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19/06/09 - "I told Kimbo he was an asshole," says Bas
Bas Rutten has lifted the lid on the arguments that led to him withdrawing his services as Kimbo Slice's MMA coach.
Rutten, a former UFC and Pancrase champion, coached Slice while the former streetfighter was fighting for EliteXC. But the relationship turned sour by the time Slice faced Seth Petruzelli.
"I misjudged him, he turned into a whole different person. I told him a few weeks ago, I had a sit down with him. I told him that he was an asshole and that I have zero respect (for him] and I cant train people that I have no respect for. Can't ever," Rutten told Fighters Only in a recent interview.
"He just turned into a different guy, he didn't need to do the things that I told him to do. He wasn't going to go to the ground, you know? The day before the [Petruzelli] fight, I told him I wanted to go over heel hooks and escapes, and he said "Nah, its not going to go to the ground".
I said 'Ha, I like that attitude - but what if it does go to the ground?' but he said 'Its not going to go'. So I said OK, but don't let me tell you 'I told you so' if he snaps your fuckin' leg in half. He said 'I don't know if that's a good thing for you to be telling me mentally, before a fight'! I said 'I don't think its a good thing for you not to be doing what I tell you, before the fight"!
As for Slice's continued career in MMA, Rutten maintains he has no interest. He does believe Slice has some potential, but evidently feels his learning ethic leaves something to be desired.
"He learned some things but he started to forget them. In the Thompson fight he did some great escapes in round number one but once fatigue hit him, he didn't do anything," the Dutch legend explained.
"And what I didn't like about the Thompson fight as well was he said afterwards 'Yeah, we planned on fighting three rounds' and I told him 'Don't say that, you were lucky the referee didn't stop the fight in the second round'. Don't say we planned to fight three rounds, it wasn't a plan."
Rutten says the situation became untenable; he is not used to students who do not want to do what he tells them.
"If they don't do what I say, they are out. I am there for the best interests of the fighters, I want them to win," he stated. "If they don't accept that, bye bye."
Slice is currently filming series ten of The Ultimate Fighter, where he is a heavyweight contestant. His inclusion in the TUF10 intake surprised many, especially given UFC president Dana White's less-than-kind remarks about him while he was with EliteXC.
John Joe O'Regan
john.fightersonly@gmail.com
http://twitter.com/FightersOnly
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