Strikeforce Still Talking to Kimbo Slice, No Contact With Hasim Rahman

Former boxing heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman says he's serious about taking up mixed martial arts, and that he'd love to fight Kimbo Slice. My opinion is that Rahman is not serious at all, and he just sees MMA as a way to cash an easy paycheck.

Bolstering my opinion that he's not really serious is this: Rahman's manager told Sherdog that he's in contact with Strikeforce about Rhaman fighting for the organization. But Strikeforce tells me that's not the case. I asked Strikeforce Vice President Mike Afromowitz via e-mail about Rahman, and he answered, "There has been no dialogue between Strikeforce and Hasim Rahman."

So there you have it. Don't count on seeing Rahman in the cage for Strikeforce any time soon.

As for Kimbo, Strikeforce is still talking about getting him on one of its upcoming cards, but nothing has been scheduled, and all Afromowitz could tell me was, "Our dialogue with Kimbo is ongoing."

I think the chances are pretty good that Kimbo will fight for Strikeforce some time this summer, but unlike EliteXC, which built its entire promotion around Kimbo, Strikeforce will treat him more like an ordinary fighter, putting him in the middle of a card, and not the main event. My guess is that the ongoing dialogue between Kimbo and Strikeforce focuses on whether he'll keep getting paid like a main event fighter when he's appearing on undercards.