|
Kimbo Slice vs Ken Shamrock Fight in EliteXC on CBS: On Tuesday August 26 2008, EliteXC finally announced that Ken Shamrock will face Kimbo Slice in the October 4th main event Network special from BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, FL. Also on the Saturday night fight card will be one of the most celebrated and beautiful female mixed martial artists, Gina Carano. The stunning "American Gladiator" will be taking on Kelly Kobold-Gavin in the other, main event of the evening. EliteXC desperately needs rating success with this show, and thus, is throwing everything but the kitchen sink, as they know it's due or die for them. The “World’s Most Dangerous Man”, Ken Shamrock (26-13-2), who is now 44-years-old, is one of the most prominent and respected fighters in the history of mixed martial arts. Kimbo Slice (3-0) is a street fighting (Internet) sensation, but is also the most doubted and questioned “MMA fighter” in the history of the sport. People simply do not consider Kimbo a “martial artist”, and thus, don’t think he belongs in a cage or an octagon. Kimbo Slice is a lethal striker and good “street fighter” (no questions about that), but not a mixed martial artist... and yes, there’s a difference. If you disagree with that statement, go back and watch his fight against James Thompson and look at Kimbo's ground skills... or lack thereof. Or, you can even YouTube: Kimbo Slice vs Sean Gannon the "Boston Cop", where Kimbo is protesting about knees in a "street fight", and in the end, ends up laying on the ground. On May 31st of this year, Kimbo’s national debut fight against James Thompson drew 6.5 million viewers in the United States. Which begs the question, what did people tune to CBS to watch exactly? Kimbo Slice and the EliteXC beginning to change MMA into what Boxing is today? I mean, the main reason that people started to embraced the UFC (back in the days), and now all these other MMA companies, is the realness and sport application of the art itself, the purity and integrity of the fights. Not a sport where politics, money, and power decide what fighters are protected and what the outcomes of matches will be. For that, WWF/WWE or whatever its called these days seems way more entertaining, or perhaps even “Days of our Lives” for that matter. The bottom line is that, if promoters want Kimbo Slice to evolve and become a respected MMA fighter, get him halfway decent MMA fighters to fight. Not a retired 44-year old guy, who as a fighter: peaked between 1993-1996, hasn’t won a fight in almost 5 years, hasn't even fought since 2006, and most likely not even in competition-shape. As a matter of fact, even in Shamrock’s last 2 fights, Tito Ortiz absolutely pulverized him. Now, we’re talking about Tito "Jameson" Ortiz, a guy who at that point in his career/life couldn’t have been less of a fighter, and more "Hollywood". But here’s the kicker; Ken Shamrock’s penultimate fight against Tito in 2006 became the second largest pay-per-view MMA event ever, with 775,000 buys. And that’s the reason why Kimbo’s EliteXC on CBS fight against James Thompson was stopped unnecessarily, and in-turn, is also why Shamrock accepted EXC’s offer to fight October 4th. In the end, it’s all about money, but don’t try to disguise the sheep for a wolf, and certainly, don’t try to fool people into believing that this is professional boxing.
|
