Rampage Jackson knocks out Wanderlei Silva with left hook at UFC 92

December 28, 2008

LAS VEGAS — Quinton (Rampage) Jackson knocked out Wanderlei (The Axe Murderer) Silva with one punch in the first round of a light-heavyweight grudge match at UFC 92 on Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

Silva threw a combo and was floored by the ensuing Jackson left hook to the jaw. As Montreal referee Yves Lavigne moved in to grab Jackson to stop the punishment, Jackson threw two more punches at the prone Silva for good measure before it ended three minutes 21 seconds into the bout.

“Rampage is back, baby. I ain’t going nowhere,” said Jackson.

The two mixed martial arts fighters don’t like each other and engaged in a shoving match at Friday’s weigh-in.

Silva beat Jackson twice on the Pride circuit in Japan in 2003 and 2004, brutally stopping Jackson both times with a barrage of knees. Judging from their receptions, most of the crowd wanted Silva to make it three in a row.

But Jackson had vengeance on his mind, improving his record to 29-7 with the victory. Silva dropped to 32-9-1 with one no contest.

Jackson made US$325,000, including a $100,000 win bonus, while Silva collected $200,000, according to the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

Saturday night marked the first fight for Jackson since he lost his title to Griffin at UFC 86 in July. Jackson had a meltdown days after and has charges pending over a subsequent highway chase with police. The UFC blamed the episode on delirium, brought about by a prolonged fast. Jackson isn’t talking about it.

The fight was on the undercard of the light-heavyweight title bout between champion Forrest Griffin and Rashad Evans. The “UFC 92: The Ultimate 2008″ card also featured a heavyweight matchup of interim title-holder Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Frank Mir.

Griffin’s purse was US$100,000 with a $150,000 win bonus while Evans’ was $65,000 with a matching win bonus, according to the Nevada commission.

Nogueira’s purse was $250,000 with a $150,000 win bonus, compared to $45,000 and $45,000 for Mir.

Those figures do not tell the whole financial story since the UFC does not disclose other bonuses and payments that may be in a fighter’s contract. The organization’s marquee fighters also may earn a slice of the lucrative pay-per-view take.

Earlier, French heavyweight Cheick Kongo showed a mean streak in stopping UFC newcomer Mostapha Al Turk of the first round.

Kongo (23-4-1) took a knee in the groin early on and didn’t like it. Later in the round, he returned the favour – doubling over Al Turk (6-4).

Al Turk’s fate was sealed when he appeared to get poked in the eye. He pawed at his face and Kongo nailed him several times, sending the big Brit to the canvas. Kongo carved the former pharmaceutical rep open with repeated elbows and punches until referee Steve Mazzagatti finally moved in.

Japanese middleweight Yushin (Thunder) Okami won a dull decision over Dean (The Boogeyman) Lister, taking all three rounds.

Okami had been considered the No. 1 contender in the 185-pound division and was headed for a title shot at champion Anderson Silva until breaking his hand. He last fought in March at UFC 82 when he knocked out Evan Tanner.

Okami (24-4) didn’t advance his championship cause with this performance, a dreary 15 minutes that did little for Lister’s career prospects either.

Dutch heavyweight Antoni Hardonk stopped UFC newcomer Mike (The Juggernaut) Wessel, a late injury replacement, at 2:05 of the second round. The 260-pound Wessel, whose gut belied his former job as an assistant strength and conditioning coach at the University of Arkansas, was big, game and came out strong but could not handle Hardonk’s more complete game.

Light-heavyweight Matt (The Hammer) Hamill (7-2) started off sluggishly but won by TKO at 2:19 of the second round when Reese (Riptide) Andy ran out of steam and was pummelled at the fence.

Former IFL welterweight (Bad) Brad Blackburn (14-9-1 with one no contest) won a decision over Japanese veteran Ryo (Piranha) Chonan to improve to 2-0 in the UFC. The 29-28 verdict seemed appropriate but was greeted with boos from the crowd.

UFC debutant Pat Barry showed off his kickboxing background by chopping down heavyweight Dan (The Viking) Evensen in the first round of the opening bout of the night. Barry (4-0) won when a kick buckled Evensen’s leg and the former Norwegian international hammer thrower called it quits after 2:36.

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