Thompson will shock the world

I just read this and was about to post the link to this article. I will anyway. http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/news?slug=dw-slice052808&prov=yhoo&type=lgns Basically, Wetzel is saying in a lot more words and much more eloquently than most people on here why Shaw and his handling of Kimbo are bad for the sport, especially in an event that will probably be seen by more people than any UFC PPV event.

It wouldn’t take to much to believe that Thompson has been told he will get a fat bonus if he keeps the fight standing. Becuase that’s the more ‘exciting’ fight, right?

It’s a very good article, and I was thinking about this last night at work…I really hope the elite show on CBS doesn’t push back what Dana and the UFC has built up. If casual people watch and see a thuggish, not so put together portrayal of the sport, it may not be good what happens next!!

I see where Dan Wetzel is coming from, but I don’t think the CBS/EliteXC marketing of Kimbo is that hurtful to MMA. First of all, EliteXC itself is hardly a premier MMA organization. To expand upon Wetzel’s football analogy, EliteXC is “Arena League Football” to the UFC’s “NFL”. It’s notable that the major networks did attempt to make a deal with the UFC first before settling for the second-rate EXC. Therefore, no one should expect an EXC deal to involve top fighting talent. Kimbo, with his “street” image and lack of formal experience, is what any reasonable fan should expect from an EXC marketing campaign.

The truth is that the best fights in both boxing and MMA are going to be mostly on PPV for the foreseeable future. Even in boxing, MOST of the free fights in recent memory have been the lesser fights (ex-champions, lighter weight divisions, or contenders). The big names always fight on PPV. Most of the UFC fighters are the best of the best now, and most new fans can get a suitable introduction to the UFC fighters on Spike TV. Like in boxing, the best UFC fighters fight on PPV. The new fans who really want to learn the sport get to know where to tune in very quickly. The CBS/EXC deal is interesting, and provides opportunities for second-tier fighters; but that show is hardly needed as a proper introduction to the sport for the sincere new fan.

well i think its all depends on the outcome of the fight, if kimbo wins by ko rnd 1 then prolly bad, but i mean if the fight is a back and forth war then maybe it’s good. Also if the fight goes to the ground would also help, and then maybe thompson pulls the upset or something.

Hey Mania:

I sent this to you. Where’s my props? ;)

This is one of the best quotes I’ve read in some time. I couldn’t agree with it more.

i personally think that kimbo has the potential to be a good fighter in the future with more fights and with alot of training! i know the guy has only had 2 professional fights but i do believe he has potential. i know it is really hard to get past his street fighting image that he has been living for a while on his you tube days! but he is training with bas rutten who is no doubt one of the better mma fighters of his time! i say lets just give him a chance once he gets out of his fighting cans stage to step up and fight real competiotion. i think he is good but there are alot of people out there right now that would totally dominate him standing, tim sylvia, andrei arlovski, and brandon vera would totally dominate him. i think in a couple years he will be a machine!

Some people just aren’t happy unless they’re bitchin about something. This isnt the best of fights, but who cares really. I bet you anything he tunes in and watches it himself. Elite Xc and CBS are trying to get somethin going here, so are they suppose to say it comes on Saturday night and it’s garbage, tune in if you have nothing better to do? …of course not..Wetzel is an idiot. I do wonder how much they payed Thompson to stand up though.

I think that Zuffa should have moved up their Pulver/ Faber fight up 1 day. This way people could see what a circus act EliteXC is compared to real MMA. Plus I think it would kill the CBS ratings and therefore shut Gary Shaws fat fucking mouth… As far as Kimbo, the full blame does not go to him for fighting cans, although he can deny a fight and demand a better fighter. Also, Kimbo should not be calling out fighters like Chuck until he has beat somebody!

Good write-up, bad premise.

Not every fight with top-tier fighters will result into something that will portrait the sport accurately or tie new fans to the fighters and the sport alike.

Examples:
Machida-Ortiz (both good fighters, boring fight)
P.Sell-S.Smith (both nonames, exciting standup fight)
Alvarez-Hanson (in the US barely anyone knows them, fight of the year maybe)
Couture-Gonzaga (both got extreme coverage and got hyped, terribly dull fight)

I don’t think we’ll see a fight in the calibre of Liddell-Silva at the EliteXC event, but it might be entertaining nonetheless. Beside, if Shaw could bring MMA to national TV, why couldn’t Dana?

