Before Chael Sonnen and Conor McGregor shot to fame, taking UFC to places never imagined before, there was Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson. He was a personality who could captivate the masses, and could walk the talk to bring in heavy numbers. Unfortunately, Jackson’s mic skills at that time were shunned, silencing the fighter from talking trash, as he was just “told to calm down.” Reflecting on the same, the PRIDE, UFC, and Bellator veteran revealed his envious side, jealous of McGregor’s privilege.
The 45-year-old who is ‘Conor’s biggest fan’, got candid when the conversation on ‘Jaxxon’ Podcast shifted towards the Irish fighter. Recalling how the management put on the muzzle, ‘Rampage’ said,
“I’m a bit jealous of Conor(McGregor) because the stuff that he’s doing is the stuff that I wanted to do and I was told, I’m not going to say who told me but I was told to calm down. Like, in my interviews, don’t talk about this and don’t talk about that and then I see Conor coming and he’s talking about saying the same stuff that I was told not to say.”
Jackson stated that he felt sad after watching Conor McGregor become overly popular with his trash talking. As a matter of fact, Jackson was one of the biggest names in PRIDE FC, the biggest MMA promotion back in the day when the sport was spreading its wings.
According to multiple sources, Japanese fans loved the fighter’s antics and his laid-back attitude. His ability to carry himself in the community, interacting with fans, and his backstage interviews are iconic even to this day.
Despite all that, the management and the higher-ups lacked the farsightedness to utilize the fighter’s outlandish personality, and potential to the fullest. Hardcore fans can certainly relate to this, as the difference is evident when one compares the fighter’s aura in PRIDE and UFC. After all, who can forget his hilarious program when he deemed himself as “Conor McNi***r?”
“Call me Conor McNi***r” – Throwback to Jackson’s hilarious dig at the UFC
‘Rampage’ was a fan magnet, garnering a huge following wherever he went. His chuckle-worthy backstage interviews with Ariel Helwani drew the fans closer to him and his honest and down-to-earth personality was the icing on the cake.
A few years back, the fighter sat down with the former UFC heavyweight and podcaster, Brendan Schaub, where he took a sharp dig at UFC, mentioning McGregor. He said,
“I was doing all that stuff. Then I was told, ‘Oh you can’t do that stuff, stay away from this. Stop humping reporters.’ I look back and I’m like man, I was the first Conor McGregor. I was Conor McNi**er! Conor McNi**er! Call me Conor McNi**er!”
Hearing the fighter calling himself that, Schaub couldn’t hold in his laughter as he burst out laughing. Truly, Jackson was doing what McGregor and Sonnen did later. Being a showman, an entertainer who could carry massive events on his shoulders as fans would line up just to catch the American.
