I totally agree with what you said. Hogan was always one of the worst workers but his much, most often with other bad workers (Warrior, King Kong Bundy) were always big draws. Charisma goes along way these days.

...into his final run with the WWE. Hogan/Rock is still very fondly remembered despite the fact that the match really wasn’t that good. It was enough charisma in one right to light North America for a year though.

What’s the point of these posts? I’m not trying to be a downer, but isn’t it obvious as hell that this is a scheme to draw fans in? I don’t think people need to know the comparison here. Kimbo Slice is in the main event because he has drawing power. That was evident nearly 3-4 months ago.

They’ve been doing this in Japan for years, yet half the MMA blogosphere is pushing content asking why CBS/EliteXC has Kimbo as the main event. Have people forgot why?

I understand the article here, get the point, and it has to be said at some point. I definitely agree with the points that Kimbo is much like Hulk Hogan in a sense.

I take away two things from your (good) analysis.

The Case: Kimbo’s value and Elite XCs production.

The Benchmarks: Pro Wrestling and Tito Ortiz Pre-Zuffa LLC.

It’s still too early to predict the value of Kimbo Slice, and while many disagree with the fact he should even be headlining the May 31st card, we know Shaw, EliteXC and CBS are confident the casual and hardcore MMA fans will tune in to watch Kimbo fight. I can’t argue drawing parallels between Hogan and Slice. In fact, I think Brent stated it best that network television offers a large and diverse viewership and that we would be pretty stupid to think that the mainstream won’t tune in to watch Kimbo fight.

I can’t fault Elite XC for following a path that worked successfully for AWA/NWA/WWF/WCW/WWE organizations. People want drama, weather it’s fact or fiction based. What makes Saturday’s fights even more appealing is they are live, on network TV and offer some decent fights…in which hardcore and casual fans will want to see if Kimbo can or cannot succeed. Whether Hogan was the heel or the hero, his charisma came through to the audience.

At this point, Kimbo is still an ‘enigma’ in my mind. While the hardcore MMA fans are now addressing him as a true MMA fighter the casual may still think of him as the street brawler. And so what? Unlike pro wrestling, Kimbo won’t come strolling out to Hendrix but he will carry this aura if you will that has yet to be fully conceived by everyone. And win or lose, I don’t see any fault in Elite XC netting short term gains off of Kimbo’s name.

Enter Tito Ortiz pre-Zuffa days. If anything, Kimbo may have the skill to back up the hype. I stress ‘may.’ But similar to Ortiz, and Hogan, does he have the in-ring charisma to appeal to fans (love or hate), can he work the mic (in a lesser sense) and continue to grow EliteXC’s viewership much as Ortiz and Hogan did for their respective orgs. Unlike Hogan, and much like Ortiz back in 2000, Kimbo can ill-afford to lose in the early stages of his career.

As Tito stated on his MMA Weekly interview, he’s interested in seeing the live production of both Affliction and EliteXC cards. While I’ve heard the same from Randy, I am really eager to see how Saturday’s live telecast will be produced…which I’m guessing won’t stray from their Showtime productions however, to continue to draw viewers, it will largely be dependant on reeling in two seperate audiences: The hardcore MMA fans (Pride, K1, UFC, Dream etc…) and the casual MMA fans. How will each audience percieve the production (fights, telecast, set up etc..), will it be enough to tune in a second time, especially if Kimbo loses?

I think EliteXC has a long way to go to be the mainstream’s name and face of MMA. While UFC market’s it’s brand 1st and fighters 2nd, it will be interesting to see if EliteXC can get by (in the short term) marketing their fighter’s 1st and brand 2nd. Ratings from Saturday’s fights will tell us something come Monday morning.

In the past one day we have seen articles comparing Kimbo to Rocky, and to Hulk Hogan, and comparing Dana White to Vince McMahon.

Why does it feel like Fan Fiction day at the Star Trek convention?

The problem I have is that although this makes sense from an entertainment standpoint, it doesn’t make sense form a sport standpoint and personally I watch MMA for the sport. I won’t be watching this event. Not to make some kind fo statement, but because it’s on a Saturday night and a bad UFN quality event isn’t worth staying in for.