After a grueling 25-minute war between Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Forrest Griffin for the Light Heavy Weight title, Bruce Buffer announced to over 11,000 fight fans that Jackson had lost the decision.
The crowd responded immediately.
Some fans cheered the newly crowned champion Forrest Griffin, and others expressed very different feelings as the unmistakable sound of boos echoed around the arena.
The bottom line is that the fight was close, and depending on who you were rooting for, your score card was probably biased.
Attention immediately moved to what Jackson had to say about the controversial decision.
"Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. Forrest is tough. I respect him a lot. He works hard; he's a hard worker. Hey, whenever you step in the Octagon, there's a 50/50 chance you're going to get your a** whooped,” Jackson said with a smile.
“I ain't no stranger to getting my a** whooped. I get my a** whooped sometimes."
Although those comments, which came immediately after the fight, seemed quite jovial, Jackson was more candid about his thoughts in the post-fight press conference shortly afterward.
“Well I feel like I won the fight,” Jackson said. “You know what? I feel like if [you're] the champ, you know what I’m saying? Somebody’s got to beat the champ"
"But it was unanimous,” Jackson said with some skepticism. “I ain’t a judge.”
So what’s next for Quinton Jackson?
Rematch.
But with whom? An immediate rematch against Forrest seems to be the most popular pick amongst fight fans around the world.
However, chances to avenge other past losses against the likes of Wanderlei Silva and Shogun Rua are on the horizon. So is a potential rematch against Chuck Liddell, who is still working his way back up the UFC ladder since Jackson took his belt from him back in May of last year.
What’s important is that, no matter what decision the UFC chooses to make on Rampage's next opponent, they need to put these fights together promptly and not let another 10 months pass before we see him in the Octagon again.
Fighters who are as exciting and talented as Quinton Jackson should be fighting as much as possible.
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