Kimbo Slice: Pro, scapegoat or hype job?

[Brutus]

Story Highlights

* It seems like everybody has an opinion on the Internet-brawler-turned-pro-fighter.
* Slice is scheduled to fight on EliteXC's upcoming primetime event
* It's not about who he is or what he's done, but how Slice is being marketed
Everyone seems to have an opinion about Kevin
Everyone seems to have an opinion about Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson, who will headline EliteXC's first primetime event on CBS on May 31.
Courtesy of CBS/EliteXC
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It's getting harder and harder to talk about Kimbo Slice, though it's not from a lack of trying. It seems like everybody has an opinion on the Internet-brawler-turned-pro-fighter.

Either he's the worst thing to happen to the sport of mixed martial arts, or he's the next big superstar.

He's the ratings draw that MMA desperately needs, or he's a wild animal, who will come to your house and eat your children. It's a discourse of extremes, and it isn't helping us understand what's really happening. The criticism of Slice (aka Kevin Ferguson) comes from all directions, and for different reasons. Some is legitimate and some isn't.

"He's an Internet sensation, who beat up guys at Taco Bell," former UFC champ Chuck Liddell said. "Come on. How hard is that to do?"

ESPN's LZ Granderson likened the image Slice has built for himself to be "a cross between Lil' Wayne and Kunta Kinte -- a runaway slave with a mouth full of gold teeth, playing up every single stereotype of an African-American male in exchange for short-lived adoration from a soulless media with ADD."

Different motivations, but the same message: Kimbo is bad -- bad for the sport, bad for his race, bad for the impressionable youth who see him on TV. It's a simple enough way of looking at things, even if it isn't completely fair.

A certain amount of backlash is to be expected. Slice has attained a type of fame that would not have been possible 10 years ago. Only in the age of viral video could beating up nightclub bouncers in backyard brawls be considered a path to national celebrity. But as uncomfortable and unsavory as those videos may be, is it fair to use them to define Slice as he pursues a career as a serious professional?

It's not a simple question. Slice's current persona is largely based on his past. Without those videos, without the notoriety the came with them, it's unlikely that he would be fighting on EliteXC's live event on CBS on May 31, much less making six figures to do it.

But it's not as if he's preparing for that fight by brawling in the streets and drinking malt liquor with Internet pornographers. By all accounts, Slice is a dedicated professional these days. He trains at Bas Rutten's Thousand Oaks gym alongside other fighters from all the major organizations. Rutten describes him as a model student, as do most of the trainers he's worked with.

"I don't see anything that he does wrong for these people to talk about him like this," Rutten said. "Is it just because of the way he dresses that they call him a thug? If he dressed however they told him to dress, just to make people happy, that seems more like a slave to me. More people know him than know some other fighters, and some guys don't like that, but that's not his fault."

Whether or not it's not his fault, it is part of what's fueling the anti-Kimbo sentiment. What makes Slice's career as an MMA fighter so novel is that he was famous before he ever stepped in the cage. Many people had already made up their minds about him, as well as about whether he would be a help or a hindrance in MMA's ongoing struggle for mainstream acceptance.

Instead of working his way up the ranks the way any other fighter would have, Slice was fast-tracked for success because of his drawing power. He fought a series of high-profile fights against opponents with losing records. He spent no more than a few minutes in the cage. And yet the hype would have us believe that he's already arrived.

This is Slice's problem. It's not so much about who he is or what he's done, but how he's being marketed. Slice is not a main-event fighter. Not yet, anyway. But Elite XC didn't even blink when they tapped him to fight James Thompson (who's coming off two straight KO losses) as the headlining bout for their biggest event yet.

That tells us exactly what Elite XC's motivations are. They want to capitalize on the Kimbo craze before it dies down. They want to exploit his fame for ratings instead of letting him establish himself the old-fashioned way. They don't care that he may not be main-event caliber yet. Not as long as the ratings are good. Meanwhile, a proven veteran, like Robbie Lawler, fights for a title on the same show and hardly gets mentioned.

It's not so much a question of whether Slice deserves all the criticism he's getting, but rather how he deals with it. If he keeps winning fights and eventually faces more credible competition, he'll silence most of the critics.

Those who don't like how he dresses or talks or wears his beard will probably always be waiting in the wings to take a cheap shot, but such are the devils of fame. The notoriety that got him to this point is now an albatross around his neck, and the only way to get rid of it is by proving himself like a regular fighter.

Let's just hope the all-powerful hype machine EliteXC will give him that opportunity, and quickly.

I thought this was an interesting piece.

My bad, here is the Source

[pillow]

Tank Abbott was a "street fighting legend" they say

Bas Rutten sells a video which tells you how to stab someone in their liver with their own knife, in a barroom

And no one talks shit about them. Especially not Bas.

People used to pay 10k to try and beat Kimbo on Youtube. Now he gets probably ten times that amount by fighting legitimately. If that doesn't send the right message I don't know what does.

