With Shannon Sharpe's impending departure from Fox Sports, Skip Bayless will need a new co-host on Undisputed. Reports suggest, Bayless has so much power at Fox that he'll have final say over who gets the seat across from him.

Front Office Sports is reporting the following:

Bayless is expected to have the “final say” on Sharpe’s replacement, said the source. So the challenge is to find a new debate partner who can hold his own with the enfant terrible of sports TV. But not overshadow the prickly Bayless.

The article continues:

“Skip is not going to hire anybody who challenges him – and he’s going to make the hire. So it’s a crazy deal,” warned the source. “And here’s the kicker: you have to be willing to work with Skip, you’re going to have to put up with some shit, he has to approve of you. And you have to get up at 3:30 in the morning.”

The article also suggests there are few people in the sports media industry interested in working with Bayless and that he's rarely gotten along with his broadcast partners. Stephen A. Smith is really the lone exception to that rule.

Bayless signed a four-year contract extension in 2021 so he'll be around for a while. It's not shocking that he'd have a say in who his next co-host is, but it is a bit eye-opening that he'd have veto power over the spot.

This article was originally published on thebiglead as Skip Bayless Will Have Final Say Over New Co-Host.