese share input if you have a strong opinion.

Btw, not just who you pick, but why.

UFC 87 Lightweights - Ultimate Fighting Championships - Target Center, Minneapolis, MN Both must fight for action. Singles Only. Max $500
Kenny Florian
-155

Roger Huerta
+125


UFC 87 Heavyweights - Ultimate Fighting Championships - Target Center, Minneapolis, MN Both must fight for action. Singles Only. Max $500
Brock Lesnar
-270

Heath Herring
+210


UFC 87 Welterweights - Ultimate Fighting Championships - Target Center, Minneapolis, MN Both must fight for action. Singles Only. Max $500
Georges St. Pierre
-340

Jon Fitch
+260

Rampage is obv having serious mental issues - would a state athletic commission not shut down any fight that comes up before he undergoes some serious testing?

huerta, lesner, st. pierre



thats what I was thinking. not to mention any legal things like not being able to leave the state or something. I mean I hope for the best for the guy but I don't think getting in the ring again right away is going to be good at all for him.

Why Huerta, Lesner, and St. Pierre?

I like the price on Herring, I don't think he's that big of a 'dog - and I'd bet the whole roll on GSP at pretty much any price.

I have a "feeling."

oh ok, I'll be serious for a minute.

huerta's more of a guess, but I've been more impressed with him all around than I have florian. plus I just don't like florian for some reason.

lesner because he's just so god damn big that if he really gets some training and uses his talent, I just don't see him being beat easily. this is dependent on him spending lots of time training submission avoidance because I'm sure that's what herring will be looking for.


and gsp, I mean, come on.

Steve

I like Huerta as well simply because of the line. I think that fight is pretty even in my book...so if I can get a good pirce on 1 of teh 2 fighters I would take it.

I would avoid the Lesner line on both sides. I think we don't know enough about Brock yet to justify betting him at the price. I don't like Herring all that much either, so even getting a good price would still have me pass.

I like GSP as well but that's a ton of wood to lay. That being said I can't see Fitch winning this fight in any way, shape, or form.

I got GSP at -260 but am not sure about the current line. I bet Florian becuase I think he's going to be able to pick apart Huerta with his kickboxing (I'm a big Dellagrotte fan aka sucker). Huerta has a chin as we saw in the Garcia fight, but I'm not sure he's going to be handling Florian picking his spots, and may get frustrated. Don't have a strong enough opinion to bet the Lesnar fight yet, but if I had to pick one way I'd pick Brock. The reason I haven't pulled the trigger on Brock is because although Mir is world class in jits, that heel hook was right there, and if Lesnar makes a dumb mistake like that, Heath will catch it, and is tough enough to sustain a some of the GNP Mir might not have. I'm no expert though, and would love to hear more of your guys's opinions

I would and will bet money on GSP and Lesnar. GSP because there is not one thing that Fitch brings to the table that GSP isnt better or at least on par with. Lesnar because he is freaky strong and big and will ground and pound Herring out in the first(hopefully he has added some elbows to his gnp). The Huerta/Florian fight is to close to call imo so might just pick the dog. I would just stick to GSP and Lesnar though.

I'm a big Florian fan, but I think he may have met his match here. Huerta is going to be able to keep the intensity up for 3 full rounds. I don't see Florian KO'ing him and Huerta is pretty slippery on the ground. Barring a fight ending cut, I see Huerta winning a decision.

I would take Herring simply because there is no way Lesnar holds that big of advantage over someone as experienced as Herring. If Herring can get through the first round I think Lesnar is going to get pooped and is either going to make a mistake or just get whooped on. Herring has a bunch of submissions in his arsenal and all it is going to take is one mistake by Lesnar.

I simply don't see how GSP loses this fight. Fitch isn't going to KO him and he sure as hell isn't going to out-grapple GSP even though Ftich is one of the stronger MMA wrestlers at 185. However, Fitch has a way of taking his opponent out of their game plan and imposing his will on them. GSP is just a whole other beast though.

If I had any insight into GSP's camp and his mindset I would consider rolling it on GSP and not even worrying about the other fights.

imo, given so much time between fights, i.e. unlike a Basketball game where you jsut saw them play, it's tough to gauge the motivation, temperment, condition, etc. I find myself wanting, for example, to know between Lesnar and Herring, who is the most motivated? I see reasons for both. Heath, probably figures he won't get a title shot anytime soon, while Lesnar probably figures he at least has an opportunity. Are they both set financially?

Lesnar should be just fine, but I don't see why Herring won't get a shot. Beating Kongo and Lesnar would be great momentum to put himself in line after Werdum, especially in such a shallow division. I would say winner of this fight fights the loser of Mir/Nog sometimes next year, and if Lesnar/Herring wins they should be next.

because he's 0-3 vs Nog. The fact he did kick Nog down would be a pos in his favor though

I think they can promote that fight. 'Heath Herring made the huge mistake by not finishing Nogueira in their first fight. Now the title is on the line.' If the division was deeper I would agree, but after Werdum I don't know what else there is.

FYP

Man that uppercut elbow of Anderson's in Jdrury's sig is so nasty.

