UFC Releases Statement Regarding Jackson Injunction

The UFC has released a statement today via UFC,com regarding the decision from the NJ Superior Court yesterday.  The UFC brass said the following:

UFC has been advised of the New Jersey state court's ruling in the matter between Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Bellator MMA.  The UFC organization was suprised about the ruling because Mr. Jackson represented to UFC on multiple occasions that he was free to negotiate and contract with UFC. The UFC organization is also surprised that Bellator sat on its alleged rights for months before taking action.

UFC understands that Mr. Jackson is considering an emergency appeal, and UFC is also considering action to protect its rights and minimize damages regarding this matter. UFC 186 in Montreal, Canada will proceed as planned and UFC is currently evaluating its fight card options.

So from this statement I am inferring that the UFC trusted Jackson's word, and now they are paying for it.  Also the UFC was surprised by Bellator's decision to wait so long on its alleged rights.  Even I, a second year law student with very little comprehension of the law, saw this coming.  It was obvious that Bellator MMA, one of the UFC's competitor's would try to damage their competitor monetarily by attempting to bar the UFC from using one of its biggest pay-per-view draws.  This strategy is nothing new to the UFC because it itself used the binding power of its own contracts to prevent former UFC fighter Wanderlei Silva from jumping ship to Bellator with one fight left on his contract.  The UFC also began to scoop its former talent back into the organization as Bellator was trying to use former name fighters to build its brand.

Although cards are always subject to change due to many unforseen circumstances.  The PPV is surely going to not be as successful as it could have been with Jackson on the card.  Not to mention the fact that one of the most anticipated rematches between the Bantamweight Champion T.J. Dillishaw and the man who lost the belt, Renan Barao, which would have also been a huge draw for the Montreal card.

Although the card, has been so radically changed, the past has shown the audience that sometimes the most unknown fighters can put on a fantastic show for the crowd.  Let's just hope that enough people tune in if that is indeed the case.

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