When Skip Bayless appeared on ESPN's First Take for the final time last summer, he shared a series of emotional goodbyes with his longtime co-host Stephen A. Smith. Yes, the two were technically about to become rivals since Skip was leaving The Worldwide Leader in Sports for Fox Sports. But after all they had been through together, it was clear Skip was going to miss coming to work everyday with Stephen A.
Since leaving, though, it doesn’t sound like Skip has ever looked back. He still has a close bond with Stephen A., and according to a feature that Complex Sports on Wednesday, the two still talk on a regular basis. But Skip hasn’t tuned in for a single episode of First Take since setting sail for the West Coast and making Fox Sports’ new show Undisputed his new home. He hasn’t watched for research or nostalgic purposes—and it doesn’t seem like he has any interest in watching the show he helped build ever again.
It’s not that Skip doesn’t have fond memories of First Take. Rather, he says he can’t bear to watch "because it’s too painful" for him to do it.
Elsewhere in Complex's interview with Skip, he talked about his critics both inside and outside of the media industry, his new life in California, and the hot takes that have kept his name in the news for most of the last five years. "I just speak from my heart; I just get to truth telling," he told Complex. "And I have consistently been correct on all these outrageous takes."
You can read Complex's entire feature on Skip here.
