Skip Bayless and Stephen A. Smith this The TV reunion is coming up.
World Wide Leader largely reunites the legendary sports commentators who worked together on ESPN's “First Take” from the mid-2000s until Bayless left for Fox Sports in 2016.
“To his credit, we worked hard in 2020,” Bayless said this week on Barstool Sports' “Pardon My Take.” “My contract ended after the first four years. So I was there from 2016 to 2020. He did his best and I tried my best to reunite with him. And [ESPN] I made an offer. I didn't realize that somewhere at the bottom of the contract there was a very fine print matching clause that is common to all contracts. ESPN told me there was something I wasn't aware of.
“And the Foxes not only played in the game, they made it even more interesting. Thanks to Lachlan Murdoch. So they tried to make me happier to stay here. But I missed him so much that I tried my best to reunite with him. I don't mean to disrespect Shannon. I spent four years with Shannon. I wanted to go back.”
The Post reported that Bayless' comments, which came just months after he left FS1's “Undisputed” after eight years on the air, shocked the entire sports media world. Ta.
In the aftermath of Bayless' career change, Smith dismissed the possibility of the pair reuniting in front of the cameras as “a long shot.”
“The days of Skip Bayless and Stephen A. Smith being partners and appearing opposite each other on a debate show are over. It's over,” Smith said in July. “This isn't the first time I've said this. There's no negativity or shade to Skip Bayless. I've moved on.
“…all that's past now. And linking things up with Skip Bayless and rekindling things is not the future I want. It's a past that I will always celebrate and be grateful for, but not where I am now. No. I had bigger plans for myself that didn't include him or anyone else as a partner.”
Bayless struck a different tone in a podcast appearance this week, leaving the door open to a possible reunion with his former debate partner.
“Who knows?” he said.
