Rampage Admits He Would've Retired If He Beat Jon Jones

If things went accordingly, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson planned on howling for the final time in his championship bout with Jon Jones at UFC 135.

As fate would have it, things didn't go according to plan. Rampage was beaten handily and submitted in the fourth round by the 24-year-old champion.

"Believe me, I still want to retire as champion. I want to hold the belt once more," Rampage said in an interview with Fighters Only. "I guess if I had won that Jon Jones fight and if the Japan show wasn't next, there'd have been a very good chance I would have retired already."

A former UFC light heavyweight champion, Rampage's charisma and light-hearted personality has given him life outside the UFC.

In June 2010, he made his acting debut starring alongside Hollywood heavy-hitters Liam Neeson and Bradley Cooper in The A-Team movie.

With growing Hollywood aspirations, questions began to pop up surrounding Rampage's dedication to fighting, but those were quickly put to rest after fans witnessed his incredible efforts in preparing for Jones.

It was rumored that Rampage spent $1 million on his training camp for the Jones bout. The gym even included a bedroom where he shacked up between sessions. It symbolized the sacrifice and dedication that only champions live by.

Every athlete dreams of going out on top. The thought of retirement weighed heavily on Rampage's mind in the Jones bout, but an opportunity to return to Pride FC's old stomping grounds in Japan would've been the cold splash of reality needed to snap him out of it.

"It would have been a great time to bow out, but I almost certainly would have stayed around to fight in Japan anyway, to defend the belt," Rampage said. "Then if I would have successfully defended it on this (UFC 144) show, I definitely would be retiring––and retiring a very happy man too!"

"To retire as UFC champion and to have defended the belt in Japan? Oh man, that would have been perfect."

Rampage is slated to fight Ryan Bader at UFC 144 in Saitama, Japan on February 26.

On fight night, it will be exactly six years since Rampage's last fight under the Pride banner in the Saitama Super Arena.