![]() He can't rebuild his reputation without stepping up in competition from the guy who just beat him in seconds. Where Slice goes from here is anyone's guess. He was the grand actor in the middle of a three-ring circus, a tall tale that would eventually come tumbling down under the bright glare of reality. He's got kids to feed and bills to pay and right to the end, he was milking bonuses out of the promotion, a one-time homeless man holding the Tiffany Network's prime-time programming hostage. He was just a working-class dude who figured out how to beat the system and cash in on his 15 minutes of fleeting fame. He wasn't the one claiming he was the best in the world. Through it all Slice remained the only likable character of this foolish farce. He later turned to Petruzelli and joked, "You knocked me out in front of my family that's (expletive) up." Then he showed up 45 minutes late for the main press conference, where he gave a quick statement and bailed. Later he walked out on his CBS interview ("Kimbo?" asked a stunned Gus Johnson), although not before inviting America to an after party at a local nightclub. Then he walked around the cage complaining to fans about the stoppage. Whether that was a protest for the decision or because he was dazed isn't certain. After it was over, he initially began wrestling the referee. Slice seemed stunned and a bit saddened at the turn of events. Not that CBS didn't keep up with the Slice willing to fight, "anyone, anywhere, at anytime." This was a 100 percent true statement if "anyone, anywhere, at anytime" means "no one any good, anywhere, ever." Which was pretty much what every hardcore fan had predicted. In the end, Kimbo's hand speed, defense and chin proved incapable against even an average mixed martial artist. Slice charged him ("He was like a truck," Petruzelli said) but he never actually landed a punch. Kimbo was KTFO by a guy he absolutely towered over yet was willing to bang with him anyway. Those would be understandable considering his novice status. He didn't lose a decision after a three-round brawl. He wasn't caught in a submission by an experienced wrestler. True, but Kimbo wasn't defeated by a crafty Brazilian jiu-jitsu master. "This is MMA, all the best have lost," said Lappen. Make no mistake – or listen to the EliteXC spin – this was a disaster for Slice and the company. "It didn't feel too flush," Petruzelli said of the first punch that apparently didn't even need to land squarely to fell Kimbo. He wouldn't disclose the amount.įor the myth of Slice, the matchup may not be a 44-year-old on a losing streak or someone from the broadcast booth, but really, what was the worst thing that could happen? "We made it up to him," said Jeremy Lappen, EliteXC's head of fight operations. The Fort Myers, Fla., native had been dumped by the big-league UFC, was just 2-2 since 2004, had recently taken a year off to start a business, weighed just 205 (to Kimbo's 235) and was so lightly regarded he was competing in the non-televised undercard.ĭespite the oft-repeated propaganda that Slice was a man of "courage" for taking a fight with this smaller guy who was likely to stand and trade punches anyway, EliteXC paid Kimbo a cash bonus just to get him to step into the cage. When that matchup couldn't happen (EliteXC said state officials wouldn't clear him, Frank said they did but CBS blocked it), EliteXC promoters turned to Petruzelli. Despite all this, Frank likely would have submitted Kimbo in the first round. In the scramble to find a suitable replacement that Slice couldn't possibly lose to, EliteXC considered Shamrock's brother, Frank, who was there to be CBS's color commentator, hadn't fought lately due to a broken arm and would have given up around 45 pounds. Only this time his match with 44-year-old Ken Shamrock, who hadn't won a fight in over four years, fell apart when Shamrock cut his eye in a light training session Saturday and was deemed unfit to fight by state officials.
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