World Fighting Alliance Rampage Jackson Win Over Matt Lindland
Saturday, August 5th, 2006
World Fighting Alliance MMA Rampage Jackson win over Matt Lindland. The Los Angeles Forum hosted about 8,000 people, I saw Jason “Mayhem” Miller choke his opponent into submission, then show love to his followers (he dubs them “Mayhem Monkeys”) by shouting: “Woo-WOO!” I saw a Dutch man with a Spanish nickname — Bas “El Guapo” Rutten. “El Guapo” means handsome, and when the bald-headed Rutten was asked where he ranks among the fighters, he said: “The best-looking one, that’s for sure.”
Finally, in Quinton “Rampage” Jackson’s split decision victory over Matt Lindland in Saturday night’s main event, I saw one of the most amazing feats of strength I’ve seen in sports. With Lindland trying to choke him into submission, Jackson was somehow able to get to his feet and toss Lindland off. When asked in the ring if he’d be down for a rematch, Jackson said: “As long as I get paid. Cha-ching!”
As Jackson explained, “A lot of people in my sport are crazy. You’ve got to be crazy to get locked in a cage.”
Among the faces in the crowd: Shaquille O’Neal and Bruce Willis. O’Neal, in town to fulfill his duties as a reserve member of the Los Angeles Port Police, said he was in his hotel room when he heard about the World Fighting Alliance event and decided to come over. O’Neal likes to consider himself a martial arts expert, well versed in his own discipline of Shaq Fu, but he said you won’t find him in the ring.
If you’ve heard of mixed martial arts — in which everything short of eye-gouging, rabbit punches and kicks to the groin are legal — you’re probably familiar with UFC Ultimate Fighting Championship, which pulled an almost $3-million gate and $24-million pay-per-view haul for an event at Staples Center in May and is selling out the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. One sign that mixed martial arts is gaining legitimacy is that one of the most familiar faces in boxing, Marc Ratner, whom you might remember from the Mike Tyson hearings, left his job as executive director of the Nevada Athletic Commission to become Ultimate Fighting Challenge vice president of government and regulatory affairs.
Mandalay Bay Casino proposes The Place Las Vegas condos is seen on Monday.
Great Mall of Las Vegas with Las Vegas condos, 1.6 million-square-foot, planned for the Centennial Hills area in northwest Las Vegas is designed as a “hybrid” mall with both outdoor and indoor retail components, architect Howard Perlman said.
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) held its 20th, August 2nd, land sale since the creation of the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act. The Bureau of Land Management sold 27 acres of land in nine parcels receiving just over $11 million.