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It is well known by just about all MMA fans now that Quinton Jackson has been formally charged with one felony count of evading while driving recklessly and one felony count of evading a peace officer and driving against traffic, along with three misdemeanor charges. Although the legal process will take a long time to progress, it seems like the long awaited UFC return of Quinton Jackson will not take as long to come to fruition.
It is rumored now that Quinton Jackson could return to the UFC at UFC 91 in November, which takes place in Portland, Oregon. Although there was going a possible opponent for Quinton Jackson in Wanderlei Silva, the bout seems unlikely as Wanderlei Silva has twice defeated Quinton Jackson before in the now defunct PRIDE organization.
The real question seems to be, is it a smart move for both the UFC and Quinton Jackson to have him return to the UFC so soon after Quinton Jackson’s arrest and legal issues? I’m not stating that Quinton Jackson should never compete in MMA again, but I do think he should take a somewhat lengthy absence from the sport to let things blow over.
For example, during his fanatical driving that lead to his arrest and substantial legal problems, Quinton Jackson made contact with another car that was being driven by a pregnant woman. A short time after the incident, the woman in question miscarried and it was initially thought that the actions of Quinton Jackson lead to the miscarriage, although it was later reported by various MMA news sites that the miscarriage wasn’t a result of Quinton Jackson’s antics.
However, even with that being said, with some fans and other outside personalities, Quinton Jackson’s illegal activities could still be the cause of the woman’s miscarriage in their minds. That potential situation could lead to ignorant fans blasting Quinton Jackson at MMA events and even protest by certain groups at the events itself.
Lets also say that Quinton Jackson strings together a few key victories in the UFC and eventually wins the UFC Light Heavyweight Title a second time. If his legal situation does put him in prison, then the UFC will have to deal with the fact that their UFC Light Heavyweight Champion and one of the companies biggest stars in behind bars in a prison cell.
While his return fight would probably draw a massive buy rate, ala Mike Tyson’s boxing return after prison, the UFC would still have to deal with Quinton Jackson being gone for a lengthy period of time. Also, if Quinton Jackson does return to the UFC after serving his potential prison sentence, both the UFC and Quinton Jackson will have to deal with the potential public backlash.
Currently, the UFC has stood by the side of their former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, but things may possibly change down the road depending on the legal ramifications of it all. UFC President Dana White recently issued a statement based on a potential UFC return, stating "if he was doing drugs, if he had been drunk, if he had gone out there and done what he did because he was pissed off at someone, that would be a completely different story. But he was ill. And in this company, we support our friends and anyone who works for us when they're ill and have problems. He was ill, the incident occurred, and now he's fine.”
There is a lot ahead for both Quinton Jackson and the UFC with the legal ramifications of Quinton Jackson’s antics, but his inevitable return to the octagon will definitely be a debatable situation that will be looked at for a long time to come.
You can contact David Tees at bigtees360@yahoo.com
