'Rampage' Jackson clarifies why he regrets ever getting into MMA

CHICAGO- When it comes to voicing his opinion on a topic, you can expect Quinton “Rampage” Jackson to tell you how he really feels. But when the narrative isn’t to his liking, then he gets upset at the media for not accurately portraying exactly what he meant.

During an interview earlier this week to promote his Bellator 175 main event bout on Friday against Muhammad “King Mo” Lawal, Jackson was asked his biggest regret about mixed martial arts. He surprised fight fans by saying he wished he’d never gotten into the sport.

At the pre-fight news conference on Wednesday, Jackson clarified his comments and blamed the reporter for the reaction the story has received.

“Man, half the time when you do interviews, you get negative people in the world who want to spin words and get clickbait, or just get people to listen to their interviews. It’s hard being in the public eye when you just keep it real,” Jackson said. “The guy asked me, on the spot, what was my biggest regret about doing MMA, and I thought about my family. I left everything back in Memphis and I moved to California. I left everything. My family, my car, my job, everything, and I left and moved to California by myself.

“My little sister was 8 when I left, and I was very close to my little sister. I helped raise her. I used to change her Pampers, help her with schoolwork, take her to school, do all of that stuff. And now she’s a grown woman. I put her through college and everything, and she’s working and stuff, and I don’t know my sister anymore. I don’t know my family. So I just kept it real. The only thing I said, I wish I would’ve stayed home with my family. I would’ve been close to them.

So, I just wish I would’ve stayed home in Memphis and been with my family, the people who like me.”

But the reporter clearly isn’t to blame here. All Jackson had to do was clarify the comments he made on Wednesday to ESPN and this is a non-issue. Instead, Jackson did what many athletes tend to do when a situation like this occurs and blamed the reporter for asking the question.