"There's no doubt the guy's a roller coaster, you know, but when ‘Rampage' Jackson is on, there's nobody funnier, there's no better press conference to be at. When he's serious about mixed martial arts and trains hard he's an exciting fighter to watch. You know, I don't know what's going on in his head right now, but his legacy will be there's no doubt the guy's an MMA icon, you know, the fights that he's fought, the legend that he's beat, the things that he's done. You know, whatever he's got going on in his head he needs to figure out and whatever place is best for him, I'm happy for him."
-- Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) President Dana White tells Inside MMA about the legacy former light heavyweight champion Quinton Jackson (32-10) will leave behind after the final fight on his current contract with the organization tonight (Jan. 26, 2013) against Glover Teixeira at UFC on FOX 6: "Johnson vs. Dodson." Jackson burst onto to the UFC scene in 2007, defeating Chuck Liddell for the light heavyweight title in just his second fight inside the Octagon. From there, "Rampage" went on to fight the likes of Dan Henderson, Forrest Griffin, Wanderlei Silva, Rashad Evans Lyoto Machida and Jon Jones over the course of his tenure with the company. It was only up until the last year that Jackson became disgruntled with the UFC brass, saying White's criticisms of his last performance, a decision loss to Ryan Bader at UFC 144 in February 2012, were "the straw that broke the camel's back" and his main reason for leaving the UFC. As White echoed above, he wants "Rampage" to go where his employers can make him happy. While the feeling certainly isn't mutual, the UFC boss seemingly has no outstanding issues with Jackson, giving the 34-year-old props for his accomplishments in the sport and wishing him all the best going forward.
For all the latest "Johnson vs. Dodson" news and notes click here.
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