Kimbo Slice (3-1) will make his first official appearance inside the Octagon opposite Houston Alexander (9-4) in a 215-pound catchweight brawl booked for The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 10 Finale, which is slated for “The Pearl” at The Palms in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Dec. 5, according to NWITimes.com.

Apparently the only thing standing in the way is special clearance from the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) on Nov. 4. It’s merely a formality because of Alexander’s advanced age. He is 37-years-old.

Slice was invited to compete on the latest mixed martial arts reality series by company president Dana White. For years White had lambasted Slice while he competed under the Elite XC banner, feeling he did not deserve all the promotion and hype as a top fighter in the sport just because of his reputation as a backyard brawler in the mean streets of Miami.

So White was probably not surprised when Roy Nelson, arguably the best fighter in the house, took out Slice in episode three with a second round technical knockout. On the other hand, he was probably pleasantly surprised when the monster ratings poured in for the network — Spike TV set all-time viewership records thanks to the Slice factor.

And when he laces ‘em up on Dec. 5 the promotion and the network can expect more of the same. Slice has not competed since the infamous 14-second technical knockout loss to Seth Petruzelli at Elite XC: “Heat” more than one year ago (Oct. 4, 2008).

Alexander recently took out Sherman Pendergarst with a barrage of leg kicks and punches at Adrenaline MMA 4 in September, getting himself back in the win column after suffering three straight losses inside the Octagon.

The five-fight UFC veteran came up short against Eric Schafer, James Irvin and Thiago Silva, which was quite a twist of fortune after starting his career with the promotion with two big, and emphatic, victories over Alessio Sakara and Keith Jardine.

With a high-profile opportunity to battle Slice — a fighter who he knows will likely stand and trade with him — the Nebraskan can get his name back in the mix literally overnight with an exciting performance.

TUF 10 Finale will feature a showdown between the top two finalists from the Spike TV reality show, as well as a light heavyweight war featuring Jon “Bones” Jones as he inches his way closer to contention against Matt “The Hammer” Hamill.

Stay dialed in to MMAmania.com for more on TUF 10 Finale as it becomes available.

Props: Yahoo!Sports.com

Quoteworthy:

“It’s hard to say why, but some people have it and some don’t, and Kimbo definitely does…. The fight (between Slice and Nelson) sucked. I wasn’t happy with any of the fights the first three weeks, to be honest. I was disappointed by the way we came out of the gate in terms of the fights. But the fights really get better. By episode 8, believe me when I tell you, you’re going to be going wild…. Hang in there, man. The season’s not over yet. Stay tuned is all I’ll tell you.”

Despite an over-the-top (and shameless) media blitz earlier this week to promote episode three of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 10 on Spike TV, which featured YouTube sensation Kimbo Slice fighting Roy Nelson, UFC President Dana White admits after that fact that what was billed as “the biggest fight in Ultimate Fighter history” actually sucked. Nelson used his size and superior ground skills to smother Slice for most of the fight, scoring a second round technical knockout via strikes. However, it appeared to be Slice’s inability to get off his back and not Nelson’s repeated marshmallow-like blows that forced the referee to stop the action. Nonetheless, the episode went on the score crazy ratings, attracting 6.1 million viewers to become the fourth most-watched mixed martial arts bout ever on television in North America. White assures fans that the season, which has thus far featured three lackluster heavyweight bouts, will get better. Do you believe it?

Props: USA Today

Quoteworthy:

“I could have stayed in mount and finished him there with elbows and punches, but my game plan was to get to the crucifix, and once I got to the crucifix, finish the fight there. First round was 44 punches to the face, and then (referee) Herb Dean doesn’t know how to ref, but we’ve seen that before. And then the next round was 22 punches. You could even see me yelling at Herb Dean, ‘Come on, ref.’ But the thing is, there’s a lot of people; there’s a lot of money. Kimbo’s the only one that I know that had an entourage there; he actually had his family there, his management, while the rest of us kind of had to suffer. The UFC made, we’ll say, different concessions for Kimbo. I think he had a media room. Kimbo’s definitely, I guess we’ll say, special. I don’t see the specialness fighting-wise, but more for TV-wise. He puts butts in the seats. So I think it was more that Herb Dean was afraid to lose his job, because there’s a lot of people with a lot of money that can have a lot of influence with his career.”

The Ultimate Fighter 10 contestant Roy Nelson sounds off on the first round of his fight against special attraction Kimbo Slice during episode three of the Spike TV reality show. “Big Country” had the former YouTube brawler trapped in a crucifix and while the damage inflicted was comparable to that of a pillow fight, Slice was still unable to defend himself, intelligently or otherwise. Was referee Herb Dean letting the fight continue out of fear of losing his job? Or is Nelson just sour over his marshmallow fists? Sound off, Maniacs.

Props: Inside The Ultimate Fighter

Quoteworthy:

“I fought Roy with caution. I did go for the kill one time, but I knew to be careful because Roy will bait you, that’s how good he is. He can look rocked, but the minute you go in for the kill, shwoop! You know what I’m sayin? He’s a smart fighter. When I felt like I rocked him I went in for the kill and that’s when I made my mistake. That’s when I realized, ah, this motherfucker was slick. But in the midst of the fight I had to figure that out. By the second round he figured out how to get in, how to play possum and get me down to the ground. That weight was hard to move. The crucifix is not my favorite position. I been in that position with James Thompson and was stuck. Roy had me also in that same position. That’s a position I would really like to know how to get out of. I know some shit on the ground. It’s not like I get down there and I don’t know nothing. I have some skills. I’ll beat Roy next time around. You’re only gonna beat me once. If I fight anybody and they beat me that one time, that’s it. You gave me your best. You didn’t beat me at my best. Now I know how you’re comin’. You ain’t beatin’ me twice. Damn right I’d rematch Roy.”

On the heels of his Episode 3 elimination from The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) Season 10, special attraction Kimbo Slice reflects on the mistakes he made in his losing effort against Roy Nelson and how a second encounter would yield very different results. Can Slice, who was dropped by trainer Bas Rutten for regressing to his old habits, ever become more than a hard-hitting brawler with a puncher’s chance? With a new home at American Top Team and a rumored fight at the TUF 10 Finale this December, we may get our answer soon enough.

Is there a chance Kimbo fights again? Is there a chance you’re still interested?