On August 23, 2025, a KnokX Pro Wrestling event in Sun Valley, Los Angeles, turned chaotic when Raja Jackson attacked wrestler Stuart Smith, known as Syko Stu, during a match. Livestreamed on Kick, the assault showed Jackson slamming Smith to the mat and landing over 20 punches, leaving him unconscious with blood streaming from his face. Wrestlers Doug Malo and Ian Morgan spoke out on the Scaling Up Podcast, condemning Jackson’s actions and alleging KnokX management discouraged cooperation with the Los Angeles Police Department’s investigation. The incident has sparked outrage in the wrestling community, with an ongoing police probe and calls for accountability.
How the Attack Unfolded
The trouble started backstage when Smith, thinking Jackson was part of the wrestling roster, hit him with a beer can as part of a planned storyline. After realizing his mistake, Smith apologized. KnokX trainer Reno Anoa’i suggested incorporating Jackson into Smith’s match to address the altercation. Wrestler Andre Joel Hudson, a friend of Jackson, encouraged him to deliver a “receipt,” or scripted retaliation, according to the livestream footage.
What was meant to be a controlled spot became a brutal assault. During Smith’s match, Jackson entered the ring, lifted Smith overhead, slammed him hard to the mat, and unleashed a barrage of punches to his head. Smith, unable to defend himself, lay motionless as blood pooled around him. Wrestlers, including Malo, rushed to stop Jackson, who was eventually restrained and removed from the venue. The referee’s decision to count a three-pin while Smith was unconscious drew sharp criticism from fans and performers alike.
I’ve seen pro wrestling thorough out my whole life and this is one of worst things I’ve ever seen. I hope Raja Jackson gets life in prison and my thoughts got to Syko Stu. https://t.co/sq6KanR3l3
— Nemesis (@SenpaiNemesis__) August 24, 2025
Wrestlers’ Outrage and Accusations
Doug Malo, known as The Epic, stressed the attack’s severity.
“I think he would’ve killed him,” he said. “I promise you he would’ve killed him.”
Malo, who helped break up the assault, was furious at Jackson.
“I’m telling you to fcking calm down. I’m not even fcking fighting. I’m not even being fcking hostile,” he said. “Then you’re trying to fcking work and get low or do this, change positions, and I’m over here having to swim with you, all this other sht. And then you fcking punch me in the fcking eye after we’re breaking it up, you fcking loser. That’s why you got fcking head-butt, and that’s why I fcking punched you. You’re f*cking lucky I was tired from the match before this.”
He slammed Jackson’s character.
“What kind of fcking person are you, you fcking low-life fucking clown? You want clout, so you beat up a guy that’s fcking half unconscious. You punch a guy that’s trying to break up a fight, not even trying to fight you. I wasn’t even trying to fcking hurt you. What the fuck is wrong with you?”
Malo also criticized Hudson for pushing Jackson into the ring.
“Let me put it this way: I don’t like Raja. I think Raja’s a sht person for what he did., but I think A.J.’s a bigger sht person for gassing him up to be in that fcking ring, to leading him to ruin his own fcking life, to hurt somebody that A.J. also has a fcking problem with,” he said. “You can’t fcking tell me that’s – I don’t believe in coincidence. … (Hudson) ruined two people’s lives.”
Ian Morgan accused KnokX of trying to obstruct justice.
“The most disgusting thing is that the people at this school are being encouraged to not cooperate with the police,” he said. “From what I hear, the police were there investigating the scene shortly after Stu was removed, and there has been multiple requests that have gone downstream from upper management to not talk with the police directly if they are contacted and to only let a certain group of individuals interact with the police. That is extremely dishonest.”
He added, “You guys let your friend almost die, and now you’re trying to have people lie for you. And fck you to every single person who replied to them ‘yes sir.’ You are all weak sacks of sht, and I hope you rot in hell. You are wasting oxygen that other people could be breathing. Go f*ck yourself.”
Malo expressed remorse for Smith.
“I’m sorry to Stu that the people that said they were your friends let this happen,” he said. via MMA Junkie
LAPD Investigation and Ongoing Fallout
Smith was rushed to the hospital with broken facial bones and missing teeth but was awake and stable by August 24, according to a Facebook post by his brother, Andrew Smith. The LAPD filed a felony battery report that night, and detectives are reviewing the livestream and seeking witness statements, per the LA Times. No arrests have been made as of August 26, 2025. A GoFundMe for Smith’s medical expenses has raised over $63,000, with support from fans, wrestlers, and figures like YouTuber MrBeast.
KnokX Pro Wrestling, run by WWE Hall of Famer Rikishi, condemned the attack.
“What was supposed to be a planned and agreed upon wrestling spot, turned into a selfish, irresponsible act of violence against Mr. Smith,” they posted on Facebook.
Jackson is banned from future KnokX events, and Kick banned his account for violating violence policies, per TMZ.
Quinton Jackson addressed the incident on X.
“I want to clear up the misinformation about my son Raja,” he wrote. “Raja was unexpectedly hit in the side of the head by him moments before Smith’s match, Raja was told that he could get his ‘payback’ in the ring, I thought it was apart of the show. It was bad judgement, and a work that went wrong. Raja is a MMA fighter not a pro wrestler and had no business involved in an event like this.”
He noted Raja had a concussion from sparring days earlier, which may have affected his judgment.
Stuart Smith, known as Syko Stu, joined KnokX Pro Wrestling in 2009. A U.S. military veteran, he has spoken about wrestling as a way to cope with post-traumatic stress disorder. “I needed something to focus on, I needed something to adjust back into civilian life,” he said in a KnokX promotional video. He remains in critical but stable condition, with the wrestling community rallying for his recovery.
The LAPD’s investigation is active, with detectives analyzing the livestream and interviewing witnesses. Malo and Morgan’s allegations of KnokX discouraging police cooperation, reportedly backed by text messages from KnokX staff, have raised serious questions about the promotion’s transparency. Wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer called the incident “the worst thing I’ve ever seen in a ring” on X, reflecting the community’s shock. Fans criticized the referee for allowing a pin count while Smith was unconscious, and Malo noted a child he brought to the event was traumatized, asking, “Are you okay? Was that real?”
UFC star Sean O’Malley, speaking on the One Night With Steiny podcast, questioned Jackson’s actions and expressed support for Smith. The incident has led to calls for stricter safety protocols in wrestling to prevent such violence.
