Former Heavyweight Boxing Champ to Take on Kimbo Slice
(March 30th, New York City ) “Merciless” Ray Mercer, a former WBO heavyweight boxing champ and gold medalist in the 1988 Olympics, will take on no-knuckle boxing and Internet legend Kimbo Slice in a three-round exhibition bout utilizing professional MMA rules at the Cage Fury Fighting Championship 5 show, said matchmaker Gary Marino today. Dubbed “Brawl at the Hall”, CFFC 5 will take place on June 16th at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey .
“I’m very, very excited,” said Marino. “I’ve been working on trying to get Kimbo a fight for the last year. He’s a great draw, and he’s got a huge following for his fights.” Marino added: “Ray Mercer was at the Cage Fury Fighting Championship 3 show and speculated that he’d like to try [MMA], and he called me a couple weeks ago asking me to get him a fight. It’s perfect for both guys, for their style and who they are. Kimbo’s a big banger and so is Mercer.”
Known for their heavy-hands and raw power, this will be the first time either man has fought under full MMA rules — though Slice purportedly has been training in the sport for some time now at Miami ‘s Freestyle Fighting Academy . However, the former boxing champ, who lost his WBO belt to Wladimir Klitschko in 2002 before stepping into the ring for Japan’s K-1 promotion in 2004 and 2005, will likely enter the cage ready to defend the takedown should the need arise. Said Marino: “Ray Mercer told me he has a bit of a wrestling background, and he’s aware Kimbo has been training down in Florida . He’s been talking about MMA for a while now… so he’ll be prepared.”
With this bout, Mercer will become the highest-profile boxer to have taken the MMA plunge. “It’s very, very intriguing. I think it’s a fantastic fight,” said Marino. “Ray Mercer is definitely going to be the hardest hitter Kimbo has ever faced… I think if they both stand in front of each other, someone is definitely going to get knocked out.”
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