Kimbo Slice is a free man after being cooped up in a house
with fifteen other UFC heavyweight hopefuls.
The 35-year-old sat upstairs last Thursday at the Spike TV
booth near the back of the UFC Fan Expo at Mandalay Bay as hordes of fans
waited below for a glimpse of his beard. The remaining cast members milled
about in front of the stage after their public unveiling, signing autographs
and chomping at the bit to go home that evening.
Slice emerged from the reality show with a respect for his
fellow castmates despite indicators they awaited his
demise and his promise that he would fight anyone who disrespected him. At the
end of the day, it was the chance to train extensively with men his size.
“The opportunity to be around all heavyweights, that just
doesn’t happen,” said Slice. “There’s a lot of gyms out here in the States, but
none of them had as many heavyweights as we had at one time here.”
Given the fighters revealed at the Expo, the odds are
stacked against him. But whether he succeeds or not, Kimbo feels he is on the
right path and will not stray from his ultimate goal of being an ultimate
fighter.
“I guess it’s safe to say I don’t mind being a gatekeeper,”
he said. “Eventually, you got something you want to get. A drive for something,
you know what I'm saying? And I guess I'm still searching for that inner me,
I'm still searching for something. Until I find it, and until my fire is done,
I'm a fighter.”
If a UFC heavyweight title comes his way, great; if
not, no big deal.
“Eventually, you want that title around your waist, that's
eventually the goal,” he said. “But it don't happen, just line them up.”
(Click
here to watch the entire video interview with Kimbo Slice.)
