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Sep
25
Breakdown of Shamrock vs Slice
September 25, 2008 |
By: James Denly
We are now a little over a week away from Elite XC’s next live event on CBS airing October 4th. The main event will feature a heavyweight bout between Elite XC’s poster child Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson and “The World’s Most Dangerous Man” Ken Shamrock. Kimbo is coming off of a controversial TKO win over James Thompson in May. While the 44 year old Shamrock has lost his last 5 fights by KO. His last win was a TKO victory over Kimo Leopoldo at UFC 48 in June of 2004. Although this looks like Elite XC is just spoon feeding another opponent for Kimbo to destroy, Shamrock will be the most credible fighter that Kimbo has faced yet, even though he hasn’t won a fight in over 4 years. Although way past his prime at the ripe age of 44, Shamrock still poses some big challenges and can truly give Kimbo a run for his money. Let’s break down each of these fighters’ strengths and weaknesses.
Let’s start off with Kimbo Slice. Kimbo is well known for his street fights that have been posted up on youtube.com. Although he is still very new to the sport of MMA, Kimbo still brings a few tools to the table that can make him a threat in this fight. First off, he will definitely have advantage of strength in this fight. Kimbo is an incredibly powerful man and has awesome vicious knockout power in both hands. If he can connect with one of his punches it could be a short night for Shamrock. Another big factor is that Kimbo is a lot younger than Shamrock. Shamrock can’t move like he used to and Kimbo is still relatively young and agile. Kimbo needs to put a lot of pressure on Ken and make him wilt. The other big strength for Kimbo is his corner. Training under a legend like Bas Rutten increases anyone’s chances of winning. Now let’s look at Kimbo’s weaknesses. The first big disadvantage is Kimbo’s lack of technique. Kimbo is primarily a brawler and if Ken makes this a technical bout, it could be a rough night for Kimbo. Another problem with Kimbo is his ground game. Shamrock is a ground specialist and Kimbo didn’t look to impressive on the ground in his last fight. Lastly, Kimbo’s stamina could be a big factor. In his 3 fights Kimbo has only gone past the first round once. In his fight with James Thompson, the fight went into the third round and Kimbo was drained. If this fight goes into the later rounds, Kimbo could be in some trouble.
Now, let’s take a look at Ken Shamrock. Shamrock is a UFC Hall of Famer and MMA legend. He has also defeated some of the greats such as Dan Severn, Bas Rutten, and Maurice Smith. Even though he hasn’t won a fight in over 4 years, Shamrock can still be a danger to Kimbo in this fight. For starters, Ken will definitely have the experience factor. He has been through some tough battles in the past and knows what it takes to win. Kimbo is still a new comer and if he makes a mistake, Shamrock can easily make him pay. The other big strength for Shamrock is his technique. He needs to make this a technical bout where he can pick Kimbo apart. Finally, Shamrock’s ground game is far superior to Kimbo’s. Shamrock has won most of his fights by submission and should look to do the same here. However, he does have some weaknesses as well. First off is his age. Shamrock is way out of his prime and has taken a lot of damage over the years. Who knows how physically well prepared he will be for this fight. Another weakness is his chin. Kimbo packs a lot of power in those hands and Shamrock’s last 5 fights ended with him being knocked out. Finally, his biggest disadvantage in my opinion is his ego. Ken tends to go out and try to prove something in his fights and he tends to not fight the smart fight. Ken needs to be smart about this fight and make it a technical bout. If he goes out there and tries to prove something by slugging it out with Kimbo, it could end very quickly and very bad for Shamrock.
This fight has a lot riding on the line for both fighters. For Kimbo, this fight proves that he can actually be a fighter with some credibility and that he’s not some side show attraction. For Shamrock, this truly is a make or break fight. Not many people can come back from losing 6 fights in a row. Plus what will this fight do for his legacy? This fight may not have as much star appeal as true MMA fans would like to see, but it will still be interesting. I’m leaning slightly towards Kimbo in this one, but don’t count out Shamrock. Either way, by the end of the night we’ll know one thing. Either Kimbo is the real deal (sort of), or Shamrock still has what it takes. It should be fun to watch.
