UFC 96 Picks: Rampage Jackson vs Keith Jardine

I'm going with Quinton "Rampage" Jackson on this one. Rampage has shown he's susceptible to takedowns and leg kicks, but Keith "The Dean of Mean" Jardine has shown he's susceptible to getting punched really hard in the head. And that's exactly what Rampage Jackson does very well. As long as Rampage doesn't give Jardine too much room to work and establish his very awkward and twitchy rhythm, Rampage's superior boxing should overwhelm. I say either Rampage wins by TKO, or Jardine pulls out the decision by outpointing with leg kicks and peppering jabs. It pretty much depends on how aggressive and confident Rampage is, though judging by his last performance neither should be an issue.

UFC 96: Quinton Rampage Jackson vs Keith Jardine pre-fight video

Here's some pre-fight footage of Quinton Rampage Jackson and Keith Jardine talking about their upcoming fight at UFC 96: Jackson vs Jardine. Pretty typical stuff here, "can't look past my opponent", "training hard", "yadda yadda yadda." Somebody needs to come up with some new pre-fight talk. Maybe break out into song and dance. Or do a magic trick. God, how I would love for a fighter to do a magic trick during their pre-fight interview.

Check out Keith Jardine's video after the jump.

Continue Reading "UFC 96: Quinton Rampage Jackson vs Keith Jardine pre-fight video"

Dana White explains Rampage-Jardine-Evans

Wonder why Rampage Jackson is fighting Keith Jardine instead of jumping straight into a title match against Rashad Evans as many had expected? Dana White explains the whole situation in an interview with FanHouse:

When do you think we'll see Lyoto Machida again and who might his opponent be? That's a good question. That's going to depend on how the light heavyweight fights shake out in the next couple of fights. Obviously, Keith Jardine and Rampage Jackson are fighting (at UFC 96). Rampage is next in line for a title shot.

Assuming he beats Jarinde?
Yeah, Rampage was supposed to fight Rashad Evans, and Rashad wasn't ready to fight. Rashad was just coming off the Forrest Griffin fight, he was all beat up, he wanted to take some time off, so Rampage said f**k it, I want to fight anyway. Give me another fight.

Rampage wants to keep fighting and stay active, which I love. I love guys like that. That's the way Chuck Liddell was, too. Chuck didn't want to wait for anything, he just wanted to keep fighting. People respect that. I think that's why Chuck became so big.

So Lyoto is in that top tier but we'll have to see how the other fights shake out before we'll know who he's going to fight next?
Yes.

I don't see why Rampage Jackson or Keith Jardine should get a shot at Rashad Evans before Lyoto Machida. At this rate I suspect he'll finally get a shot at the light heavyweight title when he's somewhere in his 80's.