Free Mma!! Nothing wrong with that. This is going to be a good show with plenty of knock outs.

Dan Wetzel really hit the nail on the head with this. I hope Thompson gets the upset and all this Kimbo hype is finished. Because after all he is not a mixed martial artist, he is, as Chuck put it, “a guy who fights people at taco bell”.

people tend to hate anything that isn’t the UFC. I don’t know how many times i need to say this but The UFc doesn’t have the best. Affliction has way better HW’s and the UFC’s MW division is pretty weak.

I couldn’t agree more. It’s a freak show with a few UFC rejects mixed in. Robbie Lawler is the only one worth watching.

what bugs me the most about the way Elite is promoting Kimbo is that they constantly refer back to his street fighting. I know this was a big part of Kimbo’s rise to where he is today, but hat is the exact image that the UFC has tried to convince the general public that these guys ARE NOT. Now you’ve got a prime time TV spot and the public is going to see it’s main event being touted as a street fighter. To me it’s not good for the sport.

Amen.

This is a stupid article. Brock was supposed to fight the Hammer who is probably 45 not Heath. Human cock fighting thing was when head butts were legal, fighters didn’t wear gloves , and there was no weight classes. This guy is so biased he should go work the UFC.

I agree with the article MMA is more than two heavyweights swinging for the fences because that is all these two fighters do. Put in the lightweights to the middleweights division and display stand up and ground work, not some thug street fighting league

Good article. I think Elite XC and CBS have missed the boat in a few ways.

In no particular order….

1. They have women fighting on the card. For the “average Joe”, who may already perceive MMA as barbaric, they certainly won’t appreciate seeing two women fighting in a cage.

2. Seeing Kimbo on the main event and assuming he’s the cream of the crop. Or worse…having someone point out that Kimbo used to be a street-brawler – doesn’t do much for the ARTS in Mixed Martial Arts.

3. No Joe Rogan who does a superb job of explaining positioning and the finer intricacies of Jiu Jitsu. This helps the average fan understand that it’s not just two guys rolling around for 5 minutes.

4. Dare I say no Goldie?? Always good for a laugh. No one calls a Superman Punch like Goldie.

In the end, it’s good marketing and visibility into MMA but the delivery vehicle of that message is all wrong.

Both sides have points. Shaw needs to work with what he has. There’s a reason why kimbo is already so popular. Elite has been losing money. Instead of gambling it away, he’s trying to showcase the properties that already have shown successful.

The problem that he should bemoan is that the kids like cotton candy over caviar. Even ardent mma fans don’t like the caviar, as shown by complaints of Machida’s apparent boringness despite his skill. The kids would rather see a slugfest then a technical battle.

Of course there’s a middle area, where you have the entertainers that are also skilled. GSP, Shogun, BJ, Rampage, Anderson etc. They’re the great hope of MMA’s popularity, but until then Shaw’s just trying to make money.

My only real problem here is how they are treating Kimbo. Kimbo needs to be fighting beter and better competition. His career window is closing fast. With Bas as a trainer he might develop into a decent fighter, but you have to fight people better than you to get better. It is true in any sport. Shaw is a boxing promoter where fighters with undefeated records reign supreme. MMA doesn’t fit that mold. Everyone loses at least once….it is just the way it is in MMA. Brock Lesnar will be a better fighter because he LOST to Mir. So maybe Kimbo loses a fight or two along the way, but at least he would get the fight experience he deserves. He will learn nothing from knocking out James Thompson and Tank Abbott in 30 seconds?

I couldn’t agree more with that comment. I fear that he is right and we may not see MMA on National Television anytime soon if this card disappoints. That would be terrible for the sport.

