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• Where: Las Vegas
• TV: Spike
Omaha's Houston Alexander will fight Kimbo Slice in Las Vegas on Saturday in the finalé of the most recent series of the UFC's “The Ultimate Fighter,” an MMA-based reality TV show.
Rumors of the matchup have been swirling in mixed martial arts circles for at least a week, with Alexander doing his part to pre-hype the fight on Omaha radio shows, careful to refer to his opponent by his real name of Kevin Ferguson and not as the better-known fighting name.
On Wednesday, Alexander was given the green light by Ultimate Fighting Championship to talk about the fight with Slice, which was officially announced later in the day on Spike TV.
Alexander said the two fighters have known about the matchup for months, so both have had plenty of time to prepare. Not that it would have mattered to Alexander.
“I stay in the gym,” Alexander said from Las Vegas. “They (UFC) could have called me last week, and I'd be ready.”
A fight with Slice, who gained fame through his menacing looks, catchy fight name and brutal knockouts in street fights shown on the Internet, is something that Alexander has literally dreamed about.
He recalled dreaming about a fight with Slice about a year ago as Slice was rising to fame on network television.
“It's a great opportunity for me,” Alexander said. “It's a better opportunity for our area (Omaha). If I do well, they're going to pay attention to fighters in our neck of the woods.”
The bout will feature two fighters with something to prove.
Despite his fame, this will be the first official fight in the UFC for Slice.
Alexander burst onto the scene in May 2007 with a shocking 48-second TKO of UFC star Keith Jardine. He then backed up that performance by taking just 1:01 to TKO Alessio Sakara.
But things haven't gone as well since. He's lost three straight UFC fights, including a loss to Eric Schafer at Fight Night in Omaha in September 2008.
The matchup looks perfect on paper: two brawlers who prefer to swing for the fences and ground and pound out quick victories. It's almost certain to provide fireworks.
Not so fast, says Alexander.
“I think his camp and my camp have come up with a strategy,” Alexander said. “I don't think it's going to be the bang out thing people are thinking they'll see. It'll be a well-thought-out fight.”
If the fight does find a way to go to the mat, could Alexander's ground game, historically his Achilles' heel, be an advantage against Slice?
“From seeing what I've seen him do, it's hard to say,” Alexander said. “I'm sure he's gotten better since the show, but I've been training wrestling and Jiu Jitsu for a long time.”
Contact the writer:
444-1264, kenton.krueger@owh.com
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