What began as a sociology experiment has somehow morphed into legitimacy right before our eyes. It was supposed to be a circus side show, but has turned main event. Of course, the topic of discussion is none other than Kimbo Slice. One of the most polarizing figures in MMA, Kimbo has done everything right. He’s respectful to the sport, he trains hard, he works with the legends to improve his game, and most important, he wins.
Love him or hate him, Kimbo wins his fights. Yes, they’ve been against less than stellar competition, but as bad as the opponents have been, that’s how impressive Kimbo has looked. Earning two first round knockouts, Kimbo seems primed to start climbing up the ladder of MMA heavyweights. I would have said EliteXC heavyweights, but there really aren’t any to speak of. There’s not even a champion at Kimbo’s weight in the organization. And so, it’s necessary for Kimbo to move on to bigger and better fights.
As simple (and tantalizing as that sounds), it’s not likely to happen. To Dana White and the Ferttitas, along with many in the mainstream media, Kimbo represents the worst of MMA. However, this is a shortsighted view that ignores that he used to represent the worst of MMA. Now, he’s training and working as though he’s one of the best. The media and onlookers are not likely to ignore Kimbo’s roots in exchange for enjoying his potential fights against top competition.
And so, we wait. Kimbo technically fights, but not the fights we want to see. And certainly not the fights he needs to be fighting in order to improve. He’ll sit on the proverbial bench of the sport until he moves on to another organization with stronger heavyweights or until some challengers are brought into EliteXC. With both those options unlikely, Kimbo will instead chug along against medium-flight competition until the UFC cannot deny his presence.
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