LAS VEGAS (CP) - Quinton (Rampage) Jackson upset Chuck (The Iceman) Liddell to win the UFC light-heavyweight title Saturday night at UFC 71, dethroning the champion with a hard right to the chin in the first round.
Liddell toppled and Jackson jumped in to throw a couple of punches for good measure before referee (Big) John McCarthy stepped in at 1:53 of the first round to protect the fallen champion. Only a few punches were thrown before the one that tagged Liddell and at one point Jackson, who had been stalking the champion, raised his hands as if to ask what was going on.
The two traded blows and then Jackson nailed Liddell.
''I didn't expect Chuck to go down like that but bam, it was destiny,'' said Jackson, holding onto the championship belt at the post-fight news conference
''I made a mistake and got caught,'' said Liddell, the reigning rock star of mixed martial arts and the face of the UFC.
The three previous UFC cards also featured upsets with heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia, welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre of Montreal and Croatian heavyweight Mirko (Cro Cop) Filipovic all losing.
Jackson defeated Liddell by TKO in November 2003 at a Pride Fighting Championships show in Tokyo. Liddell went on to win his next seven fights, avenging previous losses to Randy Couture and Jeremy Horn along the way. But Jackson remains his bogeyman.
Liddell fell to 20-4, while Jackson improved to 27-6.
Asked whether he was hurt by the punch to the jaw or the blows that followed, Liddell drew laughs when he said dryly: ''I think I got hurt when I fell. That's my guess.''
Jackson, 28, entered the MGM Grand Garden Arena wearing his trademark rumble chain, howling like a wolf. But the crowd roar was reserved for the 37-year-old Liddell who was received like a rock star.
Jackson just waited in the ring, ready to do business. He was booed when introduced in the ring.
After the fight, Pride star Dan Henderson entered the ring to challenge Jackson.
Liddell said after he planned to continue fighting, with UFC president Dana White saying Brazilian Wanderlei Silva would be his likely next opponent.
''I still love to fight. Nothing's changed. So yeah, I'll keep training and fighting. All stuff like this makes me want to do is get back in the gym and train more. I was in great shape for this fight and I was healthy. I made a mistake. I'll be back.''
The card drew a sellout of 14,728 and a live gate of US$4.3 million,
Earlier, light-heavyweight Houston Alexander upset Keith (The Dean of Mean) Jardine, crumpling the favourite with a series of hammer-like blows to the head. The slugfest ended via knockout after just 48 seconds, with Alexander smashing Jardine with an uppercut that sent his mouthpiece flying.
Jardine was a 4-1 favourite, coming off an impressive win over Forrest Griffin at UFC 66. Alexander was an unknown quantity coming into his UFC debut, a hard body with a 6-1 record and a reputation for heavy hands. The man known as The Assassin quickly showed why Saturday.
''That's real punching power right there, baby,'' Alexander said as he watched a replay of the beating on the big screen after the fight.
A dazed Jardine fell to 12-4-1.
In the co-main event, Karo (The Heat) Parisyan and Josh Burkman traded blows in an entertaining welterweight contest. Parisyan, whose background is in judo, showed good striking power and accuracy, wearing Burkman down en route to a unanimous decision.
Burkman was game, however, slamming Parisyan to the canvas in the third, only to see his opponent get up and send him flying with a judo throw.
''I just came in and brought the heat on Josh,'' said Parisyan, who made a plea for a title shot after the fight before literally singing the praises of his judo throws.
Canadian middleweight Kalib Starnes defeated Chris (The Crippler) Leben by unanimous decision. The 32-year-old from Surrey, B.C., used a strong third round to win a back-and-forth bout, raising his record to 10-2-1. Leben fell to 16-4 with his third loss in his last four outings.
''I've got nothing but respect for Chris. He's got a huge heart. I would have given him the nod to win this fight myself,'' Starnes said after the bout. ''That was funner than hell,'' said Leben, who was favoured by the bookies going into the bout.
Their bout was chosen fight of the night.
Terry Martin beat Toronto-born, Seattle-based middleweight Ivan Salaverry, who appeared hurt when he was slammed into the canvas on his shoulder. The fight was declared a TKO at 2:04 of the first round.
Unbeaten Brazilian Thiago Silva won his UFC debut when James (The Sandman) Irvine injured his knee at 1:06 of the first round and was unable to continue.
After a fast and furious beginning, Irvine was taken down by the Brazilian with his knee caught in an unnatural position. The crowd booed as Silva improved his record to 10-0.
Light-heavyweight Sean Salmon, knocked out by a Rashad Evans kick to the head last time out, had another bad day at the office when he was choked out by Alan Belcher after just 53 seconds. As the former Ohio State wrestler tried to take Belcher down, Belcher jumped up and attached himself to Salmon's head like a clam. Salmon tried to slam himself free, but Belcher held on the guillotine choke tight and Salmon tapped out.
In other undercard action, light-heavyweight Wilson Gouveia made short work of Carmelo Marrero, winning by guillotine choke at 3:06 of the first round. Gouveia ran his UFC win streak to three, using slashing leg kicks to punish Marrero before choking him out.
Lightweight Din Thomas submitted Jeremy Stephens via armbar at 2:44 of the second round. Stephens argued afterwards he hadn't tapped out, but the armbar was on tight.
''He probably didn't tap but I was going to break his arm and take it home with me,'' said Thomas.