Max Kellerman said goodbye to ESPN’s “First Take” on Wednesday, less than a month after co-host Stephen A. Smith kicked him out of the sports talk show.
“It’s all over, and this is the end of my career on‘ First Take, ’” Kellerman said at the end of Wednesday’s show.
Widely regarded as the face of the network, Smith pushed ESPN executives to remove Kellerman from the program because he did not believe they worked well together, Andrew Marchand of The Post reported.
ESPN made the break official last month and said Kellerman would switch to other programs on the network.
Neither Smith nor Kellerman mentioned the reason for their separation during Kellerman’s final appearance as a co-host.
Smith, who has been out of the air recently when recovering from sleep apnea surgery, called to wish Kellerman well.
“I am very sorry not to have been there to tell you face to face that we thank you for everything you have done during the program,” Smith said. “You’ll do great things like you always do great things.”
Kellerman, 48, who moves to ESPN radio in the mornings and will have his own afternoon TV show on the network, thanked Smith and alluded to Smith’s oversized influence on makeup. of the program.
“Stephen A. said a lot about who his teammate was going to be after Skip [Bayless] he left the show, ”said Kellerman, who was born in the Bronx in 2016 and began his boxing career. “And I was honored to have been chosen and I wouldn’t change the last five years for anything.”
In March, Smith, 53, pressured ESPN to reunite him with Bayless before Bayless re-signed with Fox Sports on a four-year, $ 32 million deal.
Bayless is the co-host of FS1’s “Undisputed,” another daily morning sports talk show, consisting of “First Take.”
Smith, a former journalist with a $ 60 million contract that makes him the highest paid ESPN personality, will follow “First Take” with a rotation of guests to debate.