The MMA Digest

Kimbo Slice on “The Ultimate Fighter”?

“If he really wants to get into the UFC and he wants to fight, he should get on ‘The Ultimate Fighter,’” said UFC president Dana White about Kimbo Slice after UFC 90. “What has he done, other than getting ten million hits on YouTube, what’s the guy done to deserve to be in the UFC? Nothing. I don’t consider him a real athlete or anything. He won’t win ‘The Ultimate Fighter.’ The offer’s out there if he wants to take it. He won’t win it.”

I doubt Kimbo will take up White on this offer. He evidently racked up half a million in cash for his 14 second fight with Seth Petruzelli. He probably won’t jump at the chance to fight for free with the opportunity to score a few grand if he finishes a fight on the reality series.

It’s safe to say Kimbo Slice won’t be seen in the UFC any time soon.

Popularity: 4%

Kimbo Slice to the UFC Octagon?

Which Elite XC evidently dissolving as their finances run dry from their foray in the MMA world, their talent is left without a home. Most notably their cash cow, street brawling Youtube sensation turned MMA pro, Kimbo Slice, is now without a promotion to fight for.

Would the UFC, the most successful MMA promotion on the fighting landscape at the moment swoop in and pick up the free agent? I’d say not likely. While Kimbo Slice is a household name amongst their key demo of males 18-35, Dana White has expressed much disdain for the MMA credibility of Kimbo, pointing to his loss in a gym brawl with one-time UFC vet Sean Gannon (defeated by Brandon Lee Hinkle). Additionally White has numerous times stated “Kimbo sucks”, one of his consistent mantras when Elite XC is brought up in conversation with interviewers. We can certainly take White’s assessment of his competition’s talent with a grain of salt as he is not likely going to pump up a rival league’s fighters (save a few instances such as genuinely stating he wants Cung Le in the UFC). Aside from such rare moments, he hasn’t been shy to criticize other leagues’ fighters, even top ranked ones–he has skewered Fedor Emelianenko’s status as the number 1 heavyweight in the world numerous times, despite the fact Emelianenko has defeated the UFC’s heavyweight champion (now interim) Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira twice, as well as their former champ Tim Sylvia in less than a minute.

Nevertheless, despite White’s comments he would certainly bring in Kimbo Slice if it make business sense. Past feuds the UFC head honcho has had with fighters such as Tito Ortiz, Jens Pulver, BJ Penn and Randy Couture have been worked out for the greater good of the company. But it is unlikely that White will bring in Kimbo Slice into his promotion because of three factors: 1. He might really think he sucks, 2. Kimbo was KO’d in his last fight in 14 seconds by a fighter unknown to the mainstream, 3. Kimbo reportedly was paid $500,000 in his last fight.

Kimbo did lose some cache from Seth Petruzelli’s 14 second defeat of the Miami native, but Slice is still a very popular fighter and would attract many eyes to the pay per view and events he fights on. Many mainstream fans aren’t even aware of the latest up to date fight results and could still Kimbo is the most dangerous fighter on the planet, much like numerous fans about 5 years ago felt Ken Shamrock was “the world’s most dangerous man”.

Nevertheless, paying a price of half a million for Slice isn’t something the UFC is likely to put money into. They’ve already heavily invested in another 4 fight veteran who will be fighting for their heavyweight title next month–Brock Lesnar. Now Lesnar has a chance to show that he was a the right man to bank on, while Kimbo will likely find a new home in the MMA world.

Kimbo Slice made $35,714.29 per second in his 14 second knockout loss to Seth Petruzelli.

CBS ELITEXC SATURDAY NIGHT FIGHTS PACKS RATINGS PUNCH

SATURDAY’S #1 PROGRAM ON BOTH BROADCAST AND CABLE IN ADULTS 18-34, MEN 18-34 AND MEN 18-49

MMA Event Tops All Entertainment and Sports Programming – Including College Football and Major League Baseball Playoffs – in Key Young Male Demos

The Third “CBS EliteXC Saturday Night Fights” Event Posts Huge Increases Over its Prior Edition in Viewers and All Key Demographics

The third CBS ELITEXC SATURDAY NIGHT FIGHTS mixed martial arts event was Saturday’s #1 program on both broadcast and cable in adults 18-34, men 18-34 and men 18-49 (tie), according to Nielsen live plus same day ratings for Oct. 4.

For the night, the prime time mixed martial arts event placed first in adults 18-34, men 18-34 and men 18-49 (tie) against such other sporting events as the Major League Baseball playoffs (cable), college football (cable and broadcast) and a competing mixed martial arts cable telecast.

CBS ELITEXC SATURDAY NIGHT FIGHTS (S) (9:00-11:20PM) posted a 2.7/05 with 4.56m viewers, 2.7/10 in men 18-34, 2.7/08 in men 18-49, 2.9/08 in men 25-54, 2.0/07 in adults 18-34, 2.0/06 in adults 18-49 and 2.1/06 in adults 25-54.

Compared to the last CBS ELITEXC SATURDAY NIGHT FIGHTS (July 26, 2008), CBS was up +59% in households (from 1.7/04), +75% in adults 25-54 (from 1.2/04), +100% in adults 18-49 (from 1.0/04), +150% in adults 18-34 (from 0.8/04), +93% in men 25-54 (from 1.5/05), +108% in men 18-49 (from 1.3/05), +170% in men 18-34 (from 1.0/05) and added +1.99m viewers (from 2.57m, +77%).

Popularity: unranked

video: Kimbo Slice very classy in defeat

Popularity: unranked

video: Seth Petruzelli on knocking out Kimbo Slice

Popularity: unranked

Kimbo Slice knocked out by Seth Petruzelli

Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson lost his first MMA fight to last minute replacement Seth Petruzelli.

After Ken Shamrock had been scratched from fighting Kimbo, UFC vet Seth Petruzelli steppedin and scored a knockout just 14 seconds into the bout.

Popularity: 8%

video: Kimbo Slice talks Ken Shamrock

Photo: Esther Lin/For CBS-EliteXC …

Curtis Williams … who won tickets to Saturday’s highly-anticipated event at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Fla..

The look-a-like contest took place Thursday morning at Radio Station BIG 105.9 (in the parking lot of Clear Channel Radio Group) in Miramar, Fla.

Popularity: 8%

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