Wanderlei Silva fires back at ‘fat, roly-poly’ Rampage following Bellator call out

Long before the entertaining feud between Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier came to be, Quinton Jackson and Wanderlei Silva had one of the best rivalries in all of mixed martial arts (MMA), which stems backs to their days competing under the now-extinct PRIDE FC banner.

“The Axe Murderer” initially knocked Jackson out on two separate occasion in 2003 and 2004 before “Rampage” got his revenge four years later at UFC 92 via first round knockout (relive it here).

”That knockout he gave me hit a lucky hand on my chin,” Silva told MMA Fighting after Jackson called him out last Monday. “And after I went down, he went there and landed another one. I hate him. I only wait for the next one to return the favor. It will be a brawl, the way people want.”

It sounds as though the feeling is mutual, as Jackson — who once held the UFC Light Heavyweight strap — told The MMA Hour that he wants the chance to even up the score, since the Brazilian is still ahead 2-1.

“I owe Wanderlei another ass whooping, I’ll tell you that,” Jackson said. “I know he’s not a heavyweight. The last time I fought him I knocked him out of the weight class. But he beat me twice. I only beat him once. I think I owe him another ass whooping.”

Jackson’s last three contests have been in the Heavyweight division, going just 1-2, including his most recent loss against Chael Sonnen in the opening round of the Bellator Heavyweight Grand Prix just last month.

And while he doesn’t completely rule out the possibility of going back down to 205 pounds, “Rampage” says it will be a monumental drop due to his current weight.

“I probably could get down to 205, but I don’t know,” Jackson said. “I’m walking around at 250, 260. That’s a big one. But like I said, Wanderlei is not a heavyweight. I probably could get down to 205 now that I’ve got my nutritionist.”

Silva, however, believes there is a marked difference between fighting at heavyweight and just being fat.

”I’m kind of big, too, with 229 pounds,” he said. “I’m training a bit stronger. He’s fat. I want to beat him up like a roly-poly toy. I’d beat him up. I hate him so much.”

Maybe they can meet in the middle?

Despite his urge to try and settle his longtime rivalry with Silva, Jackson firmly has his eyes set on the heavyweight strap, and though he is no longer in the tournament, he intends to seek out the champion once it’s complete.

“My motivation is still the heavyweight belt,” Jackson said. “Even if I’m out of the tournament, whoever wins that belt I’m gonna challenge him right away.”

Still, if anyone can pull off a fourth fight between Silva and Jackson, it’s Scott Coker and Co.