I tend to agree with this line of thinking. Just wanted to get everyone's input.

Did Frank Mir disappear at some point and I missed it?

Isn't it Mir/Nog at the end of the year, Werdum gets next if he wins at 90, then who? I think Herring could throw his name in there with legit credibility if he wins this.

Cain, Sean, and Lesner may all play a role in the picture

If Herring wins I'm saying Heath would be there. The others just seem too green to me. If Herring wins I think he could be one fight away from a shot, would be enough to motivate me.

Okay, I want to go over the three headline fights for the next UFC.

Lesnar vs Herring. I honstly don't feel like I know enough about either fighter in this one. It seems like dominant wrestlers are really hard to submit, and I'm not using the word "really" lightly. The fact that Mir submitted Brock is kind of a passing thought. I have no clue if Mir would have weathered that storm of punches that Brock was delivering. Obviously I agree that as this goes into later rounds Herring should have the edge for sure. I can't see Brock wanting to stand. So now I have to wonder what kind of takedown defense Herring has against this type of wrestler.

Does anyone on the forum know a lot about Herring? Or have links to his fights in Pride? Or the O'Brian fight?

GSP vs Ftich. I feel that everything that Fitch does, GSP does better. If they both bring their A game, GSP wins without a doubt.

Florian vs Huerta. No clue how you can pick a favorite here, but the books seem to have. I orginally thought that Heurta was going to be the favorite. I like Florian and his camp a lot. This should be a war. I won't be surprised if either one of them wins. Pretty sure I'm going with Huerta unless something drastic changes my mind.

mmalinker.com has some Herring fights including the O'Brian fight.

Since nobody has any love for the WEC, tonight at 9pm, three belts on the line. Carlos Condit, Brian Stann and the Lightweight belt, Jamie Varner, I think. Condit's a stud, I think. VS channel, 603 on the dish.

yeah, it's nice to have some more fights for free, but these just aren't good matchups. Condit is a stud and really needs to face better competition (not his fault). He should walk through Miura with very little trouble. Stann is pretty small for 205, but he is a beast and has shown no fear so far. I look for him to come out and demolish Cantwell just like he did the first time around. Out of the three I think Varner may have the toughest time with his opponent, but I would not be shocked to see him finish it inside three minutes. Marcus Hicks is a pretty slippery dood, but seems to be exploitable on the feet.

I think the best two fights may be the undercard fights that will be shown on TV. Bowles/Page should be some fireworks. It may not go 60 seconds though. Grispi doesn't waste much time in his fights. Nine fights, one loss, and total combined fight time of 10:05. I will be pretty shocked if Micah Miller isn't able to test Grispi's cardio in this one.

already set the DVR yesterday.

************************************

Brock easily takes down Herring.
It's keeping him down and finishing that is unknown.
I see a high chance of a controversial stoppage as Herring looks to be taking a ton of punishment.
Can Herring keep his cool and not get flustered or demoralized, and find oportunites in a scramble.
I don't see his hands/legs being fast enough to make enoug differnce in ikely short stand up sessions


Wait for the line to move in the Florian fight and then put a bet on Ken, imo.
Both guys have ridiculous heart. I think Kenny has been in with better competition.
Huerta is a bit wild and I think Ken's technique will find opportunities
Keny has better ground/submission and control

imo, obv.


GSP didn't finih Kos. Same camp
I give Fitch a 40% chance. RNC
His length, stength, standup, and wrestling should make it closer than most think, imo.

Plus gosh damn he's HUNGRY. Give him the mental edge
Bout time for GSP to take a fight off

I suggest you record the program after, just in case.

Already taken care of
Set to record 1hr extra.
For now, gotta sit thru Design Star

yeah, uh... you might want to turn in your MMA Pre-Fight Analysis License.

I felt the Condit fight was just two people that couldnt finish. It was awful to see them go back and forth and it end in what appeared a very very weak knee. Stann looked like the belt went to his head and he didnt even train, he was flat, punches were weak, defence was weak, and cardio was very weak. Now the few fights prior were pretty good and gave what the fans wanted to see. Having this free is really opening this sport to people that would not normally watch this type of stuff and opening up the fan base for sure.

Urijah is going to walk through Brown and its going to be quick. He walks around at or within pounds of weight all the time and always trains hard. I think Pulver was the closest to actually challenge Urijah and he couldnt win so I think Brown is just going to be another win.

you'd be surprised what athletic commissions will allow. Hell, there were athletic commissions that were willing to host evander holyfield fights





Steve, Herring is a very veteren fighter and likes having exciting fights. He is a talented fighter, but he's just not at the high end level, think of him as a guy that people have to fight to get to that next level.


the thing with GSP, is we really don't know yet if he's able to bring his A game 9 out of 10 matches as the champion like Hughes did. Obviously at the age of 27 there is a long time ahead of him, but if he doesn't pay attention, fitch can hurt him. I think with the price that's being laid that its a no play

god I bet against Condit, at +550 .....aksjdhfalsdh .....Anyone think the ref was standing them up WAY too fast when Miura was on top? It seemed like any time he'd pause for a breather he'd get stood up even though he was generally working very well from inside the guard. Also even though he was dead tired when he got the weak knee to the face, I don't think he was knocked out, and I don't think the ref would have stopped the fight with 20 seconds to go in the fourth if Condit was in Miura's spot. The way Miura was coming back from ridiculous situations, I think they should let him go till he taps or he's limp. He impressed me with his throws and his ability to get out of mount and armbars though, and I love the price I got on him given how the fight went.

