Quinton Jackson will close out the decade when he faces Fedor Emelianenko in the Bellator 237 main event at Saitama Super Arena in Japan. “Rampage” has a message to his fans:
“This is a special moment in MMA history no matter what the naysayers say,” Jackson told MMA Junkie at media day. “The guys who are never going to do anything in their lives, the never-has-beens who want to say about two old guys getting in there – the true MMA fans are going to win because there’s not going to be a loser. There’s not going to be a loser. No matter who gets their hand raised, there’s not going to be a loser because when two legends get in there, and do what they love, and put on a show, the fans win.”
Bellator holds its first show in Japan SUNDAY at 10 a.m. with a heavyweight bout between former PRIDE heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. See it LIVE at The Game. pic.twitter.com/DvWIynPXm1
— The Game Bangkok (@TheGame_BKK) December 27, 2019
“It’s been kind of hard for me to mentally prepare and get ready for this fight because you guys know how I like to knock people out, my team’s like, “Oh, you got to knock him out, you got to knock him out”, and me being a big fan of Fedor, I’m thinking that’s the last thing he needs is to get knocked out right away and stuff like that, but none of that matters because when I get in that cage, ‘Rampage’ don’t have no friends. I don’t even like that mother (expletive). Nobody likes me and I don’t like nobody, so it doesn’t matter.”
The former UFC 205-pound champ admits that Emelianenko may actually be the only worthy opponent he’s seen to date at the heavyweight.
“This is a good matchup because Fedor is the first true heavyweight that I’m ever going to face in my opinion,” Jackson said. “I don’t think I’ve ever faced a true heavyweight. I’m been fighting little-bitty guys who are faster than me and can out-wrestle me and all this and out-gameplan me, but Fedor is a true heavyweight, and I think it’s going to be a good test for me. I think he has speed, he has power and he’s not shy, and he’s good on the ground. He’s a very, very dangerous opponent, and I meet this challenge head on. I think that I do some things very well that makes this a good matchup for me against Fedor.”
