Kimbo survives prime-time debut vs. Thompson

by Ariel Helwani, MMARated.com

Updated: June 2, 2008, 4:44 PM EST 733 comments

Kimbo Slice vs. James Thompson, heavyweight

In MMA's national TV debut, the headline bout ended in controversy, with one of the fighters being taken to the hospital and the other being booed by the crowd.

Kimbo Slice beat James Thompson by TKO after a very questionable ending. After more than two hard-fought rounds, Kimbo railed on Thompson's inflated left ear, causing major bleeding and forcing the referee to end the fight too quickly.

Horrible decision. Thompson wasn't any more dazed than he was at any point in the fight. Wow. I am speechless. I don't like how any of these main fights, except for the Rogers win, ended.

H.O.R.R.I.B.L.E. C.A.L.L. I can't stress that enough. That fight should have never ended in that fashion. Kimbo looked spent. While he was talking with Gus Johnson, the crowd booed its hero. He even tried to shout them out, and still they booed. What a story. First Thompson dictates the pace, then the controversy and now the boos.

Even before the controversy, however, the fight was much closer than expected. Thompson stifled Kimbo early, and was been successful in taking him down. The only problem was that Thompson couldn't do anything on the ground. Eventually Kimbo got up, but back down they went, and Thompson was in side control.

Who would have ever thought we would see this? No big punches thrown. I can't believe I am writing this ... 10-9 Thompson in the first round.

Kimbo landed a couple big punches but needed a controversial win for the decision. (Rich Schultz / Associated Press)

This is a story in itself and Thompson's camp deserves a whole heap of credit. Kimbo landed some big shots in Round 2 off the bat, while Thompson continued to try and take him down. He even landed a couple of vicious knees. Kimbo guillotine. The crowd went nuts, but Thompson was able to slip out.

Kimbo's Brazilian jiu-jitsu skills are weak at best. The promotion better think twice before matching him up with Antonio Silva.

Thompson continued nailing Kimbo with some vicious elbows to end the second round, stealing the round. I swear no one predicted this. To be honest, I am having a hard time believing it. Not because Kimbo is some Mike Tyson-like figure, but no one expected him to look this vulnerable.

How in the world do you score this round? I need some help. Thompson was effective at the end but Kimbo landed some great shots at the top, but I am going with ... 10-9 Thompson.

Rumor had it that Kimbo tapped out, but there was no conclusive evidence.

Press conference: James Thompson was taken to the hospital. He was having trouble breathing. Hopefully he is OK.

Whoa, Thompson's ear was the size of one of those super balls.

Gary Shaw gave Thompson major love. He even compared him to Buster Douglas. Thompson is great. He is so humble and addresses the people, saying he wasn't deserving of this chance. Thompson said they stopped it because his ear was bleeding. What?

Kimbo Slice via TKO in Round 3

Robbie Lawler vs. Scott Smith, 185 lbs.

Here comes Scott Smith, from "TUF 4: The Comeback" to a title shot on the first ever MMA show on network TV. Well done. If he can pull off some Pete Sell-like drama in this one, he will have a place in this sport for many years. Sadly, I think he is in for a long night.

Both men are stalling big time and the crowd is getting restless. Definitely didn't expect that from these two. Both men feel each other out until around the two-minute mark, when Lawler starts to bring it with a flurry. Lawler nailed Smith with a liver shot, which definitely messed up Smith (he had that Pete Sell look in his eyes). Lawler missed a golden opportunity, though, as Smith was ripe for the taking at the end of Round 1 ... 10-9 Lawler.

More feeling out in Round 2. Lawler definitely needs to take this up a notch as Smith looks like he wants no part of him right now. Wait a tick. Smith just turned into Anderson Silva with a sick muay thai clinch followed by some knees to the face. Then Lawler says, "Yo, I ain't no Rich Franklin," and applies and inflicts some offense in his own clinch. This is a pure muay thai fight. This is a tough one to call in terms of who won the round but I am going with 10-9 Smith.

