Jackson, however, thinks he's scored an important psychological victory. He tells us: "Fighting's 90 percent mental and 10 percent physical, so hopefully he sees himself getting knocked out in the game, and so in the fight." In Jackson, the UFC has a champ that's also a genuine superstar - a larger-than-life, brash and funny showman who could out-trashtalk the biggest WWE diva, and who just happens to be the best light heavyweight on the planet. And he's also a big gamer (he's currently hooked on Ninja Gaiden II), who is relishing his videogame debut. "It's a great ego-trip - I can play with myself. Fighting is the most selfish thing on the planet - it's all about me, me, me, me."
Griffin couldn't be more different. A man of few words who does not appear to relish the interview situation, he is most definitely not a gamer: "God, no. I don't play. I'm borderline retarded... what are you gonna do?" And UFC 2009 Undisputed doesn't look like changing that. "God no, it's horrible. I'm not going to start head-hunting with videogames." Griffin's philosophy is straightforward: "Really, you're in a bar thinking: can I beat that guy up, and does he have a bigger dick than me? Those are the important things in life. You can't make your dick any bigger, so I started beating people up." Can't argue with that.