Kimbo Vs Shamrock

[Emilio_Rebenga]

In a battle of one of the biggest draws in mixed martial arts history against one of today’s most talked-about fighters, 44-year-old Ken Shamrock will be named Kimbo Slice’s opponent in the main event when CBS officially announces the matches for the Oct. 4 network special from the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Fla.

The official announcement of the complete show, which is also expected to feature Gina Carano vs. Kelly Kobold-Gavin, is slated for Tuesday.

Slice’s (3-0) fame from YouTube videos translated into the most-watched mixed martial arts match ever in North America on May 31, when 6.5 million viewers saw him beat James Thompson on CBS. Shamrock set pay-per-view records during the early days of the sport, and later in comeback matches with Tito Ortiz.

But Shamrock (26-13-2), one of the first superstars of the sport during a stint from 1993-1996, has lost five matches in a row since a win over Kimo Leopoldo four years ago. He was not competitive with Tito Ortiz in two matches in 2006, but the first match drew what is still the second-largest pay-per-view number in MMA history with 775,000 buys after the two were opposing coaches on The Ultimate Fighter reality show.

Controversy regarding a quick stoppage in the match resulted in a televised rematch on Spike TV that drew 5.9 million viewers. Shamrock, a one-time powerhouse, lost both matches in less than four minutes combined and was easily overpowered by Ortiz.

Since then, Shamrock’s only fight was on March 8, in London, England, when he was knocked out in 3:26 by journeyman Robert “Buzz” Berry.

Elite XC desperately needs ratings success with this show, with just one event after this left on its CBS deal, and coming off poor ratings for the July 26 show.

While Shamrock’s record in the ring hasn’t been impressive after leaving the sport in 1997 to go into pro wrestling for three years, he still poses some danger on the ground. He significantly injured the knees and ankles of Don Frye in a 2002 battle in Japan, and even though he lost quickly to Rich Franklin in 2005, his submission work in the first minute did put Franklin on crutches for a week.

ADVERTISEMENT

But he’s been prone to quick knockout losses and a power game that made him a star dating back to UFC 1 in 1993 hasn’t been evident much in the past decade.

Brock-Kongo? While not announced officially, the Lesnar vs. Cheick Kongo match that UFC has been attempting to put together since both won on Aug. 9 in Minneapolis is hopeful, but far from definite for Nov. 15 in Portland, Ore.

The date depends on how quickly Kongo can recover from a nagging shoulder problem.

Kongo will be the best striker Lesnar has ever faced. But Lesnar would go into such a match as a heavy favorite because of the belief Kongo is not going to have an answer for the wrestling ability of the former NCAA champion.

With so many shows to fill and so many name fighters who aren’t going to be ready until December, if Kongo is not ready, it is going to make the card a very difficult sell as a pay-per-view quality lineup. The only name match finalized for that date is Kenny Florian vs. Joe Stevenson.

Frank of all trades: With so much interest being generated by Lesnar regarding pro wrestlers transitioning to MMA, someone is trying to do both, and many other things, all at once.

Frank Trigg, who defeated Olympic judo gold medalist Makoto Takimoto on Sunday in Saitama, Japan, via three-round decision for the Sengoku promotion, is becoming a jack of many trades.

Best known in some circles as the MMA analyst on FOX Sports Net, and by an entirely different group as the expert analyst for the Total Nonstop Action pro wrestling organization on Spike, Trigg also does an Internet MMA audio show and has his own clothing line.

Trigg (17-6) went straight from Japan to Orlando for pro wrestling tapings. He was brought in as an announcer in March when the wrestling company did an MMA-themed storyline. Almost as soon as he got there, he started secretly training to add “pro wrestler” to his resume, and his first match is expected to be imminent.

Those who have done both pro wrestling and MMA probably numbers more than 100, with some of the best known being Lesnar, Ken Shamrock, Don Frye, Mark Coleman, Josh Barnett, Frank Shamrock, Renzo Gracie, Kazushi Sakuraba, Bob Sapp, and Bas Rutten.

Trigg’s double-leg takedowns and overall power were too much for Takimoto, who won the gold medal in the 2000 Olympics in Sydney at 180 pounds. Takimoto threw him early using his judo, but Trigg’s wrestling controlled most of the match.

Trigg was in the semifinal of a show headlined by Takanori Gomi, the top Japanese lightweight star, who many rank behind only B.J. Penn as the best in the world in the class.

Gomi (29-3, 1 no-contest), the final PRIDE lightweight champion, hardly looked like a rival for Penn in winning a decision over South Korea’s Seung Hwan Bang (5-2) over three rounds.

