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Sports TwitterFearsome Kimbo Slice shows his softer side in defeat
Monday, October 06, 2008
SUNRISE, Fla. — Perhaps no fighter in the short history of mixed martial arts has polarized fans like street brawler-turned-MMA fighter Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson has.
And while EliteXC's recently fallen superstar has been called everything from a poster boy to a fraud, there's one thing he won't be called after his 14-second TKO loss to Seth Petruzelli on Saturday, Oct. 4: a sore loser.
The fearsome-looking Ferguson first found fame when his underground bare-knuckle fights were promoted on YouTube. EliteXC capitalized on that popularity, signed Ferguson, and often gave him headlining status — sometimes over more experienced and deserving stars.
Hardcore MMA fans criticized the bookings; "newbies" and the bloodthirsty bought into the hype.
But at Saturday's "EliteXC: Heat" event at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Fla., Ferguson (3-1) suffered his first career defeat to Seth Petruzelli (10-4), a UFC washout who took the fight just hours before it hit CBS airwaves. (Ferguson's original opponent, Ken Shamrock, suffered a facial cut on the day of the fight and wasn't cleared to compete.)
In the post-fight press conference, Ferguson ended the uncomfortable silence that followed his late arrival.
"This was an opportunity for everybody to be a part of something big," Ferguson said of the five-fight, nationally televised event. "A rising tide lifts all ships. Before (Saturday), we didn't even know who this guy was. Now everyone knows who (Petruzelli) is."
Ferguson even removed his sunglasses to poke fun at himself.
"My family was here, man, and I got knocked out in front of my family," Ferguson razzed his opponent. "That's (expletive) up. But it's all good.
"And I got my first black eye of my life."
It was a rare — and refreshingly real — side of a fighter whose mystique was built largely with smoke and mirrors.
Dublin headliners
Former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin (24-3), who last month moved to the light-heavyweight division and defeated Matt Hamill, will again compete at 205 pounds — this time as a headliner at the UFC's first-ever Dublin, Ireland event. Franklin, from West Chester Twp., meets Dan Henderson (23-7) in UFC 93's main event.
Additionally, former Miami and Ohio State wrestling standout Mark Coleman (15-8) will return from a two-year retirement to meet Mauricio "Shogun" Rua (16-3) in the night's co-main event.
UFC 93 takes place Jan. 17 at The 02 and airs on pay per view.
Dann Stupp is editor-in-chief of MMAjunkie.com, a content partner site of Yahoo! Sports. For the latest MMA news and rumors, go to www.mmajunkie.com.
