Kevin Ferguson, better known as the Internet street fighting sensation ‘Kimbo Slice’, says he wants to try his hand at professional boxing. In an interview with Bahamian news paper, The Nassau Guardian, Ferguson stated he will be making the transition to pro boxing as soon as he has fulfilled his MMA contract.

Ferguson’s contract, which was acquired when Strikeforce bought the majority of the bankrupt EliteXC’s assets, has two fights left to be completed within the year.

“I have two more MMA fights scheduled before this year is out. Every fighter and athlete knows that you should not switch camps in the middle of something. Also, I train in Florida. My MMA trainer will also be training me for stand up boxing. Finishing up my contract would allow me to be a free agent,” Ferguson said.

He already has a boxing trainer in his sights for when he is ready to make the transition, Ray Minus Jr., the premier boxing trainer in the Bahamas. “I would not want any other trainer than one that is from my country. If the chemistry is there, then yes he is going to be my main guy. We both discussed me training with Ray in that when I come here he will work with me and show me a few things. I am not all that, and I still consider myself a baby in the fighting world, so I am going to hold him to his word. We both have an understanding and are willing to work with one another but we have not made that commitment yet.”

When asked why boxing instead of MMA, Ferguson explains, “Boxing is really my first desire. I have a lot of love for it and believe I can do pretty well. [The sport of] MMA is somewhat of a project for me. Boxing is one dimensional while there are a lot of dimensions in MMA. I don’t think it would be a hard transition from MMA to stand-up boxing because of my fighting style. Not taking anything away from boxing preparation, MMA training is extremely hard,” said Ferguson. “When you consider martial arts training, you have to prepare for kicks to the head and legs, and opponents wanting to grapple and throwing you to the ground, pounding you with their knees and hands, whereas in boxing you just have to be prepared to weave and bob although the training can be just as intense. At this point in my career, I want to take that same drive and focus that I invested in MMA and put that into training for pro-boxing cards.”

Another reason, as Kimbo goes on to explain, is frustration over the fiasco leading up to and resulting in his only defeat at the hands of Seth Petruzelli. “In some cases, if you are too far advanced in promoting a MMA fight, anything can happen to the fighter. A fighter can get an injury, causing him to pull out of the fight; like Shamrock getting a cut above his eye and backing out at the last minute. That left me having to fight an opponent who I knew nothing about. If the fight is called off then it would mean bad business for that promoter and that also affected me,” explained Ferguson.

Whatever the sport, MMA or boxing, one thing is sure, Kimbo Slice will draw a crowd. Slice has literally millions of fans stemming from his days as an underground street fighter, most of which saw his exploits on sites such as YouTube. He then continued on to bring his stand and bang style to MMA in the EliteXC promotion.

Many attribute Kimbo’s last fight, which is his only loss, and shocking knockout upset at the hands of journeyman Seth Petruzelli, to the downfall and bankruptcy of EliteXC.

“I am still a little squirrel in this big, big world just trying to get a nut. I have not attained any major goals yet,” he said. “I commit and dedicate myself to something that I love. Everyone has a calling in their lives and fighting is something that I love. I have been fighting for a very long time for different causes and reasons. The older I get the wiser I become. Even now, coming here [The Bahamas] and burying one of my relatives gives me a new reason to fight again. It’s like I am hungry all over again. I guess the way I took the Internet and MMA by storm, I feel like this is another reason to try and take the boxing world by storm,” he added.

By:  Jeff Howard

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