Rashard Evans Defeats Rampage Jackson In UFC 114

The long awaited Rampage Jackson vs. Rashad Evans match is now history. Rashad Evans backed up his trash talking with a win at UFC 114 over Quinton Jackson. The battle of TUF 10 coaches ended with Evans winning via unanimous decision. While the fight may not have lived up to the hype, the fight could go down as one of the most successful draws in UFC history.

Rashad Evans did a lot of talking on TUF 10 and coming into the fight. A loss would have been devastating, playing into Rampage Jackson’s claims about Rashad Evans being overrated. Other than a close scare in the third round, Rashad Evans dominated all three rounds against Rampage. Rashad Evans is hardly overrated, with wins now against three former UFC light heavyweight champions.

Rashad Evans looked to be in the best shape of his life coming into the fight. UFC fans saw a very focused and disciplined Rashad Evans on the UFC 114 Countdown. Evans Olympic style training and intense sparring obviously paid off. Regardless of how you feel about Rashad Evans, there is no denying his commitment to being the best professional athlete he can be.

The win immediately propels Rashad Evans back into the UFC light heavyweight title picture. UFC president Dana White declared that the winner of the Rampage Jackson vs. Rashad Evans fight would receive the next title shot at UFC light heavyweight champion Shogun Rua. Looking at an early timeline, I would expect the fight to be scheduled for September or October. Rashad took 4 ½ months between this fight and his last fight against Thiago Silva. A little time off is well deserved for the new number one contender.

For Rampage Jackson, it is back to the drawing board. Unlike in the past, I don’t think anyone can question Rampage Jackson’s commitment coming into the fight. He dropped a lot of weight and looked to be in the best shape of his life throughout the Countdown to UFC 114 show. Rampage will immediately begin a press tour for the A-Team movie. Rampage will be back in a big arena next Monday night when he is a Guest Host on WWE RAW.

Early estimates are that UFC 114 was a monster success. My gut feeling is that we haven’t seen the last of Rashad Evans vs. Rampage Jackson in the UFC.