[BigBanda]

Good lord! and the Kimbo articles and attention keep on coming!

Right now he is a "hype job" and that is exactly what Elite XC is doing with him. Kimbo is their cash cow and he is bringing in a lot of attention with his mass following. All the hype will only last so long before he takes on a legit real threat and loses. Of course he could shock everyone and do well against a real big threat but only time will tell. I think Kimbo will get through Thompson and I hope his next fight is against someone like Paul Buentello.

[ninjastix]

Look I don't know how else you can say it...

The guy is a novice in the sport, and he is sustained by hype and media attention that he was able to generate for himself independently...

I mean... given his career thus far... who should he be fighting? He has no background in wrestling and no background in boxing. His background is football so how is this guy suppose to acclimate to MMA? By fighting guys who unequivocally outclass and outexperience him? And by outclass I only mean in terms of skill, I still don't see where the ire towards Kimbo stems...

But once again, what is he suppose to do? I think it's a pretty substantial accomplishment if he beats Thompson soundly. It will show that he's consistently adapting to the sport and beat someone with some real experience in the cage and ring. It doesn't mean he's top 10, 15, or 20. That shouldn't even be the discussion....

He has NO background other than streetfighting and that's far from a discipline. You have got to let the guy grow but begrudging him because he's able to headline on a hype train that he earned independently is starting to really get on my nerves...

Why are you to be penalized for promoting yourself and being successful?

[8-Bit Riot]

This shit is getting really tired.
How much more is there to say about Kimbo?

[BigBanda]

Originally Posted by ninjastix

Look I don't know how else you can say it...

The guy is a novice in the sport, and he is sustained by hype and media attention that he was able to generate for himself independently...

I mean... given his career thus far... who should he be fighting? He has no background in wrestling and no background in boxing. His background is football so how is this guy suppose to acclimate to MMA? By fighting guys who unequivocally outclass and outexperience him? And by outclass I only mean in terms of skill, I still don't see where the ire towards Kimbo stems...

But once again, what is he suppose to do? I think it's a pretty substantial accomplishment if he beats Thompson soundly. It will show that he's consistently adapting to the sport and beat someone with some real experience in the cage and ring. It doesn't mean he's top 10, 15, or 20. That shouldn't even be the discussion....

He has NO background other than streetfighting and that's far from a discipline. You have got to let the guy grow but begrudging him because he's able to headline on a hype train that he earned independently is starting to really get on my nerves...

Why are you to be penalized for promoting yourself and being successful?

My whole thing is... if your going to be hyped and promoted like your a supreme HW then you need to be backing that shit up. The reason why some fighters do not care for the guy is because they dont like to see a guy who has not earned his stripes get promoted in that way. It's the same reason why Kimbo gets a lot of criticism from die hard MMA fans.

This is not me saying I hate Kimbo because as a person he seems like a cool guy especially after reading some of his interviews. I think it is more so EliteXC that is promoting him like he is some God. Now he is on ESPN. I guess business wise that is smart for them because they are using Kimbo's mass following to their advantage. This will phase out eventually but it is starting to get hard to stomach all this Kimbo nonsense.

[ninjastix]

Think of it as a music craze... Think Macarena... It will die out eventually, you can't sustain hype forever...

Eventually the shift of attention will go back to focusing on some of the better talent Elite has, like Le, like Shields, like Gilbert...

Right now this is the short term attention grabber for Elite, but they're running with the ball after Kimbo started the play. I just can't find a reason to dislike this guy and if he continues to be successful, spectacle or not, more power to him...

[mrt21984]

Whos to say street fighting isnt as much as a skill as wrestling or jujitsu. Kimbo comes in knowing how to take a hit and keep going that is just as important as knowing how to shoot a double leg. I would rather watch a Kimbo fight then a Machida fight.
Remember that old saying everyone has a game plan until they get hit. Kimbo already knows what its really like to get hit so that gives him a skill allot of other people don't have.

[ninjastix]

Originally Posted by mrt21984

Whos to say street fighting isnt as much as a skill as wrestling or jujitsu. Kimbo comes in knowing how to take a hit and keep going that is just as important as knowing how to shoot a double leg. I would rather watch a Kimbo fight then a Machida fight.
Remember that old saying everyone has a game plan until they get hit. Kimbo already knows what its really like to get hit so that gives him a skill allot of other people don't have.

I never said it wasn't a skill, I said it's not a discipline, not like other martial arts that emphasis technique over brute strength...

That's not to decredit things like strength or toughness, but knowning many different ways to engage in a fight, and by studying the mechanics of the human body you develop more efficient and powerful ways of dealing with an opponent...

Kimbo will be a more dangerous force for having studyed in the discipline of boxing than just relying on swinging... learning how to use your weight and strike with the momentum of your hips and body rather than your shoulder will make hit that much harder...

[foutch550]

Originally Posted by ninjastix

Think of it as a music craze... Think Macarena... It will die out eventually, you can't sustain hype forever...

The Macarena die out?

NEVER!!!!