More trading of punches in Round 3. Smith tries for a nice-looking Superman punch, but it misses the mark. Eventually, Smith pushes the pace and lands a nice combo as Lawler backpedals toward the cage. Breaking news: Lawlers shoots. Wow, I am shocked. Sadly for him, that didn't work out so well except for the fact that he appears to have poked Smith in the eye. Smith looks a little dazed. They just showed the replay on the big screen and his eye was definitely poked.

The fight is called. Tough luck for Smith. This crowd is chanting an obscenity. It's hard to tell how badly that eye was damaged from this vantage point, but regardless, that doctor is not feeling the love from this crowd.

The rules state that a championship bout must go three rounds to go to the judges' scorecard, so it's a no contest and Lawler retains. The doctor is getting booed out of the building. Jared Shaw tried to be the nice guy and announced that both fighters will get the winning purse. Nice gesture but the crowd didn't care. Smith has won over this crowd as the sympathetic character.

For the record, two judges scored the Lawler-Smith fight a draw after two rounds, while the other had it 20-18. I would definitely rule that one a draw.

According to the NJSACB's Nick Lembo, Scott Smith said something to the effect of "I can't see, let me clear my eye." That's why they stopped the fight. Weak.

Robbie Lawler is up first and gets a nice hand from the crowd. He's not happy with the way it ended.

"I look forward to doing that again, let's run it back. Word."

Shaw says they will get a chance to run it back. Whatever that means.

Smith is now addressing the crowd. He has a broken foot. Smith mentions how appreciative he is of Shaw giving him the winning purse because he is a single father.

No contest

Gina Carano vs. Kaitlin Young, 140 lbs.

Regardless of what happens, Kaitlin Young has gained a whole new fan base tonight. She has handled all the drama surrounding this fight like a true pro.

Carano's muay thai skills are definitely on display. Both women look good early on trading blows. The crowd just broke into a heavy "Gina, Gina" chant and just as they started, Young took her down. Carano eventually got up and landed some nice rights ... 10-9 Carano.

Carano doesn't look tired at all. She just landed a nice combo that got this crowd very excited. Tremendous front kick by Carano! She tries to go for the rear-naked choke but Young does a good job defending it. Both women look tired and Young looks beat up.

The fight is called. Carano wins.

Big props to Young. She handled this whole situation like a pro and represented the sport extremely well.

Gina Carano via TKO in Round 3

Phil Baroni vs. Joey Villasenor, 185 lbs.

Apparently, these guys aren't paid by the hour. Villasenor wins via TKO as, expectedly, both men come out swinging. Joey eventually secured a guillotine choke, which I thought would be Baroni's undoing, but a knee and a couple of rights later it's over.

Baroni is pissed. He walked out of the ring before he was called back. Bad performance by Baroni, as I thought he would have performed a little better and came out a little more focused.

Joey Villasenor via TKO @ 1:01 in Round 1

Jon Murphy vs. Brett Rogers, 265 lbs.

Friends, one day Jon Murphy and Brett Rogers will be the answer to a trivia question as the first pair to fight in mixed martial arts on network television, so remember those names.

Brett Rogers is for real. Vicious KO to end the fight. At first, I thought it was stopped too early but Murphy has yet to stand up so definitely the right call. Somewhere, Shaw is smiling. They are showing the replays on the big screen, and what a KO that was.

Murphy appears to be OK and Rogers is on cloud nine.

Brett Rogers via TKO @ 1:01 in Round 1

Chris Liguori vs. Jim Bova, 160 lbs.

Sorry, I missed the beginning of this fight as I had to go meet someone. I did run into Frank Shamrock somewhere and I wished him good luck.

Kind of a dull first round. Oh, and Chris Liguori just won.

Results from the undercard, not shown on TV:

Carlton Haselrig vs. Carlos Moreno, 265 lbs.

NFL fans may remember Haselrig from his playing days with the Steelers.

