Jackson (left) and Lawal square off (photo via Bellator)

By FCF Staff

“Rampage” Jackson admits that his motivation to train doesn’t always match his desire to fight, but it looks like his rivalry with “King Mo” Lawal has changed that.

The former UFC light-heavyweight champ will face Lawal for a second time later this month at Bellator 175, which will take place on March 31st. The two battled for the first time back in 2014, and Jackson won a tightly contested, decision win. Before that bout, and since then, Lawal and Jackson have traded verbal shots through the media.

Recently Bellator held a media call in advance of the event, and Jackson reported the following about his motivation to face Lawal (quote via MMA Fighting):

“You guys have no idea how much ‘King Mo’ motivates me,” Jackson said. “The guy’s mouth is ridiculous, and that’s what I need. I wish more of my opponents would talk sh*t like ‘King Mo.’ Like, a lot of times when I go out there and fight, like, I’m not even motivated most times I fight. I don’t even care. I’m going to keep it real, I enjoy fighting. I love the fighting. But the training is the part that I have to get motivated for. I’m a natural fighter. I could fight any day, anybody, anywhere, I don’t care. I enjoy the fighting part. But the training is what I have to get motivated for, and ‘King Mo’ has motivated me more in this camp than I’ve been motivated in several years.

“It’s making me even love the training and stuff again, because I’m doing stuff that I haven’t done in years,” added Jackson, who also relayed during the call that he believed the bout with Lawal was at a catch-weight of 235, and not at heavyweight. “So, it’s quite the contrary of what people think — I’m very motivated for this one.”

Jackson is riding a five fight winning streak heading into the bout, while Lawal has gone 2-3 in his last five bouts.