So for next saturday, I think I'm betting Herring, whoever the dog is in the Huerta fight, and Fitch if I can get him at +300 or better. Does that sound good or bad? I haven't been doing too well in bets since the BJ fight.

I'm going to "try" and get GSP and Lesnar at -250. I can see value in those.

Gonna take Huerta, and I assume he will be in the +120-130 range.

Your pre-fight analysis was right on the money...thanks for putting it out there.

Going 4 for 5 on the main card kinda sucks doesn't it?

<blogpost> Former UFC light-heavyweight champ Quinton "Rampage" Jackson's recent reckless driving arrest was a source of great hilarity at the time, what with all the sidewalk- and median-driving in a monster truck adorned with the visage of Rampage himself. But it's like I always say: it's all fun and games until someone's unborn child dies. Sadly, one of the victims of Rampage's rampage lost the healthy fetus she was carrying, and Jackson may likely face both criminal charges and a civil suit. </blogpost>

<article>Holli Griggs, 38, lost a baby boy as a result of the crash, and her healthy pregnancy ended as a result of the drunken driving crash caused by fighter Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, her fiancee [Bill Krebs] told the Daily Pilot newspaper... Krebs and Griggs are considering legal action, but "no amount of money will bring back my son," Krebs told the Daily Pilot...

The Orange County District Attorney's office said it is evaluating the medical complications and evaluating whether to charge Jackson in connection with the fetus's death. California law allows a person to be charged with murder if he or she exhibits an "abandoned and malignant heart" that results in a malicious death of an unborn child. </article>

<blogpost> I'm no legal expert, but I'm pretty sure that translates to "Rampage is ****ed." People tend to be less friendly to you if you've been charged with fetal homicide. It's like being accused of kitten rape. Crimes against cute things are terrible for PR. </blogpost>

heh.
You just seemed so emphatic, guess I shoulda kept the emoticon so you'd know I was breaking balls.
Yeah, I didn't know enough to analize this.
Actually, that pretty much goes for all fights.

I put an opininion out there for the upcoming fights


I didn't bet. No more roll.

Wonder what the details are as far as did he side swipe her car? Was it emotional trauma that lead to the death? How connected are the events?

That sucks

I'm not sure of the actual accident, but read that at the time of the accident she lost a lot of amniotic fluid which was very detrimental to and eventually killed her fetus. I heard that California doesn't have any sort of fetus clause, therefore he would be charged with some sort of manslaughter/homicide, which sounds awful to me.

Especially in light of the fact she could have aborted it with no charge if it were young enough.

( ok, that's not appropriate. But it does raise some questions if he's charged with manslaughter or worse )

Safe to say he's out of the UFC? Fan support may tail off a tad.

The only thing in Rampages favor is no DUI it seems to be all mental which will aid his criminal case, but as far as his civil either way he will be paying out.

Yeah, my bad....I shouldn't have taken it the way I did.

I have never claimed to be a fight expert, but I have an opinion about everything. This thread has what, 6 or 7 contributing members? I don't mind tossing out my somewhat uninformed opinions, if for nothing else to to get someone who knows more than me or has differing thoughts to express them. The trick is actually getting them to explain why they disagree. I.e: See Copernicus in any political thread I post in.


That is the first I have heard about Rampage being DUI. If that's the case I hope he gets the book thrown at him. Where did that article come from? If the other posters on that website are half as good as those two you quoted, it sounds like an enjoyable site to peruse.

I hear what you are saying, but if he gets off criminal charges because of his mental state, wouldn't it be hard to find him guilty in a civil suit too? I know the legal system in the US is kinda weird that way, but that seems kind of retarded.

Compare it to the OJ case where he was found not guilty in a criminal case, but still forced to pay a lot in a civil case brought by the family of Ron Goldman.

The burden of proof is much, much lower in a civil trial. Based on what's out there, that his reckless driving led to the death of the fetus, seems like a slam dunk to me.

One things for sure even if Rampage avoids jail he is gonna be broke.

Yeah, I guess the OJ case put things in perspective a bit. His sanity was never in question though, as it was clear that he had bought himself out of the criminal charges. You would think that it should be handled somewhat different.

Tito signs with Affliction
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writ...ex.html?eref=T1

Allegedly makes him the fighest paid fighter in mma so +1.5 mill a fight. I sure hope Affliction has outs in this contract because I think Babalu beats him based on Tito's performance over the last few years. If he does win maybe a Fedor fight down the line???
I am sure with the weight Ortiz cuts there close in size but I cant see him making it out of the first 2 minutes.