Sengoku is Japan’s second biggest MMA company, behind only Dream. But both groups are question marks going forward. Sadaharu Tanikawa, who heads Fighting Entertainment Group, the parent company of Dream, has noted that if the company doesn’t get a strong television rating on its Sept. 23 show, its future is in question.

Sengoku is in even worse shape. Sunday’s show drew about 10,000 fans, maybe half-full, to the Saitama Super Arena, but in Japan free tickets are not hard to come by. The group has no television in Japan, and does almost no numbers on pay-per-view, while putting on expensive first-class shows.

Awaiting answers: Why would a fighter turn down what would be, by far, the highest profile fight of his career, against an opponent that he dominated the first time they faced?

K.J. Noons is expected to have a press conference soon to explain the answer to that perplexing question.

Noons dominated Nick Diaz when they fought on Nov. 10 in the match to determine Elite XC’s first lightweight king. Noons’ superior boxing technique wound up with Diaz bleeding badly within a round, and the match was stopped at the end of the first round. After Diaz and Noons both won matches on June 14 in Honolulu on Showtime, the rematch was announced and followed with a mid-ring showdown that aired on Showtime. A rematch between the two has far more interest than any fight Noons could have at this point in his career.


Placed on the Oct. 4 CBS show in Sunrise, Fla., it could easily have 10 times or more as many eyeballs watching than their first meeting. But after an impasse in negotiations, Elite XC has dropped plans for the fight and moved Diaz to a Nov. 8 date on Showtime.

The closest thing to an explanation given by the Noons camp is that they felt Diaz wasn’t the top contender.

The first U.S. Olympian to talk MMA? After placing seventh this past week in the 163-pound weight class, American Ben Askren became the first 2008 Olympian to bring up going into MMA.

“I think there is a good chance I’ll be fighting soon,” said the 2006 and 2007 Dan Hodge Award winner as the best college wrestler in any weight class. Askren said he’s committed to helping coach the University of Missouri wrestling team for two years and would concentrate on improving his jiu-jitsu and kickboxing, feeling he needs to be excellent in two of three categories (wrestling, jiu-jitsu and kickboxing) and at least proficient in the third before he could do really well.

Satoshi Ishii, the Japanese superheavyweight gold medalist in judo, who talked of fighting Fedor Emelianenko after winning the gold, and who Japanese MMA promoters are trying to sign, is sticking with his main sport. Japanese judo officials think, at 21, he has the potential to win gold medals in three Olympics.

[jkb1116]

Shamrock is going down.

[firmechicano831]

I think Shamrock is too small for Kimbo.

[KatsMeow]

I'm just excited to see Emilio back!!

[zimmy]

dude...wtf... why is kimbo taking / getting such an easy road... look at who Lessner is having to fight on his way to mma career... i mean Brock-Kongo is a serious fight! And kimbo gets another has been

[xlxBigSexyxlx]

Is this serious?


Shamrock is like 100 years old.

[southmadejd]

Actually he is 116 years old....the only way Shamrock has a chance in hell is by taking Kimbo to the ground.....this is such a bs fight...but I will still watch it .

[BgMc31]

^^Exactly! And that is why this fight was made. CBS and Elite XC don't give to fvcks about the sport. Its all about ratings which translates into C.R.E.A.M!!!! And I'm a Kimbo fan. And before anyone bashes Kimbo about being an ignorant thug. Check the man's background. His sophmore and junior years in high school, he was a top ten ranked linebacker and it it wasn't for the hurricane that destroyed his school, he was on his way to any number of major D-1 schools. Not only that, it is also said that he was a good student and junior class president. Sometimes bad luck derails people's plans and he had to do what he needed to become successful. He's got a long way to go to be a top fighter, but you can't hate the man for making his money!

[kloter1]

shamrock will get tied into a pretzel.

kimbo sucks and will never be a respected mma fighter.

What a jabron fight..

[Voice of Reason]

He needs to earn the money by taking a real fight and getting his ass knocked out or chocked out, it's close to watching WWE with him everything is planned, rigged, or in his favor to win. IT'S BullSHIT!...

Look at all his 3 dumbass pro fights:

1. Bo Cantrell: Tapping mid air to a ghost elbow (fixed)

2. Tank Abbot: 42 yr. old washed up fighter took bribe money to pay for bar tab. (fought drunk)

3. James Thompson: Decent fighter but again with the plan for him to come out with tumor on his ear and hold back, make the fight last till the third round so Kimbo looks legit. Just like it said in the script Thompson admits to getting. (scripted)

Now Ken is washed up but still has a chance on the ground, but I wonder about his age, his integrity (taking dive), and he's only had 1 win 4 years ago in the last 8 years.

