In a surprising revelation, former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson has disclosed that the UFC prevented him from securing a sponsorship deal with Reebok years before the promotion partnered with the sportswear giant themselves.
According to Jackson, he was in talks with Reebok for a lucrative deal that would have seen him represent the brand on his fight shorts and participate in commercials and promotional activities. However, the UFC intervened, citing a lack of a formal relationship with Reebok at the time.
“UFC took my Reebok deal from me,” Jackson said on a podcast. “They wanted to sponsor me. I was doing commercials for them, and they gave me an off-road shoe. We were going to do a whole big ordeal, and they wanted to be on my shorts and stuff for UFC. Dana White was like, ‘You can’t be sponsored by Reebok, we don’t have a relationship with Reebok.'”
Jackson argued that the UFC had no authority to dictate his sponsorship deals, as he was an independent contractor. He pointed out that the promotion already had business ties with one of his existing sponsors, Boost Mobile, and questioned their inconsistent stance.
Ironically, just a few years later, in December 2014, the UFC announced a lucrative apparel partnership with Reebok, effectively preventing fighters from showcasing other sponsors on their fight gear. Jackson expressed his disappointment at missing out on the opportunity, stating, “Next thing you know, the whole UFC is sponsored by Reebok. I didn’t get one cent.”
Despite the setback, Jackson remains philosophical about the situation, believing in the concept of karma. He acknowledged that while some deals may not work out, he has never been involved in shady dealings throughout his career.
“If you know me, if you ever done business with me, you know that I’ve never done a shady deal before in my life. Maybe some deals don’t work out, but it don’t work out for the both of us. And I believe in karma. And I was watching that Reebok deal play out, and it seems like it wasn’t a good deal because Reebok’s not there anymore,” Jackson added.
The UFC’s partnership with Reebok faced criticism from many fighters, including Vitor Belfort, who expressed concerns about the loss of potential sponsorship revenue. The deal eventually came to an end in 2021, with the UFC signing a new contract with Venum.
In the midst of his rocky relationship with the UFC, Jackson made the bold move of jumping ship to Bellator MMA while still under contract with the UFC. He went on to have a successful three-fight stint with Bellator before returning to the UFC for one final bout against Fabiano Maldonado in 2015. Facing legal troubles with the UFC, Jackson revealed that he paid a staggering $1.7 million (approximately $2.3 million USD) to buy out his UFC contract.
“I was like one of the only fighters to be on a contract with Bellator,” Jackson said, reflecting on his unique situation at the time.
