I was REALLY impressed with Kimbo's game

I thought Slice was out at the end of the second. I won't be paying anymore attention to this guy after Thompson.

 

I thought Slice was out at the end of the second. I won't be paying anymore attention to this guy after Thompson.

 

The best part was one of th judges had given the round to Slice:nono

 

Guys you are judging Kimbo like he is supposed to be elite? No one made such claims... You have to consider his back round and where he came from; the streets. This is a guy coming off fighting whatever and whomever, which includes many average joes off the streets to fighting professional fighters who train for living and have done so for years. You cannot compare the experience and conditioning of an MMA athlete vs a guy who just started training for MMA in the past yr or so. Conditioning and how you take care of your body through the years makes a big difference when competing at a high level. You may think "Thompson is a bum"... He may appear to not be up there with the top guys, but he would smother or kill most people off the street in a cage, so keep that in mind.

Im seeing many complaints on how bad he looked (i.e. poor ground skills) and how fast he gassed: 1) he hasnt been training to the extreme for that long 2) his expertise, if he has one, is with his fists not on the ground.
Also, I see the argument that it took Kimbo way too long to ko Thompson, and it wasnt even a clean ko; it was a early stoppage in favor of Kimbo. While I agree the stoppage was garbage, I believe the only reason why the fight went that long was because Kimbo was put on his back within the first minute of the fight, spent a lot of time on his back and expanded way too much energy in trying to wrestle with Thompson; and as stated, he doesn't have the experience in MMA nor has he developed the conditioning .
Because of this, he gassed early, and he didn't have the KO pop he usually would have. Thompson's plan from the beginning was to not stand in there and trade, but to take him down as early as possible and take Kimbo into deep waters; he succeeded. A similar thing happened to Mirco Cro Cop when he fought Gonzaga. Gonzaga took him down, pounded him a bit and then Cro Cop was gassed right afterwards and was caught sleeping with a nasty kick.

Kimbo still needs time to develop his conditioning and train in areas where he is most vulnerable (i.e such as the ground). THe question is, however, at 33 does he have this time? Only time will tell. Nevertheless, I thought this was an entertaining fight. I don't think this fight exposed anything. It simply confirmed and showed Kimbo's inexperience, but it also showed that he has heart and he didn't crumble.

Let me ask you this: If Thompson was to stand in there and trade with Kimbo from the opening bell, do you think the fight would have went the same? Of course not. But thats what makes it MMA. Each fighter uses their skillset to try to beat the other fighter. Kimbo simply hasnt developed his skillset in MMA yet.

 

Wow, finally a good comment !

 

Again, what gets the REAL MMA Fans ticked, is ESPN, CBS and other are trying to make Kimbo look like the face of the sport. Many great MMA fighters made the sport like it is. But a guy that made his living beating people like me and now he is the big name in MMA. As a MMA that is a insult. Shaw put JT in to fight Kimbo for one reason...to get KTFO! and that is a fact. This was to be Shaws big splash with Kimbo and his MMA Promotion. I have been a MMA fan since UFC 2. I have seen this sport grow and been with it from almost the start. To me, in UFC 2-20 would be Kimbo's time. Just look at Tank for that. And to put Kimbo in the same light as Cro Cop is a joke. Cro Cop is a MMA fighter who has worked for years in this sport. Cro Cop also time might have passed. But Kimbo needs a lot of work, with not so much press.

 

Thompson got knocked out by pretty much everyone with a single punch. I'm starting to question Kimbo's punching power.

 

It was a fight between two very limited pro's in terms of skills.It was what it was.What it wasn't was a MAIN EVENT bout.That where Shaw is making his BIG mistake.:verysad

 

I agree. Kimbo did not ask for it... Even when asked about it (the exposure), he never makes any claims.. He's realistic and just says he is in there to fight and thats all. You cant blame him. Anyone else out there presented with the same opportunity would do the same. Is he supposed to decline the offer?

 

totally agree, he's laughing all the way to the bank. He hasn't disrespected anybody or claimed he's something he's not, he's rolling with it and doing the best he can.

 

do you think Kimbo can beat Rodgers?

 

Kimbo's power went downhill very fast! I mean, the guy is definitely big and strong, and his striking skill is very good. But it was almost painful to watch his slow motion punches after the first round. I was thinking that any club fighter - professional boxer - would probably starch Kimbo. If you stand there and let Kimbo tee off on you, then yeah, he'll mow you down. But as a professional boxing fan - and just a very casual MMA fan - I couldn't help but notice the huge bulls eye that Kimbo had on his head out there. The guy is so wide open! And Thompson, for being an experienced MMA veteran, had virtually no striking skills! It was unbelievable!