As fans mourn the loss of everyone’s favorite Power Ranger, it’s also a time to celebrate Jason David Frank’s life. While his fame is rooted in his time as the Green Ranger, he had his share of notable moments off camera as well. Like the time he almost fought Jean-Claude Van Damme at a comic con.
Five years ago, it was a battle of the initials: JDF versus JCVD. The two were guests at the La Mole Comic Con in Mexico City when they had an altercation.
The short version of the story, according to Frank via FloCombat, was that he had challenged his former idol to a fight years prior when JCVD apparently talked about joining the professional MMA ranks. Then at the 2017 comic con, the two finally met face-to-face, and the sparks flew. While no punches were thrown, it made for great headlines and plenty of wagers between the two actors’ fans.
JCVD isn’t the only celebrity Frank has wanted to meet in the octagon. When Phil Brooks — aka professional wrestler C.M. Punk — left the world of sports entertainment to try his hand at combat sports, JDF was ready to knuckle up. As fans know, Frank is well-versed in mixed martial arts, having mastered several fighting techniques over decades of training. He even competed in amateur MMA bouts, scoring a 4-0 record in his short-lived fighting stint. Brooks would decline Frank’s challenge, but we’ll always wonder what would have been.
It doesn’t stop there. Over a decade ago, there was talk of him squaring up with athlete-turned-politician Herschel Walker. After turning pro in 2010, Frank wanted to join the professional MMA promotion Strikeforce. At the time, Walker had made his mixed martial arts debut at 47 years old. Naturally, JDF was ready to take on his fellow celebrity.
In the end, none of the celebrity-on-celebrity violence happened, but the potential is enough to keep us asking, what if…?