He's been pumped up and billed as the biggest challenge to date for UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Chuck Liddell (20-3) since coming over from the World Fighting Alliance (WFA) late last year.
The expectations for Quinton "Rampage" Jackson are sky high. And, he hasn't even stepped inside the Octagon.
Jackson's first scheduled UFC fight is against Marvin Eastman (13-6-1) at UFC 67 on February 3. It's rematch that fans will no doubt pay to see, but one that I'm sure most feel could be a whole lot better.
The two first met at the beginning of both their careers at a King of the Cage show back in 2000. Eastman took the two-round unanimous decision and, according to Jackson, beat him up pretty good.
Six years later, the two will soon battle once again.
Here's a snip from Rampage in a GracieMag.com article on the upcoming fight:
"It will probably be a nervous fight, as I will face a guy that has already beaten me right off the bat. But in any of my fights there is always a great deal of pressure on me and I think my performance is good under these conditions."
Rampage, nervous? I didn't think that was possible.
Back in 2003, Rampage beat Liddell via technical knockout during a Pride FC tournament. It is the only unavenged loss on "Iceman's" record and a big reason the UFC purchased select assets from the WFA.
There's no doubt that a second loss to Eastman would be disastrous in the near term for Rampage and the build up to a Liddell-Rampage 2 mega fight.
For Rampage, the pressure is on to win and look good doing it.
But, it doesn't seem like Rampage ever withers under the hot spotlight.
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