Advertisement

Rampage's Tesla, Bonuses, and the Rolling Stones Not Enough to Stay with Bellator

Rampage vs. Maldonado On for UFC 186 After Injunction Lifted

Details of Bellator's recent lawsuit asking for an injunction to stop Quinton “Rampage” Jackson from fighting at UFC 186 on April 25 emerged in a Newsday report on Wednesday. It also included quite a bit of detail from Rampage's contract with the promotion, including a number of surprising perks and stipulations.

Rampage signed a six-fight contract with Bellator in May of 2013, but only fought three of the six fights before leaving the promotion to resign with the UFC in December of 2014. He claimed that Bellator had not lived up to its end of the contract by failing to settle a contractual dispute within a requisite 45-day window.

> SEE ALSO: Bellator Sues to Block Rampage Jackson’s UFC Return

“Jackson exercises a clause in the agreement that allows for a 45-day window to satisfy any contract dispute,” said Rampage's camp in December. “Bellator MMA, failing to fulfill the requests of Jackson, was put on notice, failed to respond and eventually notified that negotiations were officially terminated.”

That was when he signed with the UFC.

Bellator's new president Scott Coker said at that time that the promotion's legal team would address the matter. It took them until now, but earlier this week filed a lawsuit in New Jersey to try and get an injunction to stop Rampage's UFC 186 bout with Fabio Maldonado and force him to honor his contract with Bellator.

“Today, Bellator MMA was compelled to go to court to stop Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson from fighting in an April 25th bout promoted by Bellator’s competitor, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC),” Bellator revealed in a statement released to MMAWeekly.com on Monday. “Jackson, who has completed only three fights of his exclusive six-fight contract with Bellator, is barred by contract from fighting for any promoter other than Bellator.

“Our lawsuit for an injunction and related relief – filed in the Chancery Division of the Superior Court in Burlington County, New Jersey – will compel Jackson to honor his contractual agreement. We look forward to having one of our MMA stars fighting for Bellator again.”

Rampage's contract promised the following, according to the Newsday report:

  • $100,000 signing bonus

  • 2013 Tesla Sport (priced at $129,603)

  • Non-PPV fight purses beginning at a minimum of $200,000 and maxing out at $300,000

  • PPV fight purses beginning at a minimum of $200,000 and maxing out at $450,000

  • $50,000 bonus if Rampage didn’t receive a specific amount in sponsorship monies

  • 30 percent of any net gate receipts over $400,000 at any Bellator event in which he fought

  • $35,000 per episode for the Spike TV reality series “Rampage 4 Real”

  • Bellator must retain a screenwriter to develop a potential feature film project specifically for Rampage

  • Bellator had to communicate with Paramount Pictures (also owned by Viacom) to develop film opportunities for Rampage

  • A red carpet appearance at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards

  • $4 for every Bellator 120 pay-per-view buy over 190,000

In addition to the items stipulated in Rampage's contract, Bellator also reportedly paid more than $250,000 for a single commercial that aired on ESPN during the NBA playoffs, paid $200,000 for the rights to a Rolling Stones song used in advertisements involving Rampage, and paid him a $200,000 bonus for his PPV fight even though the prerequisite number of buys wasn't reached to trigger a bonus.

Follow MMAWeekly.com on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram