KIMBO'S FISTS BELONG IN BOXING RING
by
george.willis
June 2, 2008 -- AFTER watching Kimbo Slice in the main event of the nationally televised mixed martial arts card Saturday night at the Prudential Center in Newark, I came away with one over-riding thought: Too bad Kimbo isn't in boxing.
That's where he belongs instead of in the cage where he's been hyped as a mixed martial artist when he's really a brawler, who's better at trading punches than figuring out what to do with his back on the canvas.
The YouTube sensation, whose videos of beating up people in backyards have drawn 10 million unique hits, certainly has been marketed well by Gary Shaw's EliteXC. Kimbo put 8,033 people in the seats Saturday night and attracted millions who watched the first live MMA broadcast on CBS.
But despite defeating James Thompson of England on a third-round technical knockout, he was exposed as an MMA neophyte who would have little chance of defeating a credible heavyweight.
Thompson, who had lost six of his previous eight fights, kept the fight on the ground for the most part and had total control in the second round, landing several unanswered punches and elbows to Slice's head as the referee came close to stopping the bout.
"It was a tough fight," Slice said afterward. "[James] used his weight well. He kept me on the ground for a good little minute. He has a good ground-and-pound game. But I wasn't threatened by it. I kept letting the ref know 'I'm good.' I was just waiting for the right time to explode."
Truth is the fans were bored when Kimbo was on his back. They came to see him land a devastating punch like so many they'd seen on YouTube. It's why they roared when a right hook early in the third round split open Thompson's badly cauliflowered left ear.
"I was going to damage to that big ear," Slice said.
Blood rushed down Thompson's face as Slice landed a right uppercut, clearly dazing the Brit. The crowd cheered, and the referee quickly stopped the bout before any more damage could be done.
"I'm still a baby at the game," Slice said after only his third MMA fight. "I have a lot of room to grow. I know I won't be smoking as much."
Brett Rogers, who ran his heavyweight record to 7-0 with a first-round knockout on Saturday's undercard, called Slice's performance "garbage" at the post-fight press conference, causing a heated standoff between himself and Slice.
I wouldn't call it "garbage." It was mediocre and certainly not the best MMA has to offer. At age 34, Slice is being asked to learn all the disciplines of MMA, wrestling, jiu-jitsu, submission holds and striking without getting kicked in the face. It would have been easier if he stuck with boxing, where he could be portrayed as the next Mike Tyson. It would be an easier sell and more believable.
by
george.willis
June 2, 2008 -- AFTER watching Kimbo Slice in the main event of the nationally televised mixed martial arts card Saturday night at the Prudential Center in Newark, I came away with one over-riding thought: Too bad Kimbo isn't in boxing.
That's where he belongs instead of in the cage where he's been hyped as a mixed martial artist when he's really a brawler, who's better at trading punches than figuring out what to do with his back on the canvas.
The YouTube sensation, whose videos of beating up people in backyards have drawn 10 million unique hits, certainly has been marketed well by Gary Shaw's EliteXC. Kimbo put 8,033 people in the seats Saturday night and attracted millions who watched the first live MMA broadcast on CBS.
But despite defeating James Thompson of England on a third-round technical knockout, he was exposed as an MMA neophyte who would have little chance of defeating a credible heavyweight.
Thompson, who had lost six of his previous eight fights, kept the fight on the ground for the most part and had total control in the second round, landing several unanswered punches and elbows to Slice's head as the referee came close to stopping the bout.
"It was a tough fight," Slice said afterward. "[James] used his weight well. He kept me on the ground for a good little minute. He has a good ground-and-pound game. But I wasn't threatened by it. I kept letting the ref know 'I'm good.' I was just waiting for the right time to explode."
Truth is the fans were bored when Kimbo was on his back. They came to see him land a devastating punch like so many they'd seen on YouTube. It's why they roared when a right hook early in the third round split open Thompson's badly cauliflowered left ear.
"I was going to damage to that big ear," Slice said.
Blood rushed down Thompson's face as Slice landed a right uppercut, clearly dazing the Brit. The crowd cheered, and the referee quickly stopped the bout before any more damage could be done.
"I'm still a baby at the game," Slice said after only his third MMA fight. "I have a lot of room to grow. I know I won't be smoking as much."
Brett Rogers, who ran his heavyweight record to 7-0 with a first-round knockout on Saturday's undercard, called Slice's performance "garbage" at the post-fight press conference, causing a heated standoff between himself and Slice.
I wouldn't call it "garbage." It was mediocre and certainly not the best MMA has to offer. At age 34, Slice is being asked to learn all the disciplines of MMA, wrestling, jiu-jitsu, submission holds and striking without getting kicked in the face. It would have been easier if he stuck with boxing, where he could be portrayed as the next Mike Tyson. It would be an easier sell and more believable.
