Shamrock vs Slice On CBS
by Robert Sargent
Looking to rebound from a string of recent losses, former UFC and Pancrase legend Ken Shamrock will step up to take on prized EliteXC star Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson in the main event of EliteXC's October 4th primetime show on CBS.
The fight, which ends speculation of Slice facing rising EliteXC star Brett "The Grim" Rogers and former street fighter Sean "The Cannon" Gannon, is a must-win for both.
Shamrock (26-13-2), known as "The World's Most Dangerous Man," is a 15-year MMA veteran who rose to prominence in the Pancrase organisation in Japan and the UFC in North America. He scored victories over fellow legends such as Bas Rutten and Masakatsu Funaki in Pancrase, but found little success during his UFC and brief PRIDE tenures. Now 44, Shamrock has lost 8 of his last 10 fights and desperately needs a high-profile victory to keep his career alive.
By contrast, Slice (3-0-0) rose to fame as a street fighter and was launched into MMA stardom in EliteXC less than one year ago. His brawling style endeared him to fans during his first two fights, but he performed terribly in his most recent fight on CBS in May, where he was soundly dominated by James "The Colossus" Thompson for two rounds before a controversial stoppage gave Slice a third-round victory.
Critics of Shamrock claim that he's washed up and should retire. Critics of Slice point to his nearly non-existent ground game and terrible performance against Thompson, where he was "exposed" as a weak mixed martial artist. Both need a convincing victory to prove their respective critics wrong.
The fight will be a classic striker (Slice) versus grappler (Shamrock) battle, with Shamrock promising to take the fight to the ground and secure a leg submission. Slice will, of course, look for an early knockout. If Shamrock's recent performance against Robert "Buzz" Berry in Cage Rage is any indication, Slice could easily score such a knockout. At the same time, if Slice's woefully lacking ground game has not improved, Shamrock could grab hold of a leg and secure a quick submission victory.
Regardless, the must-win fight provides EliteXC with a noteworthy star to take on Slice, but what remains to be seen is which fighter is capable of rising to the challenge before them. We'll find out on October 4th.
