(Looks like things are about to get rough for digital Forrest.)

Rashad Evans is really excited about being in the UFC 2009 Undisputed video game.  Maybe part of it is because they released some nice little screen shots showing him getting his dominate on against Forrest Griffin, or maybe he just wanted to seem extra-enthusiastic so as not to risk a Jon Fitch-like predicament at any point in the future.

Either way, check out what Evans had to say to IGN.com about what being in the game means to him:

"I never thought I’d be in a videogame, and I’m happy about that. To be a part of the whole organization and to be a part of the videogame, that’s my immortality right there. I may die next year, or in the next couple of days or whatever, but I’ll always be in that videogame."

Whoa, take it easy.  I can understand being pretty pumped about having your mug in a video game (the closest I ever came was making a character who looked kind of almost like me in the old Pride game – he specialized in Thug Jitsu, naturally), but it does not make you immortal.  I mean, look at Danny Sullivan, of Danny Sullivan’s Indy Heat.  He’s not immortal, and it was his game!  You’re a character in the game, and even Doink the Clown can say that.

To be honest, though, the screenshots do look pretty sweet, so I can almost understand why Evans is so happy he thinks he can die now.  Check out  a couple more after the jump.  Looks like the THQ people see Forrest spending a lot of time on his back at UFC 92.

From ESPN: The Iceman discusses the hamstring injury that has sidelined him since April, and shares his thoughts on Rashad Evans, who he’ll face at UFC 88 (September 6th, Atlanta). He also says he expects to get the next light-heavyweight title shot after the fight. Sorry, buddy — Thiago’s already called dibs.

(Retired man walkin’. Props to MMA Scraps.)

Among the notable writers and fighters currently eulogizing Chuck Liddell’s career is UFC light-heavyweight champ Rashad Evans, who gave some quotes to FightHype about what the Iceman’s UFC 97 loss meant to him personally (props to BloodyElbow for the tip):

I’ll refrain from making any young lion/old lion analogies, but yes, we’ve finally seen the last gasp of the Tito/Randy/Chuck era of the UFC, and it’ll be a somber week for some MMA fans. The new generation has taken over in full force, led by fighters like Rashad Evans, Lyoto Machida, GSP, and Brock Lesnar. And maybe one of these days, Jon Jones is going to spinning-backfist Rashad Evans into a living death, and we’ll start talking about how great Sugar used to be until he started slowing down just enough for younger guys to pick him apart. It’s the circle of life. Still, this claim that Liddell was just frontin’ about working on the holes in his standup game? Well damn, dude. If you hope to hang with fighters who are more than ten years younger than you, you have to put in the work. The UFC front office doesn’t need any loafers.

Rashad Evans may be the UFC light heavyweight champ, but the title doesn’t seem to have gone to his head.  Talking with him last week he mentioned that it’s both humbling and sobering to be at a point in his career where he’s the headlining attraction on a card with legendary UFC fighters he came up watching.

“Seeing a guy like Matt Hughes, it makes me kind of wonder, how did I get to be headlining over Matt Hughes on a UFC card?  I mean, Matt Hughes?  It’s Matt Hughes, man.  It just makes you really stop and think.”

(Props to “Justinmacd” on the UG.)

When Rashad Evans was shown twisting his nipples directly before his UFC 88 fight with Chuck Liddell, we wondered if the Greg Jackson camp knew something we didn’t; after all, Evans’s teammate Georges St. Pierre did the same thing before his title defense against Jon Fitch last month. Turns out it was just a simple goof on GSP. As Evans explained to TAGG Radio:

“Georges St. Pierre was the first do it, and it’s just sort of an inside joke…Georges said it was supposed to be good luck or something, so I said, ‘Cool, alright,’” Evans said, laughing.

Good luck, huh? Never heard that one before. Can’t wait to try it out at the roulette table.

Evans also talked about the Bill Gates mugshot t-shirt that he wore during his cage-entrance, which bore no apparent sponsors, and which some assumed was viral marketing on the part of Microsoft. If Gates paid Evans to wear it, Sugar wasn’t letting on:

“[Gates] was arrested in Albuquerque, N.M. He started off Microsoft in the basement of the Bank One Building. That’s right next to the (Team Jackson) gym.”

