In the harshest mainstream media criticism of EliteXC and Kimbo Slice yet, Michael Wilbon said today on ESPN's Pardon The Interruption that he believes Kimbo's loss to Seth Petruzelli Saturday night was fixed."That was a more phantom punch than Ali had to knock out Liston in that fight in 1965," Wilbon said of Petruzelli knocking Kimbo to the canvas. "Kimbo Slice, your boy, is a fraud."
Wilbon's on-air partner Dan Le Batard then said, point blank, "Are you saying it was fixed?"
Wilbon replied, "Yes."
Le Batard then noted that mixed martial arts is a legitimate sport that is very popular among young men and added, "That was not fixed, Mike."
Wilbon replied by comparing MMA to professional wrestling, saying, "It was fixed. Wrestling was fixed, I loved it all my life. It was fixed."
As Le Batard tried to defend MMA, Wilbon told him, "Danny, you don't want to defend this because your credibility will be at stake. He's a fraud, it's a fraud, get off the stage."
During a brief look-in on the next commercial break, Wilbon said, "I don't know what Kimbo's ties are. Kimbo still could have taken a dive while others are trying to prop him up. He could have gotten paid."
Those are incredible accusations -- Wilbon is accusing Kevin Ferguson (that's Kimbo's real name) of committing a felony. But the accusations are out there, and EliteXC, Kimbo and Petruzelli (who got this whole thing started by suggesting that EliteXC paid him not to take Kimbo to the ground) should address them head-on.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
10-09-2008 @ 6:10PM
brewedsports said...
Well, if it was fixed, it certainly wasn't fixed in the way Wilbon is suggesting. If anything, Kimbo thought Petruzelli was taking a dive and was then taken by surprise when he didn't.
Reply
10-10-2008 @ 6:04AM
JH said...
Fight wasn't fixed, by look of Kimbo's face, clearly there were good hits involved. NO One in any of his fights actually landed a good shot on him. Can anyone say "GLASS JAW"
10-09-2008 @ 6:54PM
Frederick said...
Wilbon proves he knows nothing about mma
Reply
10-09-2008 @ 9:18PM
howardryan6 said...
That's a good thing...
10-09-2008 @ 9:18PM
howardryan6 said...
No doubt it was fixed.
Reply
10-09-2008 @ 10:27PM
Joe T said...
I don't think it was fixed. Caught him with a good shot, but the ref f*cked up and stopped it to early. I watched it over and over again in slowmo and none of the subsequent shots landed. Kimbo could have easily continued. Sure he was rocked by ONE punch, but none of the others landed.
http://www.fromthecage.com
Reply
10-10-2008 @ 9:22AM
The Zoner said...
Doesn't really matter if the punches landed on Kimbo or not. He did not defend himself and covered up. The ref had to stop it.
10-10-2008 @ 1:08AM
adz said...
i dont like or hate kimbo ,it wase fake as it gets , seth was on one foot ,he didnt even hit him hard and then kimbo not recover when he didnt hit him clean one time ,,,,,in one video on you tube kimbo lets a 275 pound dude hit him clean with his chin out and dose not even flinch ,hit by 300 pound dudes and does not go down , i think it was 100 to 1 ods kimbo was going to win ,,how much did he make betting 1 million dollors on seth winning
Reply
10-10-2008 @ 1:20AM
JP said...
The fight was clearly fixed, Kimbo knew it wouldn't be much longer before the whole world found out he could not compete in MMA at a high level and had a boat load of money bet on his opponent, then at the first thing that looked like a punch, he kissed the canvas faster than a horny teenager in love.
Reply
10-10-2008 @ 2:14AM
seth said...
Apparently you people missed the train wreck of an injury on kimbo's face and the dazed look on his face after the stoppage . His eyebrow was cut, his eye was watering and he looked as though he needed the number of the truck that just smoked his ass. This was not a fix, he came in with his head down, got caught and was unable to respond to Petruzelli's attack. Letting the fight continue would have delayed the inevitable and subjected Kimbo to further harm. Kimbo does not fit in with these athletes and this sport; he should stick with street fights. Imagine if this had been Fedor!
Reply
10-10-2008 @ 9:35AM
bucktownskinsfan said...
I love Wilbon, but his commentary is misguided and deleterious to the sport. He needs to take his grandpa pants off and learn that the sport is legit.
Kimbo dropped his guard and came in full speed with his head. Add that to the opposite force of a well placed punch from a talented striker, and you have a flash knockout. That's what dropped him. Regardless of whether or not he was awake again by the time he hit the floor, he got tagged.
