Slice left the underground fighting scene and signed a professional contract with EliteXC in 2007. in his UFC debut, Slice defeated Houston Alexander in the The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights finale, but lost in his second UFC fight to Matt Mitrione at UFC 113. Ferguson was born in Nassau, Bahamas, but moved to the United States as a child, growing up in Cutler Ridge, Florida. He was there for only a year and a half. Slice made his MMA debut against former WBO Heavyweight champion and Olympic gold-medalist boxer Ray Mercer at Cage Fury Fighting Championships 5, in Atlantic City on June 23, 2007. Though one of the judges had each fighter winning one of the first two rounds, Kimbo’s opponent James Thompson won both on total points by repeatedly taking down Slice and grounding and pounding. This was soon followed by three unanswered punches to a standing Thompson, which led to a referee stoppage and the controversial win for Slice. Frank Mir was also critical of Slice, stating in an interview that “every time Kimbo Slice fights, it sets (mixed martial arts) back”.
