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The son of former UFC champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson was heavily criticized following an incident at a pro wrestling show over the weekend.
Raja Jackson went into the ring to beat down pro wrestler Syko Stu during KnokX Pro’s KnokXperience event in California on Saturday night. The incident, streamed live on Kick, appeared to show Jackson slam Stu onto the mat and punch him more than 20 times before he was ripped off of him by fellow wrestlers.
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It appeared Stu was left unconscious in the middle of the ring. The moment stoked controversy on social media.
“Rampage” Jackson released a statement on X.
Quinton “Rampage” Jackson punches Fabio Maldonado in their UFC catchweight bout during the UFC 186 event at the Bell Centre on April 25, 2015, in Montreal. (Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
“I want to clear up the misinformation about my son Raja. I’ve been confirmed that the wrestler ( Stewart Smith aka Syko Stu) is awake and stable. 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,” he wrote. “It was bad judgement, and a work that went wrong.
“Raja is a MMA fighter not a pro wrestler and had no business involved in an event like this. I don’t condone my son’s actions AT ALL! He suffered a concussion from sparring only days ago and had no business doing anything remotely close to physical contact. As a father, im deeply concerned with his health AND the well being of Mr. Smith. 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.”
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A general view of a wrestling ring in Mexico. (Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
KnokX Pro condemned the incident in a post on Facebook.
“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,” the organization said. “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.”
WWE star Rusev was among those who reacted on social media.
Syko Stu is a U.S. Army veteran and used pro wrestling to get back into civilian life. He’s also been open about suffering from PTSD.
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Raja Jackson has yet to speak on the incident. His father was a pro wrestler briefly for Total Nonstop Action (TNA).
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