("King of the Cage? I thought you said ‘King of the Players Ball.’ My bad.")

When Ray Mercer didn’t show up for a scheduled appearance on MMA Live last week, everyone figured that the boxer-turned-mixed martial artist, who is in the thick of training for a scheduled King of the Cage fight this coming Friday night must have mixed up his schedule.

Now it seems, there may be more to the story.

King of the Cage east coast representative Keith Creed revealed to usacombatsports.com that Mercer has not been in contact with anyone from his management team or his family since last Tuesday morning when he left his North Carolina home to complete the last leg of his training camp for his September 17 bout with Ron Sparks at "King of the Cage – No Mercy," in Mashantucket, CT.


Although he admits he contacted the former WBO heavyweight champion’s camp to express his annoyance at their charge being a no-show for his media obligation — the second missed appointment for Mercer in the past two weeks — Creed says his feelings of exasperation have been replaced with concern for the cause of Tim Sylvia‘s recurring nightmare.

“At this point we a more concerned for [Ray Mercer's] safety than for his participation in the September 17th event,” said Creed. “If we found him in a Holiday Inn with a line of cocaine and two hookers at least we’d know he had a good time.”

According to a report from The Fight Nerd, police may be contacted tonight if Mercer’s whereabouts cannot be determined, which is somewhat odd, considering nobody has seen or heard from him in six days.

"I actually attempted to call Ray last week and was able to reach Ray’s manager in New Jersey, but after playing phone tag with him was unable to obtain an interview with Mercer or comments from anyone. Mercer was last seen in North Philadelphia, not the most friendly of places, which is where police will begin searching tomorrow if no one is able to contact Mercer by tonight. No names have been mentioned in regards to replacing Mercer in the event he is not found. King of the Cage will be issuing a press release addressing Ray Mercer’s disappearance by tomorrow if no serious headway is made in finding him, and we will update you as the situation progresses."

Hopefully they do find Mercer alive and well in a hotel room with a coffee table full of coke, a bed full of hookers and an incredible story to tell.