That’s the only association right now, but the team is hopeful Gates could become more involved with Team Jackson someday.

“Maybe one day he’ll be part of my crew,” Evans joked.

Meanwhile, in an interview with MMA Weekly, Evans credited another Jackson teammate, Keith Jardine, for helping him with his strategy for the Chuck fight:

“Keith said ‘you’re gonna get his timing, and there’s a point when you’re going to see em’ coming,’” Evans said. “‘When you see it coming, get off first — don’t sit there and wait.’ And that’s what I did. As soon as he had me against the fence, you can always tell when he’s coming, so as soon as I see him make that face, I just tried to bust off first.”

(Well done, Nick the Face. If in fact that is your real name.)

The UFC sent out an email this afternoon pumping up the match-up between “bitter rivals” (sound familiar?) Rashad Evans and “Rampage” Jackson for UFC 114 on May 29. All we can say is, it’s about damn time. Their coaching stints on “The Ultimate Fighter” initially got us hyped for this bout, but then almost immediately we had to get unhyped as ‘Page ran off to make movies/announce his retirement instead of delivering on the “black-on-black crime” he promised us.

Now that it’s on again, we must begin the slow, arduous process of rehyping ourselves. This highlight video helps a little, but how about throwing down with some incendiary quotes to push us over the edge, UFC press release?

(Props: btillustration.blogspot.com)

Like a pack of vultures circling around a limping wildebeest, we’ve all been keeping a close eye lately on Jon Jones and Rashad Evans, and the circumstances that may or may not be driving a wedge through their formerly rock-solid friendship. During a conference call earlier today for UFC 128, Jones’s amiable personality hardened up for a moment when a reporter asked him — for the last time — about he and Evans potentially fighting each other in the future. Here’s what Bones had to say:

“With all due respect to you as a reporter — and I want to make it clear to all the other reporters — but I absolutely hate when people mention Rashad Evans, especially throughout this training camp. He’s a friend of mine, but I’m fighting Mauricio “Shogun”, one of the best fighters that’s been around for a long time, and for people to even be mentioning Rashad Evans right now, I think it’s ludicrous.

(Props: Fox Fight Game)

If you can get past the ill-conceived idea to interview Dana White during a point in the UFC 100 live show that is so loud you have to shout directly into his ear in order to be heard, and then capitalizing on that opportunity by asking such probing non-questions as “Congratulations!” and “Frank Mir really has nothing to lose tonight,” you’ll see a little footage of the aftermath of a Octagonside shoving match between “Rampage” Jackson and Rashad Evans.  Dana White seems all too accustomed to this stuff, which should tell us something about the way the next season of TUF is going to turn out.

These are two guys who know they are going to be paid very well to fight one another in a few months, and yet here they are tussling for free in the seats at the UFC’s biggest event, basically making a sideshow of themselves.  Either this is the most committed effort to hype a fight ever, or these guys really do hate each other.  Regardless, you gotta keep it together during an event where you’re basically a spectator/PR vehicle for the UFC.  Otherwise Dana White is not going to take you knuckleheads anywhere.

(Props: computercowboytv via FiveOunces.)

Allow us to translate for those who don’t speak jive:

Computer: Hey everybody, it’s Computer. You may remember me as the personal assistant from Three Six Mafia’s old reality show, Adventures in Hollyhood. I’m here with my friend Quinton Jackson. Quinton, would you like to say a few words?

Jackson: Hey guys, Rampage here. My friend Computer and I are from the Southern United States; you should already know what that implies. By the way, I punch people in their mouths. I know, it’s not really relevant to the conversation at hand, but I’m a little intoxicated, and it’s what I do.

(Come on, Dan — how many times did we go over the inverted-Colemura escape in training? Photo courtesy of Sherdog.)

