‘Dark Side of the Cage’ airs Wednesdays at 10 PM EST on VICE TV.
In the first of nine Dark Side of the Cage episodes, VICE gives a look into the life and unforgettable career of Kimbo Slice and his journey from backyard brawler to MMA star.
Street fighter Kimbo Slice was a famous MMA star who exploded on the scene as an internet personality in the early days of YouTube. Kimbo, born Kevin Ferguson, first rose to fame by filming savage backyard fights and posting them for viral consumption.
Throughout his life, Kimbo endured countless obstacles, from raising a child while still a teenager himself to losing a football scholarship after a Category 5 Hurricane destroyed his Florida community. While trying to juggle fatherhood and earn a living as a young man, he stumbled upon the opportunity to take part in backyard brawls for money.
Kimbo spent years street-fighting random opponents for thousands of dollars, and he quickly became an internet celebrity with quite a digital reputation. The former street-fighter even earned his last name “Slice” after “slicing” open one of his opponent’s eyes during a match, with seemingly no remorse.
Eventually, once his viral stunts gained traction online, Kimbo stepped down a more professional fighting path, working for various organizations and stepping into the MMA cage to battle some of the most renowned MMA professionals.
“The fact that Kimbo decided to go into mixed martial arts after he’d been an internet sensation says … everything about his personality,” Bas Rutten, a pro fighter who helped coach Kimbo, told VICE. “Kimbo wanted to be the best fighter on the planet.”
While Slice was known for his street-fighter mentality and knockout power, he lacked some of the more technical skills needed to thrive in the MMA. Still, he gave each match his all—and his lightning-fast knockout ability took him further than most believed he would go.
But all of this occurred while Kimbo struggled with an enlarged heart—something he didn’t realize would eventually seal his fate. Toward the end of his career, Kimbo needed a pacemaker and, eventually, a heart transplant.
Unfortunately, he passed away from congestive heart failure in 2016—at the age of just 42.
This shocked the MMA community, as they had witnessed his resilience, passion, and strength throughout his short-lived career. His passing remains a topic of discussion to this day, with many questioning his prior victories and his health all along.
Though he left his mark as a powerful fighter in the MMA community, he also left behind a legacy of love.
“Kimbo was somebody that if you knew him, you loved him,” said Big John McCarthy, former MMA referee. “He was that good of a guy.”
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