MMA News: Bellator Signs Kevin ‘Kimbo Slice’ Ferguson
According to Combat Press, UFC rival Bellator MMA has signed Kevin Ferguson, better known as Kimbo Slice. Bellator is expected to publicly announce the Kimbo signing at some point today.
Kimbo became a famous backyard brawler via YouTube, and eventually made it into mixed martial arts, making his debut for the now extinct Elite XC, where he compiled a record of 3-1. One year after his run in Elite XC came to an end, Kimbo joined the cast of The Ultimate Fighter, where he was defeated by Roy Nelson. Kimbo then had a two-fight run in the UFC, going 1-1.
About a year after his UFC departure, Kimbo went into the world of boxing, where he compiled an undefeated record of 7-0, winning 6 of his fights by way of knockout.
The next time Kimbo steps into the cage, this time for Bellator MMA, he’ll be 41-years-old. He has two bad knees, which limited his potential during his initial MMA run from 2007 to 2010, and is the reason he began boxing. That being said, Kimbo is still a gigantic name, and will without a doubt be a big draw for Bellator MMA, which is what Bellator president Scott Coker is looking for.
There have been rumors that Bellator is looking at bringing in the current WWE champion and former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar, and if they’re able to sign Lesnar, Bellator’s first big move would likely be to match Brock Lesnar up with Kimbo Slice. Bellator is looking to deliver big fights, and become legitimate competition to the UFC on pay-per-view.
There’s no word yet on how much Bellator is going to be paying Kimbo, or what the length of his contract is. But the belief is that Kimbo will be a big draw, at least for one fight.
Viewership for both the UFC and Bellator have gone down over the past year, so that’s one of the big reasons why you’re seeing Bellator and the UFC bring in guys like CM Punk and Kimbo Slice, and it’s also one of the reasons why Bellator is looking to sign former WWE superstar Alberto Del Rio.
Bellator’s plan going forward is to have one big show every quarter air on Spike TV, so expect Kimbo Slice to be fighting on one of those four big shows this year. While there’s no set date for Kimbo’s first fight in Bellator, expect it to be sometime in the summer.
[Image via Sci Fighting]
