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BENT COLUMN: Quinton Jackson and Our Priorities: Out of Line By: Jason Bent, MMATorch Columnist
Aug 7, 2008 - 12:20:48 AM
By now we all know about Quinton Jackson's adventures from last month and while this was certainly bad enough; we were told that no one was injured or harmed as a result.
This week brings us the horrible news that his misadventures may have caused a woman to have a miscarriage. In light of this announcement I have got to wonder if we as fans of MMA are losing sight of what is truly important and if our priorities are simply out of line.
Meet Holli Griggs. She is the 38 year old woman who was more than 16 weeks pregnant when her vehicle was sideswiped by Jackson's truck during the much publicized and shocking event that took place on July 15, 2008. At the time of the news just about everyone had exhaled a sigh of relief when it appeared to us that no one died or was seriously injured during the fracas and for the most part everyone in the MMA community expressed best wishes for Jackson as he dealt with whatever was the impetus behind such actions. Ask Holli Griggs if her main concern is that Jackson gets back into the octagon sooner than later and see what she has to say.
Accidents happen, but I have a really hard time accepting the fact that so many shrug their shoulders at this news and express more concern for Quinton Jackson than anyone else that was in his path that day; which is sad. Is what a man does for a living more important than life itself?
Had this been a fighter's pregnant girlfriend in a vehicle and someone who worked as a janitor at the local mall happened to be running from the police, everyone would be expressing rage and anger towards such an individual and pouring out our hearts for this fighter and his fiancée along with the death of their unborn child. For some reason we do not feel the same when it is a fighter who was the party responsible for such a tragedy.
All I have heard is that we should show love to Jackson and how we hope he gets his mind right and "gets through this" so that he can be back inside the octagon for a rematch with Griffin or perhaps faces off against Wanderlei Silva one more time in his career. I would love to see Jackson vs. Griffin one more time and I would be chomping at the bit to see either of those fights, as much as anyone else would be. Now is not the time to be concerned about Jackson in an octagon or his fighting career at all. Sorry. Some things just are not as important as we deem them to be and what an athlete does for a living should not somehow minimize all that he does wrong and grant him sympathy based on our desire to watch him in action once again.
If Quinton Jackson were a bus driver, I don't think there would be a long line of folks saying that they couldn't wait for him to get past this and get back to driving those kids to school in September. You know, because driving the bus is what he did best and it would only be fair that he could get back to his life and his profession.
Rampage is a professional fighter and one of the very best in the world in his sport and as such has amassed quite a following. I wish this had never, ever happened and I could be writing about a future UFC card that has penciled in Rampage for the main event. I just can't say that this is of utmost importance given the news that has been released this week in relation to the miscarriage. Is what Jackson does for a living more important to us than life itself and the life that he may have taken? Remember, I am not saying he in fact has taken this life; but there is more than enough to suggest that he may have in fact done so. Would we place so much importance on his career and innocence if the parties were different?
If this was YOUR fiancée on the highway and someone who was not a UFC fighter sideswiped the vehicle, would you be so concerned with that man resuming his normal life when yours was just turned upside down? How about if your grandmother was on the sidewalk when Jackson took it off-road and forced the pedestrians to flee? Would your main concern be that it is no big deal because your grandmother was unharmed and that people need to leave Rampage alone and wish for him to make a swift return to the UFC? I think not.
I am amazed by all of the comments made out there that that accuse the woman and her fiancé of being out for money because they have retained an attorney. You think she set out that day to be sideswiped by a celebrity of sorts? Just because they hired a lawyer it does not mean that they are frauds who are walking around in neck collars and imagining they struck the lottery. Also, Quinton Jackson just isn't that rich. Sorry, but while Jackson is one of the higher paid fighters, he would be low on the totem pole when compared to an NBA player who rides the bench. By no means does this mean to insinuate that the lady who was struck is a woman who makes Mother Teresa look like Lindsay Lohan, but I cannot judge her based on the fact that she hired a lawyer. When you are in an auto accident, it is wise to retain the services of a lawyer. And this does not mean you are trying to sue them for a billion dollars but rather protect yourself and are looking out for your best interests. This is no different than what anyone of us would do if we were in the same situation. I don't think any of us would take kindly to being painted as someone out for monetary gains if we were in this position.
I wish Quinton Jackson the best. I truly, truly do. May he get all the help he needs and then some as he comes to grips with whatever it is that drove him to this point. All reports suggest that Jackson was not impaired by drugs or alcohol, but at the same time I have not read anywhere that he was actually tested for any such substances. I cannot begin to get into a discussion about whether or not he was intoxicated and as such we are left to presume that, while he may not have been of sound mind, that he was of sound body and not under the influence. So I have to assume that he was in fact dealing with some issues that led him to make such judgments and put others in harm's way.
This does not let him off of the hook, though. His mental state could be one of the reasons for this to have happened but by no means is it an excuse. Would we afford the same reasoning to the average man who runs from the police, hits several vehicles and drives on the sidewalk? I feel he should be treated the same as anyone else and not better than or even worse than. I am not suggesting we throw the book at Jackson; but rather that we make sure that we aren't holding it back because of where we hold him in our hearts due to his fighting ability.
Ask Dana White if he would have ever posted bail for Tito Ortiz or Matt Lindland and see what kind of answer you will get. Dana is out to protect his company at all costs and it is the same line of thought that is keeping Randy Couture on the sidelines rather than allow him to head off to Affliction and fight Fedor on PPV. Tito is an idiot because he was of no more use to White and since Tito is considered to be past his prime it made better sense to let him fight elsewhere rather than continue to pay him $210K or more per fight. Quinton Jackson is a meal ticket for White and as such there are going to be things that Dana overlooks in regards to Rampage that would be major if relative to another fighter. Dana cannot afford to have Quinton take his star power over to Affliction or Elite XC and allow the competition to gain and edge simply because White would not tolerate such behavior. This same line of reasoning applies to every other major sport, and how teams deal with athletes who have been charged with committing crimes. The Atlanta Falcons released Michael Vick but you can guarantee that someone will look to sign him when he is released from prison; if he could possibly help the team on the field more than his presence will hurt them.
If a third string left tackle gets drunk and punches his wife, it is a sure bet that the team will invoke a conduct clause and release him without batting an eye. However, change that to a starting quarterback and the team will hold a press conference to let everyone know that they support this athlete in his time of trouble. My problem with Dana White as it relates to this incident is that he has set a precedent of taking no crap from anyone, be they fighters or direct competition. Jerry Jones of the Dallas Cowboys would not shock me if he were to bail out a player and keep a spot on the roster for that player as he was faced with some serious legal implications, but Dana White has not shown to be on that level. Dana White has purported himself and the UFC to be above such things, yet he runs to California to post bail. White's haste to punish and publicly chastise players has created a situation as he will look like nothing but a hypocrite if things get worse for Jackson, as it appears they will. How will Dana punish a fighter for wearing an un-allowed t-shirt and deem that to be more detrimental to the company than actions such as Rampage's?
Quinton Jackson should be allowed to fight again and continue his career one day if he proves himself capable of doing so. However that time does not appear to be anywhere in the near future and his fighting career should be the least of his and our worries at the present moment. Our concern should be for those harmed by the actions and for Jackson to get the help he needs to prevent such a thing from happening again. I will have no problems with Quinton Jackson walking into the octagon in the future but I will have a problem if he is allowed to simply walk away from this.
