Rampage Jackson weighs in at 253 for rematch with King Mo, who weighed in at just 212.
Tonight, Rampage Jackson will compete in MMA for the 49th time in his legendary career, against a familiar opponent. Rampage has spent the majority of his career at light-heavyweight (205), but has on occasion stepped up to heavyweight (265 Limit). On these few occasions, the bouts have generally been at a catch weight (F. Maldonado (215), J. Beltran (210)), excluding his last fight, against Satoshi Ishii which was a heavyweight bout, and Rampage weighed in at 224.5.
Rampage has stated in the lead up to this fight that he planned to weigh in around 260, and many MMA journalists and reporters wrote him off, stating that it was just Rampage being Rampage, and that he would show up at a much lower weight. They were wrong. Rampage weighed in at 253 pounds, 41 pounds heavier than his opponent, King Mo Lawal, who weighed in at 211, not far above the light-heavyweight limit.
Cole’s Analysis: This is an interesting situation. Rampage has been a Debbie Downer recently with his interviews, and has stated that he regrets ever starting his MMA career in the first place. Rampage is one of the top fighters this sport has ever seen, but he’s also among the top talkers. Perhaps Rampage has been simply trying to sell the fight, attempting to throw King Mo off. Or perhaps after nearly 20 years and nearly 50 fights, Rampage really is just tired.
In the first fight against King Mo, Rampage seemed to struggle with the grappling of Mo, and perhaps the added weight is his attempt to fix that issue, but I have to wonder if that will be a good idea in the end. It seems logical to think that Rampage will attempt to keep this fight on the feet, and he is possibly thinking that the added weight will lead to added power, but on the flip side, it seems possible that it could also lead to cardio issues. If Mo can get Rampage down, I think he wins the fight, and Lawal could also potentially win with strikes. I’m really not sure what to expect in this one, but I will certainly tune in to see.
FRIDAY NOTEBOOK ITEMS…
•MMA Fighter vs. Boxer? Following his KO victory of Corey Anderson at Fight Night 107, Jimi Manuwa issued a call out, but it wasn’t against Jon Jones, or Daniel Cormier, or anybody in the UFC for that matter. Manuwa, instead called out…. David Haye. Haye is a notable boxer, and former Heavyweight Champion. While the challenge seemed farfetched when first mentioned by Manuwa, according to David Haye, the UFC has already contacted him about the fight and stated that it’s one that he would be willing to take. He even stated at one point that he was impressed with Manuwa’s skills and thinks he might have the ability to cross over into boxing. Sure, it’s not Conor McGregor vs. Floyd Mayweather, but it’s still a notable boxer against a notable Mixed Martial Artist, and something that would be interesting to see. As of right now, it seems like it’s mostly just talk, but Haye stating that he was contacted by the UFC at least shows that there is a little bit of smoke… and as they say, where there is smoke, there is fire.
•Ronda Rousey, new coach? News about Ronda has been scarce recently, clearly by her own design. But a bit of news on the former Women’s Bantamweight Champion has surfaced and it’s being left open to interpretation. According to Strength and Nutrition Specialist Dan Gardner, Ronda Rousey has joined his team, but that’s all he said. Let the speculation begin. Is she fighting again, or is there some truth to these Ronda Rousey/WWE Rumors?
•Mark Hunt’s New Tattoo: Not exactly a huge story here, but Mark Hunt added a new chest tattoo, and it’s pretty savage. He showed it off on Instagram. Check it out HERE. It’s worth a view, and it will certainly be an interesting sight when he returns to the Octagon for his upcoming fight with Derrick Lewis.
•Paige VanZandt on Celebrity cooking show: Paige VanZandt is doing her best to reach the mainstream consciousness, and her latest endeavor is another step in that direction. Her next opponent will not be a UFC fighter, but instead a former Pittsburg Steeler and two former Olympians, and instead of a cage, her proving ground will be a kitchen. She will be competing in an upcoming edition of The Food Network’s popular show “Chopped” where she will be competing for a chance to earn $500,000 for a charity of her choice. As of this writing, she has not stated what the charity will be.
•FloCombat recently released the card for the upcoming Submission Underground 4. The line-up has a few notable MMA veteran’s worth watching. Jake Shields will face Dillon Danis in the Main Event. Uriah Faber will face Paulo Miyao. Gilbert Burns will face John Combs
•Bisping responds to Woodley’s challenge: Woodley offered to fight Bisping recently, after Bisping complained that he would not wait forever for GSP fight. Bisping heard Woodleys offer, and his response? He stated that he didn’t want a shadowboxing match, and would wait for somebody who was willing to engage. Classic Michael Bisping, and while I don’t think these two will ever fight, the trash talking is pretty amusing.
•Bisping on GSP: In other Bisping News, he has stated that he will “take a giant shit” on GSPs plan to become a two-division champion and thwart his “plan” to hold both the Middleweight and Welterweight championships at the same time. Say what you will about Bisping, but the man entertains.
NOW CHECK OUT YESTERDAY’S UPDATE:
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