04/24/24
July 10, 2009
MMA Fighter Rampage Jackson Dry Humps Interviewer: Because it's Friday: UFC fighter Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, responding to a suggestion by reporter (and aspiring actress) Heather Nichols that they do a romantic movie together, proceeded to dry hump Nichols for an uncomfortably long amount of time as cameras rolled. "I should have thought of that," Joe Namath said when reached for comment. (Not really.)
Responding to my own summary as if I didn't write it, is there a comfortable amount of time to dry hump a stranger on camera?
posted by rcade at 03:48 PM on July 10, 2009
Jeez that made me uncomfortable just watching it. That was a little much Rampage.
posted by sgtcookzane at 05:19 PM on July 10, 2009
Schedule a follow up interview in a darkened room and quietly substitute Danica Patrick for Heather.
I'd give it a minute and a half before Rampage would be on the phone to Ace Hardware frantically trying to determine the status of his middle leg.
And he'd get an earful to go with it.
posted by beaverboard at 05:41 PM on July 10, 2009
How is that not sexual assault? And the Hollywood Gossip article is pathetic, making the whole thing into a big joke.
posted by kokaku at 06:16 PM on July 10, 2009
It wouldn't be assault because she never told him to stop. As pervy as that looks, she (and the off-screen person) treated it like a humorous bit they initiated for their show.
posted by rcade at 06:26 PM on July 10, 2009
I wasn't making a legal point so much as a moral point (as in this is not a joke and the media should stop treating it as one).
posted by kokaku at 06:28 PM on July 10, 2009
I gotta say, she didn't seem to mind at all on the video, maybe even seeming to enjoy it. She even asked the cameraman for a copy of the footage, hardly the reaction of someone who feels like they were just violated. She even started to ask him a question just before he grabbed her, and continued the question through the grab and the humping, without so much as a pause or break in her voice. Yet she was "shocked" and felt "awkward"? Sorry honey, don't buy it...
posted by MeatSaber at 08:11 PM on July 10, 2009
In Rampage's defense, he did the same thing earlier in an interview with Jim Gray.
posted by rcade at 09:57 PM on July 10, 2009
He did a similar thing in an interview in Japan.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKVeBOCPpGU
posted by Aardhart at 10:48 PM on July 10, 2009
Wow. That second incident moves this from joke that got out of hand to Jackson liking to disrespect female reporters by degrading them sexually and making them uncomfortable.
Here's how Nichols responded to the incident: "At first I was just shocked when he grabbed me, and all I could think was, "Oh my gosh, what is he doing?!" Then I tried to play along a little bit because I knew he was trying to be funny, but after about the first 5-10 seconds, it was just plain awkward. I kept thinking, "What should I do? Knee him? Keep going?" So I decided to keep asking questions, assuming he would stop if I did that."
That's a real classy ambassador for the sport, UFC.
posted by rcade at 11:26 PM on July 10, 2009
I really want to like Rampage but every once in awhile he'll pull something that's annoying or stupid or just plain indefensible. The problem for the UFC is that he's usually hilarious and a great showman so it's hard to take him away from the camera.
posted by tron7 at 01:17 AM on July 11, 2009
Somebody should have turned a fire hose on the clown. But it would have been a good time for Nichols to say, "Ok, asshole, knock it off. I'm not one of your cheap skanks."
posted by dyams at 08:33 AM on July 11, 2009
Somebody should have turned a fire hose on the clown.
Sure, just so long as it isn't me. A horny Jackson is a tad safer than a soaked angry Jackson.
I like Jackson. He's typically a very funny guy. Not here, per se, but usually.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 12:29 PM on July 11, 2009
Wow, that was seriously awkward.
But honestly? She really should have been more forceful- giggling, even nervously, is not how you stop that behavior. I hate to sound like some retrograde male, but guys like that know they can get away with those things because a) they have no conscience, and b) the women don't put up a fuss. I mean, when the guy comes in from off camera to gently suggest "Uh, dude... "- that's waaaay to far.