Of course we’d all love for the polished product that is the UFC to be America’s first mainstream look at MMA. But the fact is that they don’t have a TV deal whereas EliteXC does. I have been downplaying the potential success of EliteXC and Gary Shaw on MMA for a long time. As the online blogasphere has surmised, the reality is that EliteXC is hedging all their bets on the success of this Saturday’s show. Yes, Kimbo no doubt needs better competition. But the truth is that this man has more star potential that anyone in MMA at this point. Why? Because he is being marketed as a monster. And America NEEDS that type of unbeatable monster figure, ala Mike Tyson to be captivated. Once they’re on the hook, promoters will have much more appeal and capital to capitalize. And I have to give it to Gary Shaw, he is marketing Kimbo in just the right way for this thing to get done. Guess we’ll know just how successful this will truly be come Monday…

Wow, right on the mark…

This is a stupid article. Brock was supposed to fight the Hammer who is probably 45 not Heath. Two big heavy weights going toe 2 toe shows pride and honor. Kimbo is respectful to the sport unlike Brock who disrespected mma by actually believing and saying he could run over Frank Mir, and that Randy is not a true heavyweight champion. He even said the Heavy weight Division is starving for a true champion What a Butt crack statement coming from somebody with 2 fights. For me Kimbo can represent Mma any day over Brock.

This guy is an idiot! Support MMA!

true kimbo and thompson dont deserve to be headlining such a historic event, but people are forgetting that this is only 1 fight on an otherwise quite a strong card

I loved how Dana White eloquently stated that BJ Penn would slaughter Kimbo. It’s all about technique, heart, and intelligence. I think that’s what the MMA world is complaining about. Kimbo should not be the poster boy for MMA. GSP, Silva, or Penn should. Unfortunately UFC doesn’t have the Network deal even though they have all the best contenders for the poster boy status.

It wasn’t the Fight Night fights on Spike that helped propell the UFC in front of a national audience. It was TUF that really opened the doors for the UFC. It was the average Joe’s chance to understand the training, learn the different submissions, getting to know the fighters and trainers. TUf helped cement the UFC as the premier MMA league. TUF educated the average Joe into a more moderate MMA fan.

CBS/EliteXC tossing in two fighters in a cage and expecting the world to watch will probably work the first time. But, where’s the vision? Unless EliteXC helps educate the average Joe about the technical side of MMA, the average Joe will have the same attitude about MMA they had 10 years ago – aka human cock fighting.

Puh-leeze! UFC did the same thing with Brock Lesnar! I’m not going to bitch about free fights. MMA is evolving and nobody, especially not some Johnny Come Lately Journalist is going to decide how.

If you got a problem with it dont watch it but I know all you internet haters are gonna be totally contridicting yourselves when you tune in saturday night

i thought kimbo was a lame headliner until i read bas rutten is training him. with his natural ability and bas’s training in a few more fights this guy could be a threat to anyone. what would impress me the most is if it leads to cards like ufc vs elite xc or make it easier for guys to fight for in more than 1 organization, just like boxers ranked in the different boxing counsels, mma fighters should should be allowed also. the cbs deal is a great step for mma fighters and fans!!!

go elite xc!!

The back page of the Philadelphia Daily News has a small picture of Kimbo on the back cover and it says “Are you ready for MMA?”

Great. Now casual fans are going to think that this no talent thug is what MMA is all about. This is a D level MMA fight, and it’s a main event on broadcast TV. So much for the sport evolving… it’s about to take three steps back.

AWESOME!

I’m still going to watch this, but I agree. Dana White needs to start paying people more, but from what I’ve seen of Elite XC so far, it’s an inferior product (Jake Shields, Gilbert Melendez, Frank Shamrock, Cung Le and a couple others excluded).

Also: I don’t think Kimbo is a “thug” just because he’s big and black and has a beard. He seems like a fairly intelligent guy.

“Saturday’s card is not set up to show the best of mixed martial arts and introduce America to a sport it would likely embrace.”

Sadly it’s true.

I agree with this guy 100% he is right on the money with every word in this article. Good job.

Mania is sooo full of Kimbo haters – dugh.
firstly, the best HWs in the world is not even in the UFCs: Barnett, Rizzo, Fedor, Sylvia.

the common assumption that if a fighter is not in the UFC then he is whack is simply not true. Unless you also think Cung Le, Nate Diaz(who beat Gomi), Frank Shamrock are all cans. It’s good for the sport that UFC is no longer the only MMA location in town. Good for the fighters as well for had no choice thus far than accept Dana’s crap.

