Bas Rutten Speaks On The Kimbo Slice Issue

Kimbo Slice has got a lot of flack since his debut in to professional MMA. As a headliner at Elite XC events with very few pro MMA fights under his belt, he drew a lot of verbal abuse from other MMA fighters and fans. I’ve even said a few words about him here, but after reading a segment in the latest Tapout Magazine, I feel that perhaps I was wrong to judge and talk badly about the man.

You have to think about it this way. On Youtube Kimbo Slice was a bad-ass street fighter for quite a few years before being picked up in the MMA circuit. Elite XC more or less saw this guy and their eyes lit up green. They knew that a lot of people watched the viral Youtube videos and if they watched the videos then they would surely like to see how he faired in the ring in an MMA match. So they offer him a contract and you could almost say they exploited him in a way. They offer him a contract in hopes of making money. Of course Kimbo is not going to turn down a contract where he can potentially make money doing something that he’s pretty good at. Most MMA fighters have to work their way up through the circuits, but when a promoter sees money making potential, they jump on it before the next guy does.

If you were an MMA fighter (and some readers may be) and were offered a contract to make some real money in the sport and not have to work a normal day job, 99.9% would take it, right? Why not? Very rarely would you find someone that says, “Nah, I’d rather train longer and hold out, while taking more fists to the face before I take any contract.”. It’s not selling out, it’s taking an opportunity. Sometimes when opportunity knocks you have to open that door, drag it inside and put it in a rear naked choke because it won’t come around often. Sometimes you have to dive in head first to discover your own true potential.

Kimbo Slice was always pretty humble in his pre-fight interviews. He never talked immense amounts of trash in order to intimidate his opponents and make himself look like King Shit…or a Shamrock. He normally wouldn’t say much more than something like “I’m gonna go out there and do what I do.”. Unfortunately for him, he may have to work his way up the ladder top get to where he once was. Here is just a sliver of what Bas Rutten had to say about Kevin Ferguson in the last issue of Tapout Magazine. In case you were not aware, Bas Rutten did quite a bit of training with Kimbo Slice.

Kimbo didn’t ask for this; it just happened.Kimbo would never say he was the best–far from it– because in every interview that he did, he would always say, and I quote, “I am still a little squirrel in this big world trying to learn the game.” He didn’t disrespect other fighters, he wasn’t a bad role model, he trained hard and he actually tried to be a perfect role model since he knew that a lot of people, especially kids, watched his every move.

There was quite a bit more to this article that kind of opened my eyes about Kimbo Slice. Do I think he’s a great fighter? Better than I am, that’s for sure. The article just made me realize more that it wasn’t completely Kimbo’s fault that he was pushed in to the spotlight before he “earned” his way in to the MMA circuit. Just about every hardcore MMA fan and fighter is going to give someone a hard time when they are thrown a bone that perhaps they don’t deserve right away. Brock Lesnar is getting a lot of that now, but he’s fought a few top stars in his short career in MMA. The difference between the two is that Brock already made a name for himself in the world of wrestling, both “pro” and amateur. Kimbo was just a street fighter on Youtube. If you think Dana White didn’t sign Brock for monetary gain like Elite XC did for Slice then you’re crazy. The main difference is that Brock has fought hard hitting, technical and reputable fighters in his three fights in the UFC. That was the UFC’s choice.

Perhaps Kimbo would not have fought so well against fighters of the same caliber, but it was Elite XC making the matches kind of lop-sided. They didn’t want people to see Kimbo Slice lose his first fight, that wouldn’t have been good TV. Perhaps if they were not headlining events, he would not have got so much ridicule. I’m not saying that we should all just become Kimbo Slice fans, I just think maybe we should stop and think before we criticize someone for taking a great opportunity and being exploited by a promoter, that’s all.

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