Will Kimbo be the Next Ultimate Fighter?
The big news in MMA lately has been that Kimbo Slice, the Youtube street fighting legend, and Elite XC contender, is now a participant in The Ultimate Fighter 10, Heavyweights. Such a household name making it onto the show has caused alot of talking, and the big question, will Kimbo become the Ultimate Fighter season 10 winner?
Quinton "Rampage" Jackson showed immediate interest in Kimbo as soon as he walked through the door. Rampaged feels as if Kimbo has what it takes to win the whole show hands down, and has taken Kimbo under his wing, making him his personal project, similar to how Tito Ortiz had treated Matt Hammill. But many of the household members disagree. They seem to feel that Kimbo is merely a street fighter, and does not belong in the house. Every man in that house has the right to his own opinion, but the issue here is if that is how u feel, your going to have to beat Kimbo. To say he don't belong is one thing, beating him off the show is another.
There is no doubt in my mind that Kimbo is legitimately tough. There is doubt, however, wether or not he has what it takes to compete in the UFC. If you recall, Kimbo got TKO'd quickly in his last fight in Elite XC, by Zeth Petruzzeli, a former Ultimate Fighter, who lost the show by the way. Petruzzeli has a good karate and kickboxing background, and that was enough to beat Kimbo, and the level of competition in the house, and the UFC heavyweight division, is greater than Kimbo's skillset. If a guy who lost the Ultimate Fighter is able to beat Slice, what about the guys who didn't lose the Ultimate Fighter, what about the guys who are already at the top of the UFC rankings, what about the guys as good or better than Zeth Petruzzeli, that are in the house right now?
Kimbo is to fight next week against Roy "Big Country" Nelson. Big Country is a former IFL standout, he is already known, and has a good amount of experience. Big Country however is going to lose this fight. His tendency to want to slug it out when he fights will get him KOd by the stronger, better striker in Kimbo. This fight will cause alot of talking and speculation as to if Kimbo will go all the way. Kimbo will not win the show though, thats all there is to it.
As a big Ultimate Fighter fan however, I know very well, that you don't have to win the Ultimate Fighter to get into the UFC. All you have to do is make an impression. Kimbo no doubt will make the impression needed to fight in the UFC, and not to mention the amount of money having Kimbo Slice on any fight card will bring in. So yes, you can expect to see Kimbo Slice fight in the UFC, but do not look for him to be a big contender, because when pitted against a well rounded fighter, he will lose every time. Any fighter who is skilled on the groung will win, fighters such as UFC champ, Brock Lesnar, Former champ, Frank Mir, and Pride legend Rodrigo Nogueria, are in no danger of losing a fight to Kimbo Slice. Fighters with a higher pedigree of standup such as Cheik Kongo, Mirko Crocop, or Cain Velazquiz are not in danger either. I am not saying Kimbo won't be an exciting edition to the UFC, I am just saying, it is extremely unlikely that Kimbo Slice will ever be the UFC champion, or the Ultimate Fighter winner.
The big news in MMA lately has been that Kimbo Slice, the Youtube street fighting legend, and Elite XC contender, is now a participant in The Ultimate Fighter 10, Heavyweights. Such a household name making it onto the show has caused alot of talking, and the big question, will Kimbo become the Ultimate Fighter season 10 winner?
Quinton "Rampage" Jackson showed immediate interest in Kimbo as soon as he walked through the door. Rampaged feels as if Kimbo has what it takes to win the whole show hands down, and has taken Kimbo under his wing, making him his personal project, similar to how Tito Ortiz had treated Matt Hammill. But many of the household members disagree. They seem to feel that Kimbo is merely a street fighter, and does not belong in the house. Every man in that house has the right to his own opinion, but the issue here is if that is how u feel, your going to have to beat Kimbo. To say he don't belong is one thing, beating him off the show is another.
There is no doubt in my mind that Kimbo is legitimately tough. There is doubt, however, wether or not he has what it takes to compete in the UFC. If you recall, Kimbo got TKO'd quickly in his last fight in Elite XC, by Zeth Petruzzeli, a former Ultimate Fighter, who lost the show by the way. Petruzzeli has a good karate and kickboxing background, and that was enough to beat Kimbo, and the level of competition in the house, and the UFC heavyweight division, is greater than Kimbo's skillset. If a guy who lost the Ultimate Fighter is able to beat Slice, what about the guys who didn't lose the Ultimate Fighter, what about the guys who are already at the top of the UFC rankings, what about the guys as good or better than Zeth Petruzzeli, that are in the house right now?
Kimbo is to fight next week against Roy "Big Country" Nelson. Big Country is a former IFL standout, he is already known, and has a good amount of experience. Big Country however is going to lose this fight. His tendency to want to slug it out when he fights will get him KOd by the stronger, better striker in Kimbo. This fight will cause alot of talking and speculation as to if Kimbo will go all the way. Kimbo will not win the show though, thats all there is to it.
As a big Ultimate Fighter fan however, I know very well, that you don't have to win the Ultimate Fighter to get into the UFC. All you have to do is make an impression. Kimbo no doubt will make the impression needed to fight in the UFC, and not to mention the amount of money having Kimbo Slice on any fight card will bring in. So yes, you can expect to see Kimbo Slice fight in the UFC, but do not look for him to be a big contender, because when pitted against a well rounded fighter, he will lose every time. Any fighter who is skilled on the groung will win, fighters such as UFC champ, Brock Lesnar, Former champ, Frank Mir, and Pride legend Rodrigo Nogueria, are in no danger of losing a fight to Kimbo Slice. Fighters with a higher pedigree of standup such as Cheik Kongo, Mirko Crocop, or Cain Velazquiz are not in danger either. I am not saying Kimbo won't be an exciting edition to the UFC, I am just saying, it is extremely unlikely that Kimbo Slice will ever be the UFC champion, or the Ultimate Fighter winner.
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