Not only did Rashad Evans‘s $375,000 paycheck from UFC 108 eat up a hefty 36% of the event’s total disclosed payroll — $1,043,000, including end-of-night bonuses — Sugar was also the only fighter to earn six figures on Saturday night. Considering there were no other major UFC stars on the card due to The Curse of ’09, it makes sense; hopefully Evans bought at least one round at the afterparty. Full UFC 108 salary figures are below, courtesy of MMA Junkie:

Rashad Evans: $375,000 (includes $175,000 win bonus)
def. Thiago Silva: $55,000

Paul Daley: $84,200* (includes $18,000 win bonus, $50,000 Knockout of the Night bonus)
def. Dustin Hazelett: $19,800*

Sam Stout: $74,000 (includes $12,000 win bonus, $50,000 Fight of the Night bonus)
def. Joe Lauzon: $62,000 (includes $50,000 Fight of the Night bonus)

Jim Miller: $30,000 (includes $15,000 win bonus)
def. Duane "Bang" Ludwig: $12,000

Junior Dos Santos: $60,000 (includes $30,000 win bonus)
def. Gilbert Yvel: $30,000

(Rashad’s best days as a fighter may be behind him, but the man has mastered the art of walking away from fictional explosions.)

Despite what the title implies (or outright states, whatever), I don’t honestly think that Rashad Evans is making more than he is worth at this point in his UFC career. The man is a TUF winner, a former champion, and a relatively marketable draw who consistently resides in the upper-echelon of the division. That being said, when I came across the salary figures for UFC 156 and noticed that Evans had walked away from his unanimous decision loss to Antonio Rogerio Nogueira with an event high 300K, that was the first thought that entered my mind. I apologize for deceiving you and will see myself out.

But before I go, I’ll say this: The figures for UFC 156 were pretty standard, with everyone not named Chico Camus and oddly enough Ian McCall clearing five figures. I guess it’s hard to consider “Uncle Creepy” a UFC bust when the poor bastard’s making less than the average TUF alum to fight.

The full list of salaries is after the jump, along with our whimsical analysis, so check them out and let us know what you think in the comments section. Per usual, these numbers are void of any locker room bonuses, PPV cuts, training expenses, licensing fees, etc.

(Props: CRE)

Well, nobody’s calling for his head yet, but it’s clear that Dana White and Rashad Evans are more than a little disappointed by the latest chapter in the Rampage Done Lost His Mind saga. During an appearance on the Carmichael Dave Show, White claimed that his criticisms of Quinton Jackson‘s acting pursuits were only done with Jackson’s best interests in mind:

(This won’t end well for Rashad…trust us.)

Perennial UFC number-one light heavyweight contender Rashad Evans joined host Larry Pepe on Pro MMA Radio Monday prior to word coming out that Phil Davis was out as his opponent at UFC 133 and Tito Ortiz was stepping in as his replacement. During his spot on the show, Evans complained about getting gypped of his promised title shot, not once, but twice.

“I haven’t heard anything about [whether or not the winner of the fight with Davis gets the next title shot]. I don’t even want to assume something because every time I assume something it just never works out the way my assumptions go. I don’t like to assume; if it happens, it happens. I just keep going out there and fight,” he explained. “There’s a lot of guys in the 205 weight class. It’s whatever, man. I just want to fight. I’ve been out of the cage so long that I realize what a privilege it is to go out there and compete. I haven’t been out there in so long that I’m kind of missing the sport a whole lot.”

(Props: MMA30tv)

This video has been making the rounds today mostly because of the part that begins at the 4:40 mark, in which Rashad Evans describes a physical encounter he had with Quinton Jackson recently at a Las Vegas nightclub. Basically, Rashad approached his TUF 10 coaching rival to congratulate him on his win over Lyoto Machida (and also bust his balls a bit). The conversation took a left turn, which led to Rampage slapping Rashad in the face. Rashad returned the slap, and then security stepped in. End of story.

But the way Rashad sets up the story is a little strange. He says: “I seen him at XS, right? And I go up to him and give him his props for his win, y’know, he beat Machida, I beat Machida, and I was like ‘good job,’ you know. And I said ‘but you know, you kind of used a little bit of my strategy in that fight.’ [Rampage said] ‘Whatchu talkin’ ’bout?’ And I said, ‘well I mean, you were taking him down a lot, and you said that I wrestled you a lot, so, you said I was kinda weak for doing that, but then you go and do the same thing.”

