Kimbo Slice vs James Thompson rematch, Bellator 158 in London
Kimbo Slice vs James Thompson rematch, Bellator 158 in London
Yesterday while on ESPN’s “SportsCenter,” Bellator President Scott Coker announced that the main event of Bellator 158 will be a rematch between Kevin Ferguson (Kimbo Slice) and James Thompson.
Bellator 158 takes place July 16 at The O2 in London.
“This is probably one of the most anticipated rivalries or rematch that I can think of, and we’re going to put that fight together July 16 in London at The O2 arena,” Coker told ESPN’s Todd Grisham.
The two heavyweights originally fought under the Elite XC banner in 2008. In one of the strangest exchanges in mixed martial arts history, Slice connected with a brutal right hand that caused the cauliflower ear of Thompson to explode.
Ferguson (6-2) last competed in Houston, Texas against Dhafir Harris (Dada 5000). The bout was one of the most watched but also most negatively talked about MMA bouts to have ever been fought. Both fighters came from the streets and what was expected to be a slugfest ended up being two fighters in much need of cardiovascular conditioning improvements.
In the following weeks it was announced that Slice tested positive for a banned substance and would subsequently be suspended for 90-days by the Texas Combative Sports program. The announcement of the suspension was never officially made public but Coker stated the commission put the 90-day order into effect.
Thompson (20-16) is currently on a two-fight TKO losing streak; one at the hands of Bobby Lashley and the other, Tsuyoshi Kosaka. Thompson, a native of England will have friends and family behind him in the audience
Also on the card, a rematch of welterweights at Paul Daley and Josh Koscheck who had a legendary battle inside the UFC cage will meet once again.
Bellator 158 lineup:
Bellator MMA Heavyweight Main Event: Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson (6-2) vs. James Thompson (20-16)
Bellator MMA Welterweight Co-Main Event: Josh Koscheck (17-10) vs. Paul Daley (38-13-2)
Bellator MMA Welterweight Bout: Michael Page (9-0) vs. TBA
Bellator MMA Light Heavyweight Bout: Linton Vassell (16-5) vs. TBA
