Police: Jackson harmed woman

Former light heavyweight Ultimate Fighting Championship title-holder Quinton “Rampage” Jackson injured a Huntington Beach woman and may have injured her unborn child when he drove down along the 55 freeway median, authorities and the woman said Wednesday.

Holli Griggs, 38, was driving her 2007 Cadillac Escalade in the left lane on the southbound 55 freeway just south of Bay Street when Jackson’s gray-and-green monster truck sideswiped her as it continued down the freeway at 45 mph, California Highway Patrol officer Jennifer Hink said. The freeway turns into Newport Boulevard just south of there and is typically clogged with traffic at about the time of the accident, 1:30 p.m.

Jackson could face felony charges of a hit and run because Griggs was taken to the hospital for minor injuries, Hink said. In an e-mail sent to the Daily Pilot, Griggs said she and her unborn baby, 16 and a half weeks along, were injured but was not sure to what extent.

Griggs said Jackson was acting “violent and reckless” and “had no regard for my life or anyone else’s for that matter.”

Authorities say Jackson also sideswiped the silver 2003 Mercedes behind Griggs in traffic. That driver was not injured, Hink said.

Minutes after the hit and run, police spotted Jackson’s truck on Newport Boulevard with one flat tire weaving in and out of traffic while Jackson talked on the phone, police said.

When a Costa Mesa traffic officer tried to pull him over unaware of the hit and run back on the freeway, Jackson didn’t stop, struck another car and headed to the Balboa Peninsula, Lt. Paul Dondero said. He was eventually caught and booked on suspicion of evading police, reckless driving and a hit and run.

Officers did not give Jackson a field sobriety test because he did not appear to be under the influence of any alcohol or drugs, Sgt. Bryan Glass said.

Jackson was taken to Costa Mesa jail then transported to county jail, but was deemed medically unfit and sent back, Sgt. Zack Hoferitza said. It’s been widely reported that UFC President Dana White posted Jackson’s $25,000 bail late Tuesday, but UFC officials declined to comment.

“This was pretty shocking. It just seemed out of character for him,” said Karen Santaniello, owner of No Limits Mixed Martial Arts and Fitness gym in Irvine, where Jackson trained early in his career. Jackson was known as a hard worker with a good sense of humor who avoided drugs or heavy drinking, she said. The only thing that seemed to affect him, she said, were losses.

“I think he was harder on himself. It was very difficult to him because he felt like he had let everyone down,” she said.

According to one of Jackson’s sponsor’s websites, Throwdown.com, Throwdown staff members were with Jackson Tuesday morning only hours before his arrest. They said they were meeting his family, checking out his truck and watching with him, for the first time, his upset loss to Forrest Griffin on July 5, costing him the light heavyweight title. In a video interview on the site, Jackson seemed humble about the loss and credited Griffin’s game plan for the win.

JOSEPH SERNA may be reached at (714) 966-4619 or at joseph.serna@latimes.com.