The only way Kimbo will get any respect is by taking a real fight and it doesn't matter if he wins or loses just keep it real, and fight fighters in the game (Bret Rogers) and not hand fed wins to keep EliteXC alive, but that's the problem he's the big thing keeping the org making lots of money. He's just a sideshow whether he cares or not as long as he gets that "bread"...

[BG]

dude...wtf... why is kimbo taking / getting such an easy road... look at who Lessner is having to fight on his way to mma career... i mean Brock-Kongo is a serious fight! And kimbo gets another has been

Yup. Kongo lost to Herring and Brock destroyed Herring, wont be that good of an fight imo.

[gixxerboy1]

Yup. Kongo lost to Herring and Brock destroyed Herring, wont be that good of an fight imo.

kongo is good. I think it would be a good fight

[Chode Logan]

Shamrock is a has been, he should be retired. And Kimbo is only good at fighting large black men in back yards and parking lots, he has no place fighting legit. His last fight was horse sh*t and he can't do anything except punch.

...but I'll still watch it.

[BgMc31]

kongo is good. I think it would be a good fight

Kongo will be a great test for Lesnar. Lesnar hasn't met a pure striker like Kongo. It will be nice to see how Lesnar's chin is.

[Skully44420]

hah shamrock is gonna get knocked the fuk out!!!...but i do agree that they need to actually get some competition for kimbo to actually prove he belongs in MMA

i didn't get to see the last Lesnar fight but will definately see this one

maybe we'll see kimbo and lesnar one day

[Pooks]

If EliteXC was not in some precarious financial situation, I'd say they'd fix this fight! hahaha... but unless Shamrock is willing to lose for an extra 5k or less, i doubt that.. this company could be belly up by the end of the year.

[BG]

kongo is good. I think it would be a good fight

It will, hopefully Kongo will be at his best and Brock will improve. I just have a hard till watchbing a bull go out there and fight with not much skill behind him. Hes getting better, much, will be the most devastating HW along with Fedor.

Kongo will be a great test for Lesnar. It will be nice to see how Lesnar's chin is.

Yes it would.

[SNUKA]

kimbo is garbage he is an internet tought guy who fights no one....i mean shamrock is washed up but i still think he can beat up on kimbo wonder what the money line is on this one

[J-Dogg]

Kimbo won his street fights by intimidation, if you've ever seen them the guys were scared to hit him. He is an intimidating guy, he's like 280lbs, jacked up pretty good, bald with a beard and just got out of prison.

Trained MMA fighters fight every day though, or spar. They are not intimidated and they are not scared to hit him.

I think if Kimbo lets it get on the ground, Ken can lock any joint at will. I wonder what the odds are? I think Ken has a better chance than most give him.

[BgMc31]

Kimbo won his street fights by intimidation, if you've ever seen them the guys were scared to hit him. He is an intimidating guy, he's like 280lbs, jacked up pretty good, bald with a beard and just got out of prison.

Trained MMA fighters fight every day though, or spar. They are not intimidated and they are not scared to hit him.

I think if Kimbo lets it get on the ground, Ken can lock any joint at will. I wonder what the odds are? I think Ken has a better chance than most give him.

Try more like 250-260lbs and where is proof of a prison record? Lets stick to the facts. Is Kimbi garbage? No! His boxing skills are quite evident and his unching power is tremendous. Is he an elite MMA fighter? NO! But after only 3 pro fights, I'll reserve judgement until I see more. I can't think of one fighter who was considered the best after only 3 fights.

[gixxerboy1]

Try more like 250-260lbs and where is proof of a prison record? Lets stick to the facts. Is Kimbi garbage? No! His boxing skills are quite evident and his unching power is tremendous. Is he an elite MMA fighter? NO! But after only 3 pro fights, I'll reserve judgement until I see more. I can't think of one fighter who was considered the best after only 3 fights.

i thought he even say he is an ex-con. Not that it matter either way just thought that was a fact

[BgMc31]

i thought he even say he is an ex-con. Not that it matter either way just thought that was a fact

According to ESPNs E60 news show, although he's had several run-ins with the law, all were petty and he's never seen any prison time and insignificant jail time. Nothing more than 2-3 day stints for traffic warrants and bs like that. That's according to ESPN. I think this thug image is part of his marketing.

[xlxBigSexyxlx]

They should make him shave.

Thats a big ****ing cushion for his chin.

[Reed]

What the hell is shamrock thinking?? I guess the money

[southmadejd]

They should make him shave.

Thats a big ****ing cushion for his chin.

Bro you aren't being serious are you? That beard wont give any kind of significant cushion to a punch.

[BG]

They should make him shave.

Thats a big ****ing cushion for his chin.

Or jerry curl it and it would be slick??

[stpete]

For shitz and giggles i'm taking Shamrock.