Rashad, if you’re reading this, maybe this will help jog your memory…

(Yeah, that’s a dragon on his t-shirt. Go ahead and say something and get your ass whipped right here in baggage claim.)

Rashad Evans is a unique case among UFC fighters.  He’s undefeated, a former Ultimate Fighter winner, and now stands one victory away from claiming UFC gold.  And yet he’s still far from a fan favorite, despite his recent brutal knockout of Chuck Liddell and his rise through the light heavyweight ranks.

With his title shot just a few days away, Evans talks with us about dealing with the criticism, gameplanning for Forrest Griffin, and yes, even the Greg Jackson camp nipple tweak.

CagePotato.com: Thanks for talking with us, Rashad.  Now that fight night is closing in, how has your training camp been?

Training has been good.  I feel really strong and I’ve had a great camp.  I’ve had guys like James McSweeney, Georges St. Pierre, Nate Marquardt, Joey Villasenor and lots of others in here helping me.  With guys like that you can’t help but have a good training camp.

Your fight with Forrest is being billed as the explosive athlete (you), against the hard worker (Forrest).  What do you think of that characterization?

I can see how people would say that, yeah.  But I think there’s aspects of both those things in each of us.  I think I might be a little better natural athlete, but he can also be a real explosive fighter.  And it’s not like I don’t work hard, either.  I’m not going in there with any expectations of him in that regard.  He’s the champ right now, and you don’t get to be the champ if you’re not a good, explosive fighter.

By Brian J. D’Souza

While making promotional appearances at the MMA Expo and MMA Live show in London, Ontario, UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon ‘Bones’ Jones took the time for an interview. [Ed. note: We'll be posting the video later.] Speaking on a number of subjects, off-camera, the question of the authenticity of a recent racially-charged insult from Rashad Evans came up.

I took this photo of Jones’s smartphone (blacking out Evans’s number), which contradicts Rashad Evans’ earlier denial where he wrote, “Let me just state 4 the record I never made a racist statement 2 Jones. Jones creditability [sic] is gone with his fake surgery.”

Currently, Rashad Evans is expected to face Phil Davis at UFC 133; original opponent Jon Jones pulled out of the bout, citing a hand injury. Jones’s next opponent is undetermined.

UPDATE: Yes, this is real. I texted the number in the photo, asking for an interview with Rashad Evans, and Evans texted me back the info for his publicist, Jennifer Wenk. Evans is busy training, but Wenk mentioned that he would tell the entire story on ‘Inside MMA’ Friday evening. [Ed. note: Evans discussed his recent nightclub encounter with Jones, but we're not sure if he talked about the text message. Anybody DVR the episode?] Jones also confirmed himself that the image was taken from his phone.

With only one week to go until the last-resort rematch between Tito Ortiz and Rashad Evans, the hype is in full swing. Rashad made an appearance on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon last night and came off very well. During his interview he performed impressions of his mother and Randy Couture and even sang a litte impromptu karaoke.

If you were hoping for some heated trash talk about his opponent, the above video won’t suit your needs. But don’t get it twisted: Rashad may be all smiles with Jimmy Fallon but he’s still willing to “go there”. Join us after the jump to get your fix as the two fighters trash talk it up for our viewing pleasure.

(“Is this angry enough for you?”)

Zuffa has been killing it lately with the professional quality of its promos like the one they put out for the Rousey-Tate bout and the “Believe Your Eyes” recap of Jon Jones’ win over Lyoto Machida.

The most recent addition to the list is this pre-UFC 145 spot featuring Rashad Evans, titled “The Payback.” Clips like these remind me of the top-tier promos boxing fans have been spoiled with the past few years. Hopefully they keep making them to keep fans interested when there’s a lull in action like we’ve experienced the past month.

Now we know how fans of sports like hockey, baseball, football and basketball feel.

Check out the short after the jump.

(Video courtesy YouTube/nathanmarquardt)

It looks like Rashad Evans has taken a page out of number one UFC lightweight contender Gray Maynard’s training manual to get ready for his upcoming light heavyweight  championship bout with Mauricio "Shogun" Rua.