These are some big boys, but I was expecting a nice little slugfest. Instead, we're getting Haselrig trying to accomplish who knows what. Thank God this fight isn't being televised, as they would probably ban MMA from TV forever.

And on that note, Moreno refuses to start the second round declaring Haselrig the winner.

Nick Serra vs. Matt Makowski, 170 lbs.

Serra got a great reaction and, yes, he came out wearing the mask. That guy is great. I think it will be a good one.

Serra is actually looking like a monkey, as he is just chilling on Makowski's back trying to slip in the RNC. Makowski is doing a pretty good job defending it and eventually dropped Serra on his head. Considering his muay thai background, he wants no part of Serra's ground game and politely asks him to stand up. Serra, on the other hand, is trying to get Makowski to join him on the ground, but to no avail.

Serra looks a little dazed as Makowski nailed him with a couple vicious blows ... 10-9 Makowski.

Makowski's a great striker and definitely having his way with Serra. Wow, the crowd is completely turning on Serra as he keeps flopping. And the fight is called. Wow, this is like that Robert Villegas incident at the HDNet Fights show. Exceptional showing by Makowski, not so much by Serra, but we have no idea what kind of injury (if any) he sustained.

Matt Makowski via TKO in Round 2

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Justin Robbins vs. Wilson Reis, 140 lbs.

Reis is the truth, or so I hear. Never seen him fight live. He came out with a rapper singing beside him, but it wasn't Busta Rhymes.

And we're off. Wow, what a fight. Reis locked in a sure-fire armbar, which eventually Robbins got out of someway, somehow.

Wilson won and looked super impressive.

Calvin Kattar vs James "Binky" Jones, 155 lbs.

"Binky" might be one of the best nicknames in the game. Wasn't there a football player nicknamed "Binky" back in the day?

Oh, they just started the fight, then told them to go quickly back into their corners. Weird.

Failed spinning backfist by Kattar. Binky is a lot thicker. Both men have no interest in going to the ground. Check that, Binky just took Kattar down.

Solid performance by Binky as he wins the bout with 10 seconds left via rear-naked choke. He completely dominated the bout. Pretty impressive for a guy with a 7-5 record.

James "Binky" Jones via submission (rear naked choke) at 4:45 in Round 1.

Zach Makovsky vs. Andre Soares, 135 lbs.

I wonder if Soares is related to Ed? I am pretty excited for this one. It's not always that you get to watch 135 pounders.

Not much going on as we enter the second round. Makovsky, the Philly native, is dictating the pace. One quarter of the arena is blocked off due to the entrance but it looks like, other than that, it will be packed (and papered) house. Meanwhile, Makovsky just nailed Soares with a nice left and then waited for him to stand up. End of Round 2 and he's definitely up 20-18.

Makovsky continues to push the pace on the feet. A barrage of punches dropped Soares again and, again, Makovsky waited for his to stand up. I guess he's not too comfortable on the ground.

End of Round 3. I think Makovsky's got this in the bag, 30-27.

They appear to be stalling and instead of announcing the winner they reminded us that Shields and Alvarez are signing autographs.

Zach Makovsky via unanimous decision

155 lbs: Joe Sampieri vs. Mike Groves

A battle of winless fighters as Sampieri is 0-2 and Groves is 0-1. Sampieri is from Manhattan, so he may have the hometown edge. OK, he appears to have the hometown edge, as he is being cheered pretty loudly.

Thirty seconds and not one punch has been thrown. By the way, I forgot to look who is who and both guys are wearing the exact same thing, so this is a tough one.

Ok, I figured it out. Sampieri is the fighter controlling the fight. He's in guard right now and in the process of raining down some pretty tight elbows. Oh, nice reversal by Groves and now he is dictating the pace in guard. Good call by the ref to stand both fighters off. Sampieri lands a nice right hand which rocks Groves and is now working from the mount raining blows until the ref stops the fight with less than 10 seconds left.

Joe Sampieri via TKO (ref stoppage) at 4:48 in Round 1