[Bojangles69]

I'm so confused.
Shamrock hasn't fought since like 2000bc.
And Kimbo is fat, and has no real mastery of anything.

I'm still gonna have to put my money on Mr. Shammy.

[D-Bo Dre]

Its in my hometown,, was looking how much tix were running... $70 for shit seats!! Damn, that's kinda steep considering the card.. I wouldve maybe bought em for Under $30, if that.. But I bet they will sellout.. One thing Kimbo can do is draw crowds.. especially in S.FLA

[Bojangles69]

I'd rather spend my money on Jets tickets.

[BgMc31]

I'm so confused.
Shamrock hasn't fought since like 2000bc.
And Kimbo is fat, and has no real mastery of anything.

I'm still gonna have to put my money on Mr. Shammy.

Kimbo is fat? What planet do you live on and how childish is that? You must not know much about fighting because while Kimbo has a very, very long way to go before he becomes a well rounded MMA athlete, but there no denying that the man does have boxing skill.

[Voice of Reason]

while Kimbo has a very, very long way to go before he becomes a well rounded MMA athlete, but there no denying that the man does have boxing skill.

He has neither the time or dedication to ever become a well rounded MMA fighter he's in it to get his "bread" and make some movie dollars, so he can feed his 6 kids, (jesus christ ) make a decent living and that's it... and w/e to his boxing/street fighting skills...

[Bojangles69]

Kimbo is fat? What planet do you live on and how childish is that? You must not know much about fighting because while Kimbo has a very, very long way to go before he becomes a well rounded MMA athlete, but there no denying that the man does have boxing skill.

If you have weight that works to your disadvantage in the fighting arena, you're fat.
And he's old, and slow too.

By the time he becomes "well rounded" he'll be in a senior citizen home shitting on himself.

oh & nanny nanny poo poo you can't catch me. =P

[j4ever41]

oh great another has been fight.

[CSAR]

Wuuuuuuuuuuhhhhh LET'S GET READY TO RUMBLE!!!

In the red corner, wearing the brown robe given to him by Moses and walking with aid of a staff, Ken Shamrock!
And in the blue corner, wearing the white Depends undergarments and using hearing aids, Kimbo Slice!

That should give you an idea of how washed up they are.

[rockinred]

Ken is a has been but he is no pushover... he only fights top fighters for the most part...even in his later years and he has been losing.. but i don't think kimbo is being spoon fed as much as everyone is saying.. Mark coleman and lesnar where going to fight and no one was screaming bloody murder about that card and coleman had announced retirement.

I'm already sick of all the internet boys bashing kimbo... saying he can't fight worth a shit... anyone that has been in any kind of fight know's that kimbo can throw down... he might not be great at grappling and the ground, but that is what the cage is for... bring every dynamic and lay it on the table...some do standup and some like it on the ground... big deal. I think most haters are just racial....there are plenty one dimensional fighters in the mma sport... he is no different.. as long as there are haters, I am cheering more and more for kimbo to win.

As far as saying he needs to go through the proper channels of promotion... fvck that!!! who is to say what is right for anyone... look into any sport athlete and they all have different stories of success... cinderella stories are a dime a dozen....

[mediumpimpin]

Why would anyone expect Kimbo to come out fighting the top fighters? Its a smart move to fight the guys he is to get ring time. The man can brawl, ring time will help him with the ground game and submissions which we all have seen need attention. His personal life shouldn't be thrown in it either, the ones bitching bout what he is or was are just being ignorant. O... wait... He was so always will be... Lets not allow him to "feed his six children" , Lets not let him make honest money, **** it lets push everyone back to where they came from and keep the poor poor and the rich rich.

[Gears]

Is this serious?


Shamrock is like 100 years old.

^Agree, Shamrock is out of his prime. He needs to lay it down before he starts to make a fool of himself.

[BgMc31]

If you have weight that works to your disadvantage in the fighting arena, you're fat.
And he's old, and slow too.

By the time he becomes "well rounded" he'll be in a senior citizen home shitting on himself.

oh & nanny nanny poo poo you can't catch me. =P

That's an idiotic and ridiculous statement! Not even worth debating!

[BgMc31]

He has neither the time or dedication to ever become a well rounded MMA fighter he's in it to get his "bread" and make some movie dollars, so he can feed his 6 kids, (jesus christ ) make a decent living and that's it... and w/e to his boxing/street fighting skills...

He's being trained by Bas Rutten who says he's one of the most dedicated athletes he's trained. But I guess Bas is a liar...right?

Kimbo is 33yrs old, since when is that old? I can list a ton of fighter much older. Look if you all are going to bash Kimbo, at least do some research and come up with some real criticisms and not some bullshit rumors!