Wonder what the haters are gonna say when Page lights up Fabio like a Christmas tree
P
Punch
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I hope Maldanado wrestle fucks him lol
The weird thing about all this chicanery over Rampage is that he hasn't looked good in a fight in years. Of all the guys not worth wasting a legal battle on, he's top of the pile. It made more sense with Alvarez because he was a young star, but Rampage isn't worth the pricetag imo. I'm guessing Bellator is going forward to prevent an exodus and because of the eyeballs his name recognition brings.
The fight with Maldonado will be an eyesore for sure.
The fight with Maldonado will be an eyesore for sure.
My feeling is that the UFC went forward with it to keep Rampage out of Bellators hands. Bellator was gaining some steam signing these older names and putting them in fun fights. If they had announced Kimbo v Rampage it would pull a decent amount of eyeballs, regardless of the state of their respective careers. You can then use that pull to put eyeballs on your real product, if you load up the card with good upcoming fighters.
Once Rampage came to the UFC they saw an opportunity to a stop to, or at least put a hold on, that kind of scenario. Since during the ensuing legal battle Rampage wouldn't be able to fight for Bellator, putting him on the shelf for an extended time when the curtains are already coming down on his career. So even if they lose the case, it was a win for the UFC. The way it has worked out is probably the best case scenario for the UFC, since they got Rampage to fight for them, and will probably still lose the case and not be lumped with an expensive rampage for the rest of his career.
In a way, it might have worked out best for Bellator as well. If they'd dumped money into a Rampage/Kimbo fight or something of the like, they would have gotten the eyeballs, but people would've been terribly turned off by the product and subsequently turned off to Bellator (much like the fight with King Mo). I think Bellator should stick with its formula of building talent in house and only very occasionally putting some legends together. Not a lot of unsigned legends left that are worth seeing. The only guy I wish they could lure back would be Ricardo Arona.
Hasnt Rampage hated every organization at one time or another.
UFC is his flavour of the month at the moment.
UFC is his flavour of the month at the moment.
I thought this was only a temporary overturning of the injunction, for this fight only. That means his Bellator contract is still in effect when this fight is over. I don't think he'll ever fight for Bellator again, but it should make for some interesting buyout negotiations down the road!