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Skip Bayless Leaves FS1: Where Will He Go Next?
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Skip Bayless is out at Fox. The Undisputed host announced that he’s leaving FS1 effective immediately. Where will the polarizing sports host land next?
Skip Bayless Leaves FS1
Today was my last show on Undisputed. I'm leaving FS1. I've been planning to pursue other opportunities for several months. I had a great 8-year run with a lot of great people at FOX, but now I'm excited for what’s coming up. Stay tuned.
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) August 2, 2024
On Friday, Bayless posted about his departure from FS1 on social media.
“Today was my last show on Undisputed. I’m leaving FS1,” Bayless wrote on X. “I’ve been planning to pursue other opportunities for several months. I had a great 8-year run with a lot of great people at FOX, but now I’m excited for what’s coming up. Stay tuned.”
Last month, the New York Post reported that Bayless would be parting ways from Fs1 later this summer.
On Thursday, Bayless’ former co-host, Marcellus Wiley, mentioned that Friday would be the last day for the Undisputed host.
“I was given information that tomorrow (Friday) will be Skip Bayless’s last day on FS1,” Wiley said. “What’s interesting about this departure is, other than the news, the headlines, how anti-climactic it is in terms of nothing publicly has been said by Skip Bayless. Nothing making headlines. And frankly, internally, a lot of people in the building are saying, ‘We’re not talking about it either.’ Maybe that’s by design, or maybe that’s by residue.”
The end of Bayless’ tenure began last year after Shannon Sharpe abruptly departed Undisputed. Sharpe and Bayless got into numerous heated exchanges on air, leading the NFL Hall of Famer to leave the show.
Sharpe joined First Take, where he has thrived alongside Bayless’ former partner, Stephen A. Smith. First Take has trounced Undisputed in the ratings war, with Smith’s debate show garnering 400,000 more viewers than Bayless’ program.
Where Will Skip Bayless Wind Up Next?
Ouch.
ESPN Is Not Interested In A Reunion with former morning star Skip Bayless Once He Leaves FS1.
“We are set with the current First Take rotation, and wish Skip the best on his future endeavors,” an ESPN spokesman tells @FOS.https://t.co/7ccvIHR8Io
— Michael McCarthy (@MMcCarthyREV) July 16, 2024
Per Bayless’ tweet, the 72-year-old will seek other opportunities in the coming months.
Where Bayless ends up is up for debate. However, it won’t be at the First Take debate desk. In a statement to Awful Announcing, ESPN wrote: “We are set with the current First Take rotation and wish Skip the best on his future endeavors.”
Smith also ended any potential reunion rumors while speaking on his podcast, The Stephen A. Smith Show.
“Skip Bayless and Stephen A. Smith, together as partners, working across from each other on a debate show, is over,” Smith said. “It’s been over. And this is not the first time I’ve said it. There’s no negativity or shade being thrown on Skip Bayless. I have moved on.”
Regardless of where he goes, Bayless will have to move quickly if he wants to have a platform for the 2024 NFL season, which begins in September.
