The Fall of Kimbo Slice: Good for MMA

The illusion that was Kimbo Slice came crashing down Saturday night. The YouTube phenomenon who made his name on the streets of Miami had a reputation for being one of the toughest men alive and his street fight clips only drove the point home.

Still, when he made his entrance into mixed-martial arts, most of the hardcore fans rolled their eyes. Though Kimbo was, and is, a very big, mean and scary guy, he is a brawler. One thing we learned from the early days of MMA was that brawling is to MMA what the windmill is to boxing. What works on your little brother doesn’t always work in the ring.

But EliteXC did something stupid. Not only did they take Kimbo on as a fighter, but they pushed him as star. Saturday night they paid dearly for that decision as the biggest name of their new promotion, and the headliner of two or their three nationally-televised events, went down in under 15 seconds to a virtual unknown.

Now it isn’t just Kimbo that has to look for a new direction, EliteXC does as well. However, Kimbo’s loss is MMA’s gain. With the specter that is Kimbo removed from the sport, we can now move on and focus on what the sport is supposed to be about, skill, athleticism and strategy. Read more