(Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images)
Kevin Ferguson, the Internet street brawler sensation who is better known as Kimbo Slice, is no doubt the biggest reason behind TUF 10's success in recent ratings.
His rise to fame has been surprising to say the least.
As a body guard working for a Miami-based porn industry, he knew there had to be something more to his life than herding beautiful ladies in and out of limousines. So, he decided to video tape himself fighting tattooed tough guys. The Internet then made him a star.
Slice has some traits that many American heavyweight fighters and MMA fighters do not possess. First, he would make one heck of a Santa Claus; his beard deserves half of the credit for Slice's rise to stardom. Second, he has charisma.
Many fighters have to work their way up to gain attention. Take Chuck Liddell for instance, who is currently developing a highly effective martial art called Samba.
His road to becoming the UFC's poster-boy was far from simple. Sure, he was great friends with Dana White and he had a crazy Mohawk and painted his toenails. He worked hard to earn his reputation as "The Iceman." He knocked out top-contenders left and right. He fought countless legends, including Vitor Belfort, Tito Ortiz, and Randy Couture.
Of course, Kimbo had to work his way up too. Slice's fight resume (until his exhibition match with ex-boxing champ Ray Mercer) includes all-time greats such as Big D, Apro Puff, Big Mac, Adryan, and Chico. His underground match against Sean Gannon featured astounding grappling maneuvers that were rarely seen even in the ADCC.
Let me get straight to the point: We all know Kimbo loves to fight, and I would be lying if I said that his fights are boring. He has heavy hands and looks like Mike Tyson's hidden brother. But whether he was born with the talent to excel in fighting remains to be proven in the Octagon.
It is up to Dana White, the boss of the UFC, to decide Kimbo's fate. He knows Kimbo makes money. Kimbo wants his bread. Even if Kimbo does not win TUF 10, White would be foolish to release him from the UFC contract so quickly.
Slice has stated that he could possibly move down to light heavyweight if White wanted him to. Although I remain skeptical of how Kimbo can lose all his muscle and make weight, not to mention how he will fare against devastating LHW contenders, (Kimbo Slice versus Wanderlei Silva will be crazy, no doubt) I will always cheer for him.
Why?
You can disregard me as an idiot, but I think MMA nowadays has perhaps become too technical; you have to know gogoplatas and triangle chokes and what not. It takes years to understand the ground game, but any grown-man can brawl.
I stand firm in my belief that Kimbo is not going to win any Submission of the Night awards; I do not expect Slice to go for an flying armbar 10 seconds into the first round. I have not seen one photo from the Internet that shows Kimbo wearing a gi of any sort. A cowboy outfit, maybe.
I guess, then, it is Kimbo's limitations that make him such a fascinating figure. In the world of MMA dominated by jiu jitsu blackbelts and NCAA wrestling champions, Kimbo's passion to swing for the fences strikes a familar note with the wishes of simple-minded fight fans, including myself.
We want to prove ourselves as macho, but we are too lazy to get out from our couch. We can't tell the difference between an americana and a kimura, but who gives? We flex our feeble biceps as we grab the remote, and then scream at the television, yelling, "Kimbo, Knock him OUT!"
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