KIMBO SLICE: ICON
Joseph Watkins Da Watcher
Everyone loves a come-up story. Raised in poverty, back against the wall, and by their bootstraps, grit, and determination, they rise to glory…..
We love these stories; we praise and idolize them. We realize that despite the negative they’re experiencing, the bad that’s in front of their faces, if they hold true to their potential and show love everywhere they go, they are going to make it......This statement holds true for the iconic and legendary Kevin Ferguson aka Kimbo Slice: The Fighter.
Vice’s documentary of the iconic fighter lays out his life through the lens of his family, friends, and associates. Here, they held nothing back as they discussed his rise from Miami’s backyard fight clubs to the majors of the UFC as a Mixed Martial Artist. Within the almost 1-hour discussion, we saw first-hand how he did everything for his family and how he was willing to go all the way to earn the respect of his MMA peers. Yet through this discussion, this complete analysis of the famed warrior, we also see how he was a beast within the cage and a gentle human outside of it.
Kevin
Outside the ring, Kimbo was known as Kevin to his family and friends. A father of five children, his relentless work ethic was instilled in him by his family, most notably his mother, and grandmother. Taking no shortcuts, he stood up to bullies in his younger years and did what was necessary to take care of his family, earning him both respect and admiration. Some say he was ‘Gentle Ben”, providing guidance and showing love wherever he went. In the ring, he was the opposite; unrelenting, intimidating, a Demon BeastLord who did the Lord’s work of death and destruction.
YouTube
His rise to popularity is what makes this celebrity both iconic and legendary.....YouTube’s influence. During the platform’s infancy, I and many other viewers remember seeing the famed beastlord in Miami’s backyard beating the hell out of a notorious fighter by the name of Big D.
Kimbo vs Big D
For me, this was both my entry into YouTube and the world of backyard fights mixed with no hold barred bareknuckle fighting. When him and D started fighting, Slice’s fists connected, creating their own sound effects, and creating a mountain out of D’s right eye socket. It was bloody, it was menacing, and it was his entry into the world of professional fighting followed by a growing cult following on YouTube.
Because of YouTube’s reach, this platform helped create the moniker as the toughest man in the world of street fighting. While others played characters similar to him in fighting games like Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, Tekken and so forth, here was a man who was the living embodiment of Balrog and Dee Jay whose stance was both menacing and a work of art.
It was his brutal onslaught, his “handiwork’ so to speak, that allowed him to take care of his family and rise to the professional battlegrounds of the MMA world.
Kimbo Slice
His stint within the MMA scene was an interesting time for the MMA community. Starting the sport in his 30’s, he was, as his coaches Randy Khatami and Bas Rutten of Bas Rutten’s Elite MMA stated, ‘a dry sponge’; soaking up the sport late in life as well as listening to the professionals; molding him into both a disciplined warrior and a humbled individual. Those personality traits, followed by his constant ability to listen and learn the sport consecrated him as an MMA athlete and blessed him on the cover of ESPN, making him a marked man by long time MMA fighters and garnering contempt from UFC’s president Dana White.
Still, Kimbo didn’t and “never shied away from a battle” and with his fists and his warrior-like demeanor, stepped into the ring and became the most watched and celebrated fighter in all of pop culture....all while having cardiomegaly – an enlarged heart.
SideNote: Cardiomegaly - An enlarged heart causes no signs or symptoms. Others may have these signs and symptoms of cardiomegaly: Shortness of breath, especially while lying flat, waking up short of breath Irregular heart rhythm (arrhythmia), Swelling (edema) in the belly or in the legs
HeartBreak
Kimbo’s heart condition, hidden from almost everyone except those closest to him, added further admiration as the man who kept going. To me, he was John Henry with UFC gloves. Even after his stint in MMA fighting, he still made it to Dana White’s fighting academy series, The Ultimate Fighter where he trained relentlessly, earning him the respect of UFC’s most celebrated CEO.
That’s quite an accomplishment. To change the view of one of MMA’s most celebrated figures; Dana White, the man who revolutionized MMA and is still the God of its Entertainment...... ICONIC.
Kimbo Slice’s legacy from YouTube star to professional fighter laid down the foundation for other stars to follow in his footsteps. YouTubers like KSI, Jake Paul, and many others, Kimbo was the first to use YouTube to catapult him from backyard street fighter to MMA contender, making him both an ICON in pop culture and in many fighter’s hearts.
SideNote: Kimbo Slice’s son Kevin Ferguson Jr. has taken on the UFC mantle as ‘Baby Slice’.
If some people were born to fight, then Kimbo Slice aka Kevin Ferguson, is pop culture’s Hercules fighting his way to Mount Olympus, impressing the Gods and becoming a Hero in both his hometown and the world.
Continue to Rest in Peace: Warrior, Father, and King.
