Kevin Ferguson (February 8, 1974 - June 6, 2016), better known as Kimbo Slice, was a Bahamian-American mixed martial artist, professional boxer, and actor. Turning to mixed martial arts in 2005, Slice left the underground fighting scene and signed a professional contract with EliteXC after making his MMA debut with Cage Fury Fighting Championships in 2007, scoring a win over MMA pioneer and former UFC heavyweight contender Tank Abbott in 2008. In 2009, he joined the UFC by competing in The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights, where he lost in his first fight to eventual series winner Roy Nelson. After becoming a free agent via his dismissal from the UFC, Slice ventured into the professional boxing circuit, competing as a pro fighter from 2011 to 2013. In January 2015, he signed a contract with Bellator MMA going on to defeat MMA icon and long time veteran Ken Shamrock.
Slice was born Kevin Ferguson in Nassau, Bahamas, on February 8, 1974. as a child and grew up in Cutler Ridge, Florida. He was raised with his brother Devon and sister Renea by his mother Rosemary Clarke. He went to Bel-Air Elementary School, where he was reportedly involved in his first fight with fellow student Dominic Sauer at the age of 13 as he tried to defend a friend. In 2002, he was charged with carrying a concealed weapon and in 2003, he began his career in unsanctioned mutual combat street fights.
In 2005, Slice started training in martial arts at the Freestyle Fighting Academy under Marcos Avellan and David Avellan. In 2006, Slice signed to fight against former WBO Heavyweight champion and Olympic gold-medalist boxer Ray Mercer in a CFFC event in 2007. Slice was 33 years old facing Mercer, who would be 46 years old at the time. Slice and Mercer fought at Cage Fury Fighting Championships 5, in Atlantic City on June 23, 2007. Slice defeated Mercer with a guillotine choke at 1:12 into the first round. CFFC V sold 20,000 ppv buys. In a post-fight interview, Slice stated that he would like to fight David Tank Abbott. Abbott, who was a spectator, stood up from his seat and accepted the call out.
One of the matchmakers for CFFC asked Slice for his assurance so that an October 12 bout at Cage Fury Fighting Championships 6 between Slice and Tank Abbott could be organized. This event was later canceled due to a promotion dispute. Slice fought Bo Cantrell, 10-9, at EliteXC: Renegade. On February 16, 2008, Slice fought Tank Abbott in the main event at EliteXC: Street Certified. He won by KO 43 seconds into the first round, taking his pro record to 2-0. At the fight, his weight was announced at an all-time low of 234 lb (106 kg), a far cry from his street fighting days of 280 lb (130 kg).
On May 31, 2008, Slice fought in the main event of the first ever mixed martial arts event shown on prime time network television, EliteXC: Primetime. Though one of the judges had each fighter winning one of the first two rounds, Slice's opponent James Thompson won both on total points by repeatedly taking down Slice and grounding and pounding. In the opening seconds of the third round, however, Slice threw a haymaker to Thompson's left ear, which ruptured Thompson's cauliflower. This was soon followed by three unanswered punches to a standing Thompson, which led to a referee stoppage and the controversial win for Slice.
On October 4, 2008, a Kimbo Slice vs. Ken Shamrock fight was supposed to take place at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Florida as part of CBS' Saturday Night Fights. However, Shamrock received a cut to the left eye during a warm-up only hours before the fight was to take place. This left the head of fight operations to choose a replacement for the fight. Options were Seth Petruzelli, Aaron Rosa and Frank Shamrock. Slice's team stated they did not want him fighting Frank no matter how much money was offered to them, so Lappen decided that Petruzelli was the best option for the main event. The promoters hinted that they wanted the fight standing, and Slice aimed to keep it standing for excitement.
After Elite Xtreme Combat ceased operations, Dana White stated that if Slice wanted to compete in the Ultimate Fighting Championship he would have to win his way in by competing on The Ultimate Fighter TV show. The coaches for the show were Quinton Jackson and Rashad Evans, both former UFC Light Heavyweight Champions. Slice was the number one pick for coach Rampage and the second pick overall. Following defeat in the preliminary round, Slice did not leave the show like some contestants after elimination, continuing to train with the remaining participants and sharpening his own combat skills, particularly ground fighting and defense. Slice later turned down the opportunity to take Matt Mitrione's place in the quarter-finals after it was revealed that he had arthritis in his knee.
Slice made his UFC debut when he fought Houston Alexander on December 5, 2009, at The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights Finale. In a fight that many thought would not leave the first round, Alexander would instead spend most of the first and third rounds circling Slice tentatively with little engagement. In the second round Slice managed to secure a suplex which very well may have tipped the judges' scorecards in his favor. On May 8, 2010, Slice made his pay-per-view and official heavyweight debut in his second fight at UFC 113 against his fellow Ultimate Fighter veteran Matt Mitrione. He ended up losing in the second round via a TKO. Slice exhibited the same sharpened ground fighting skill he gained from The Ultimate Fighter, landing an explosive takedown early on and was thought to have taken the first round on the judges cards, but Mitrione began to chop down the senior Slice with hard leg kicks that led to him gaining mount.
Following the loss to Mitrione, Dana White stated that it was "probably Kimbo's last fight in the UFC". But he still praised Slice, stating "He's impressed me as a human being and as a fighter." Following his dismissal from the UFC, Slice became a free agent. In August 2010, Slice announced his intention to become a professional boxer. He stated "I feel like a baby all over again." Slice made his pro boxing debut on August 13, 2011. He had three fights in 2012. In February 2016, at Bellator 149, Slice faced Dada 5000. The duo had a big rivalry between them due to their old street fight legacies. In the first round, both fighters gassed out almost immediately, and Slice went on to win via TKO when Dada collapsed from apparent exhaustion in the third round. Following the bout it was reported that Slice had failed his pre-fight drug test, with traces of nandrolone and an elevated T/E ratio. He was fined and his Texas license revoked in 2016.
Slice was also active in acting; he appeared in Blood and Bone (2009) and The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption, among others. He married Antoinette Ray in May 1994, and they had six children. He also had two stepdaughters. Kimbo Slice passed away on June 6, 2016, at the age of 42, due to heart failure. Bellator and UFC organizations published statements expressing their condolences and honoring his impact on the sport.
Kimbo Slice je ikonou MMA, známym aj ako kráľ internetových súbojov, a jeho pôsobenie presiahlo hranice športu. Jeho život v sebe skrýva tvrdosť pouličných bitiek, ktoré ho katapultovali do profesionálneho zápasenia a filmu.
Kimbo Slice: Nejobávanější rváč internetu, kterého UFC nechtělo
Často uvádzané míľniky
- Narodenie: 8. február 1974, Nassau, Bahamy.
- Debut v MMA: Cage Fury Fighting Championships, 2007, výhra nad Ray Mercerom.
- Slávne súboje: Tank Abbott (2008), James Thompson (2008).
- UFC: The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights (2009) a zápasy s Roy Nelsonom a Houston Alexanderom.
- Prechod na box: oficiálny debut v roku 2011 a pokračujúce zápasy.
- Bellator: comeback v roku 2015, víťazstvo nad Ken Shamrockom a zápas s Dada 5000 v Bellator 149.
- Tresty a problém so substanciami: testy na doping a strata licencie v Texase v roku 2016.
Kimbo Slice zostáva významnou postavou v histórii MMA a jeho kultúrny odkaz pretrváva vo fanúšikoch aj v novších debatách o tlaku a popularite netradičných cest k sláve v bojových športoch.