Kimbo Slice, the YouTube super-brawler, is a mimic of the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s own evolution.
Kimbo's Background
From underground fighting venues where unbridled macho-ism and brutality were a hallmark of the attraction, Kimbo, like the UFC itself, has re-invented himself as a serious, somewhat-humble practitioner of MMA. Complete with slick advertising campaigns and associated merchandising, his rise in popularity is just like the UFC’s own self-development, which saw its shift from a budget, bloody affair to a multi-million dollar production whose brand value is now reported to be near one billion dollars.
Kimbo’s Development
Kimbo Slice, born Kevin Ferguson, was discovered after a series of backyard street fights were posted on the online video web host YouTube. After his online discovery, Kimbo was approached by MMA-veteran Bas Rutten to train in his gym. A series of fights through fight organizations such as the now-defunct Elite XC, led to Kimbo being offered an opportunity by UFC President Dana White to fight for his organization. Slick marketing, Kimbo merchandising and a huge hype behind the heavy-handed Kimbo did much to prop his career. Indeed, his fourth only mixed-martial arts fight earned him a reported $500,000; this in a sport that has only the most privileged earning more than $40,000 a year. Now appearing on the reality television show TUF 10, Kimbo has certainly won the attention of a broader audience. His loss to Roy ‘Big Country’ Nelson on the show, however, has done little to dent the public’s fascination with Kimbo as, thus far, he has overcome all stereotypes of the caged maniac he was reputed to be in the press and by viewer posts on YouTube.
“The main thing is I want to break something along the way – a chin or jaw, rib, arm, some skin, anything,” said Kimbo in 2008 about his upcoming fight with James Thompson. These days Kimbo’s trimmed beard and keenness to learn have shown a new, more professional side. He is more likely now to talk about God than blood. It has done much to win a new type of fan, which says something about the sports own growth in the mainstream.
The UFC’s Development
Like Kimbo, the UFC’s beginnings were viewed by many as a form of ‘human cockfighting’. Finding its origins in the legendary Brazilian Vale Tudo events, the UFC was first aired in 1992 as the War of the Worlds eight-man, single-elimination tournament which pitted different martial arts styles against each other. Battling state regulations because of its deemed brutality the UFC went through a period known as the ‘dark ages’ by its fans. Its turnaround came when now-President Dana White and casino executives, the Lorenzo brothers, bought the company out and re-invented the show as a disciplined sport. Now firmly entrenched on the sport channels with a mainstream audience, pay-per-view cable deals, reality television shows and a video game, the UFC is a surging sport with ambitions to one day feature in the Olympics.
The UFC and Kimbo Growing Together
While Kimbo’s mainstream acceptance as a mixed-martial arts fighter has developed, he has the UFC to thank for his growth. His move from a nightclub bouncer to a ‘frat-household’ name is largely attributable to the UFC, whose own growth has gone from the most die-hard martial arts aficionados to mainstream television watchers. What is next for the sport and where can it go?
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