The fight was stopped because Kimbo was no longer defending himself, not because he was knocked out. It was a great strike, a good stoppage and a confirmation of Kimbo's ineptitude at MMA. He may be a good brawler in boatyards, but he is not fit to be in the cage with a trained mixed martial artist.
It seems he believed his own hype.
As for the interview gaffe made by Petruzelli, involving possible payment for standing up with Kimbo? That definitely needs to be investigated.
Reply
10-10-2008 @ 10:49AM
Cruz said...
Kimbo was not hit hard at all some one betting on seth could have made a lot of money they could have struck a deal
Reply
10-10-2008 @ 11:11AM
paul travis said...
the people who said this fight was fixed have never been hit by the USA full contact karate champion
Reply
10-10-2008 @ 11:30AM
Truth Sayer said...
I used to like Wilbon a lot more than I have lately. Not sure if it's the constant TK absenteeism that has imbalanced his judgment or influenced him to g out on a limb more often but clearly something has changed. Then again, if you're on tv every day of the week talking that much, eventually you're going to get exposed as nothing more than what I call a "Human Take Machine."
HTM: Talking head on television whose sole purpose is to create conversation with another talking head by taking one extreme side of an issue and then commencing to argue, er debate the point. Same thing every day, every week. The only place it's worse is the show that proceeds it with the rotating four bobbleheads who specialize in annoying viewers and compromising their own credibility by being allowed to talk incessantly.
In fact, Joe Posnanski wrote a recent piece on his blog about it and did a fairly good job of nailing it:
http://joeposnanski.com/JoeBlog/2008/10/06/sportswriting-and-life-part-ii/
Reply
10-10-2008 @ 11:55AM
MAX said...
I BELIEVE KIMBO HAD A HUGE BET ON PETROZELLI TO WIN THIS FIGHT AND TOOK A COUPLE OF PUNCHES FOR LOTS OF MAD MONEY! CAN THEY CHECK THE RECORDS AND SEE IF THERE WAS LATE MONEY COMING IN ON SETH. IF SO WHO MADE THESE BETS??? VERY FISHY SITUATION AND KIMBO DIDNT LOOK TOO UPSET ABOUT THE STOPPAGE.....MAX : )
Reply
10-10-2008 @ 12:06PM
Dave said...
I believe the fight was fixed in the respect that it was suppose to stay standing up, and for seth not to take him down. The fight was fixed in that way. But if the fight was all the way fixed, kimbo would of won, not lost. He is the face of Elite XC. Now kimbo is a clown and so is Elite XC.Well...Elite XC were always clowns and now Kimbo should go back to street fighting.
Reply
10-10-2008 @ 2:42PM
vince said...
That fight was not fixed; watch the replays Wilbon that punch was quick and right on the money. If you had ever spent time in the ring you would know if you can get a guys head to quickly snap to the side like Kimbo’s did he’s going to sleep. This guy should be replaced with someone who knows a little more about the sport then him; you’ll never live this one down.
Reply
10-15-2008 @ 12:25AM
Justin said...
what are you talking about? wilbon should be replaced on his own show by someone who knows more about MMA? are you being serious? Pardon The Interruption is one of the best sports shows on television, maybe the best. And no one watches it because they want to hear MMA experts talk. MMA is of very low importance to most sports fans. In fact the only reason MMA was a topic on Pardon The Interruption at all is because of Kimbo Slice. So please, just stop. Wilbon is very knowledgeable about the sports that most of us care about and love. If you want expert MMA analysis I wouldn't even know what to tell you to watch because frankly it isn't worth a network providing a show for it unless they want to lose money.
10-10-2008 @ 2:47PM
JKDilla said...
Have any of you EVER heard of a FLASH KNOCKOUT for Pete's sake? a KO blow does NOT... repeat NOT... have to be a devastating flush on the face punch. Any shot, grazing or otherwise, which lands on the chin or jaw AND affects the nerve running along the mandible will cause a KO.
Refrence the fight between Marvin Eastman and Travis Lutter.
Another thing that happens frequently in the ring/cage, you eat a combo of punches and get flash ko'd on your feet, but the next punch brings you back to consciousness.
Reply
10-15-2008 @ 12:31AM
Justin said...
are you a scientist? or are you just talking out of your a**? i guarantee nothing you said is a fact...just your opinion based upon your viewing experiences.