It is true that, at the moment, Kimbo is fighting cans. But his fights are fun – you KNOW someone is getting knocked out. And don’t act like it’s not fun when Chuck or Rampage knock people out. That’s what gets people coming to the sport. The UFC used to stand guys up, if they were hugging each other too long on the floor and crowd was even booing! Definitely not good for MMA. No wonder there are more stand ups now.

I mean if you need something academic, you could watch documentaries the whole day. But how often do documentaries come in the cinema ?
Even i wouldn’t watch too much of that.

Kimbo is a moving junk action movie. Exciting to watch – no need to get serious,angry,jealous or hateful.
Everyone is free to watch UFC documentaries
I know i want to see Gina fighting (Don’t care if LaRosa is Nr.1) and Kimbo Slice.
Thompson might take it to the ground – and disappoint millions of viewers.
Anyways i think Kimbo will fight a 2 tier fighter by year end. Then you can judge whether the hateful comments are deserved – Innocent unless proven guilty !

To say Saturday’s card will not show “the best of mixed martial arts”, is far reaching. Kimbo is not the only one on that night, Robbie Lawler,Scott Smith, Joey Villasenor Phil Baroni, Gina Carano, are all credible fighters which will represent the sport. Sadly, Marketing over Legitimacy takes precedence. Marketing wise, there is a buzz about Kimbo slice, and it would be a shrued business move to make to have him as the main event. Personally, I would like to see somebody else head the card. However, regardless of if you like Kimbo or not, chances are you will watch that fight.

Yeah! WEll said Chad! I’m bettin’ my balls too that all the Kimbo-haters out there are gonna watch Kimbo on TV[unless they don’t have TV sets at home, hehe!!]

Kimbo is the worst thing to happen to mma since Gary Shaw stuck his grubby fat fingers in the mix. If he is as good as Bas and Fatty Shaw say’s he is, then why is he not fighting Bigfoot Silva? Because Fatty Shaw sees in Kimbo his meal ticket to the fame and recognition that he never got while he was a low level boxing promoter. Im sick of Fatty Shaw trying to justify this expose Kimbo is getting by saying he can beat anyone you put up against him. If that was the case then Fatty would have set up Sean Gannon for Kimbo’s first couple of fights instead of the 2 chumps he’s fought so far. BTW, I know im not the only one who saw 2or3 phantom punches thrown by Kimbo against Bo Cantreal. If this is the route Fatty Shaw is going to take, then by the time EXC is on cable T.V., everyone of the people watching on that night will see a show that is simular to pro-wrestling. A little bit of overacting and alot of fake fighting. This is not good for the sport of MMA, nor is it good for the true, hardcore, original fans of MMA. Im sick of it and so should you. Where Is The Outrage?

Gary shaw=full time bottom feeder.

Kimbo Slice=convicted felon and street fighter that doesn’t belong on tv representing MMA to a new fanbase.
I hope Gary looses his shirt for what he’s doing to MMA then Kimbo kicks the s&^t out of him.

Kimbo vs Bob Sapp!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! that would be awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dana White says that CBS is nuts and Elite XC sucks, but alas he has put together 7 different show to be played on Spike TV on May 31st, coincidence or is Dana scared just a little bit.

I predict that once Elite XC (a.k.a. ringling bros. circus) goes under Kimho goes to wrestling were he belongs with all the other steriod dying couldn’t make it as a professional athlete fags. Death to Elite XC and it’s crappy fighters!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

P.S. Gary Shaw quit trying to sell us your crappy fights or fighters and go suck some other sport dry! Money hungry fat ass.

I could give a shit about CBS or any of the other garbage on regular TV.

I’d love to show up to the kid’s house that bullied me in High School with Kimbo at my back and tell him “it’s payback time” and then watch Kimbo go to work on him. I’m still carrying issues. Yes, I’m 33 years old.

He’s a big scary man with a scary beard and a scary name! He scares me! His beard scares me! I bet he’s mean! and can beat people up!

Save me Tito!

NO Skill just a beard!