The father of an MMA fighter who let loose on a wrestler in viral footage has spoken out about the controversy.
MMA fighter Raja Jackson, the son of Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson, was filmed at an independent wrestling event pummelling a professional wrestler into the mat.
Footage of the fight, which took place at a Los Angeles KnokX Pro Wrestling event, circulated social media, leading to people to call out the amount of punches thrown at Stuart Smith, aka Syko Stu, in the ring.
The clip shows 25-year-old Jackson slamming Syko Stu over his head before throwing him to the mat and punching him repeatedly as he appeared to lie unconscious.
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Soon after the punches began, other wrestlers hopped into the ring and stopped Jackson from continuing his rampage.
While Fightful reporter Sean Ross Sapp said the fight between Jackson and Smith had been planned, the level of violence had not been.
The journalist wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter that it was ‘planned’, however Jackson and Syko Stu had not ‘planned to do that kind of damage’.
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He added that the wrestler was ‘rushed to the hospital with serious injuries’ following the end of the attack.
The LAPD have now confirmed to the New York Times they are investigating the incident but would not comment further.
One of the wrestlers who intervened, Douglas Malo, told USA Today that Skyo Stu was awake and could speak in a August 24 update, but had lost 'a lot of teeth' and also suffered broken bones in his face.
Why did Raja Jackson attack Syko Stu?
Another video circulated social media which showed what may have spurred the punches.
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It shows the former US army veteran hitting Jackson on the side of the head with something that appears to be a can of sorts, with the liquid spraying out after making contact with his head.
Raja was allegedly told to give Smith 'his receipt' (wrestling terminology for payback), and was heard saying on his livestream: "As long as I get my lick back, I'm straight. They told me to hit him and just leave, someone will pull me off of him and we'll leave. I'm telling you I'm gonna hit him as many times as I can, watch."
Raja Jackson's father Rampage Jackson responds
In light of the controversy, Rampage Jackson, the father of Jackson and former UFC fighter has spoken out about the incident.
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Rampage, who was born Quinton Randi Jackson is a former mixed martial artist, actor, kickboxer, and professional wrestler, with years of experience in the ring and cage.
He shared his response was to ‘clear up the misinformation about my son Raja’ in light of the backlash he was receiving after the clip circulated the internet.
While he shared that Stu is ‘awake and stable’, he went on to mention the confrontation between the two fighters before the event.
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He said: “Raja was unexpectedly hit in the side of the head by him moments before Smith’s match, Raja was told that he could get his ‘payback’ in the ring, I thought it was apart of the show.”
Calling it ‘bad judgement’ and ‘a work that went wrong’, Rampage shared that he believes Jackson had no ‘business’ entering the ring with Stu, given that he is an MMA fighter and not a wrestler.
A 'work' is something that is staged or scripted in the wrestling world.
He also claimed his son ‘suffered a concussion from sparring only days ago and had no business doing anything remotely close to physical contact’.
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“I don’t condone my son’s actions AT ALL!” he went on.
While he said, as a father, he is ‘deeply concerned with his health’, he’s also concerned about the ‘well being of Mr. Smith’, adding: “That being said I’m very upset that any of this happened, but my main concern now is that Mr. Smith will make a speedy recovery. I apologize on his behalf and to KICK for the situation.”
Some people online were not happy with the response, claiming he was making excuses for his son’s behavior.
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One person wrote: “Your son threw 22 haymakers at an unconscious man like a total lunatic he needs locking up.”
Another said: “Bro wtf you talking about ‘Raja is a MMA fighter not a pro wrestler’ LOOOOOOL your son didn’t know the difference between a real MMA fight and a show?
“Imagine a civilized person who doesn't see the difference and hits someone unconscious…”
Others defended Jackson, stating the video confrontation before the fight was reason enough for the unplanned violence.
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Someone claimed: “I think we all understand why he did it, anyone would have reacted the same way but we need to help him release that anger in healthier ways.”
KnokX Pro calls out Raja Jackson's 'irresponsible act of violence'
In a statement posted to social media, KnokX Pro Wrestling Academy apologized to fans and said their main priority was the well being of Syko Stu.
They said: "First and foremost our thoughts and prayers are with our brother Mr. Stuart Smith (Syko Stu) as he remains a priority and we are monitoring his well being.
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"What was supposed to be a planned and agreed upon wrestling spot, turned into a selfish, irresponsible act of violence against Mr. Smith. This egregious act is reprehensible and never should have occurred.
"In the 17 years of operation of KnokX Pro Wrestling Academy, there has never been anything as heinous take place such as this and we apologize to our patrons and fans."
LADbible Group previously contacted Raja Jackson and Kick for a comment.
Topics: Wrestling, UFC, Sport, Social Media, Twitter, Health, US News
Britt Jones