EliteXC Ratings are in...
(tvbythenumbers.com)
I can tell you however that CBS did have higher expectations... As did pro-elite I'm sure.
Elite was hoping for at least one silver lining to what transpired last night...
The future of MMA on CBS is not looking real good...
Final Curtain for the Kimbo Show
(sports.yahoo.com)I liked this one!!
"The legend of Kimbo Slice was built by beating bums in boat yards and back alleys not far from here. It came crashing down Saturday courtesy of a quick punch from a pink-haired journeyman giving up two inches in height, four in reach and 30 pounds in muscle and might.
One simple shot sent Slice to the canvas and from there some guy named Seth Petruzelli needed just 12 punches and 14 seconds to put an end (we hope) to one of the great sporting charades of all time.
It was just a matter of time before Kimbo got exposed. He was little more than a character out of central casting, a bunch of addictive YouTube videos and a lot of insane hype by CBS, which made him a headliner before he made himself a fighter."
NICE!!!! 
The upside for Kimbo taking a fight vs. Petruzelli was financial
(fiveouncesofpain.com)The second-guessing regarding last night’s decision to substitute Seth Petruzelli in place of a medically disqualified Ken Shamrock in the main event of EliteXC and CBS’ “Saturday Night Fights” has already begun.
The main question being raised is why did Kimbo accept the fight considering there was little upside?
Well, I believe there was an upside for Team Kimbo and it was likely financial. While speaking with sources at the post-fight press conference for the event, they indicated to FiveOuncesOfPain.com that Slice received a “substantial” increase over the guarantee he was scheduled to make vs. Shamrock.
For a guy who used to fight unknowns in backyards for only a few thousand dollars, accepting a fight vs. Petruzelli probably made a lot more sense once EliteXC made him a financial offer he likely couldn’t refuse.
EliteXC Heat - Results
MAIN CARD:
Seth Petruzelli def. Kimbo Slice via TKO at 0:14 in round 1.
Jake Shields def. Paul Daley by submission at 3:47 of round 2.
Andrei Arlovski def. Roy Nelson by KO at 3:14 of round 2.
Gina Carano def. Kelly Kobald by unanimous decision.
Benji Radach def. Murilo Ninja Rua by TKO at 2:31 of round 2.
PRELIMINARY CARD:
Cyborg Santos def. Yoko Takahashi by unanimous decision.
Conor Heun def. Edson Berto by TKO at 2:18 of round 2.
Mikey Gomez def. Lorenzo Borgomeo by submission at 4:06 of round 2.
Bryan Hamade def. David Gomez by submission at 2:03 of round 1.
Nicolae Cury def. Jorge Bouchat by submission at 1:35 of round 1.
 Nice TD defense by the ref though.......
SHIELDS DEFENDS TITLE; CALLS FOR CHANCE AT 185
(mmaweekly.com)Up until Saturday night, Jake Shields made it his business to make good fighters look bad, but he seemed to have his toughest test to date when he faced and defeated British heavy hitter Paul Daley, to defend his EliteXC welterweight title for the first time.
The first two minutes of the fight worried a great number of Shields’ fans as he looked to strike with Daley, who is possibly the best striker at 170 pounds, but he hung around and eventually took the fight to the ground. Shields quickly moved to the mount and stayed there for almost the rest of the round, but Daley persevered and actually landed on top, landing some big elbows before the first five minutes came to a close.
In the second round, Shields looked winded as Daley started to go for bigger strikes, but before too long the fight was back down on the ground and Shields had the mount again. He had no intentions of giving up that position this time as Shields swiveled from mount into a tight armbar that gave Daley no way out and he submitted to the hold.
“Daley’s a phenomenal fighter; he gave me hell,” Shields said after the fight. “I haven’t been past the first round in about over a year. He gave me a hell of a fight so hats off to (Paul) Daley.”
ARLOSVKI MOVES TO 2-0 AGAINST IFL'S BEST
(mmaweekly.com)Following his exit from the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Andrei Arlosvki is now 2-0 against the best of the best of the IFL’s former heavyweights as he knocked out Roy Nelson at CBS-EliteXC Saturday Night Fights.
The first round saw Arlovski deal with Nelson’s ground game as the Las Vegas native took the fight down and moved to side mount, but he couldn’t capitalize on the position.
It was apparent early on that Arlovski had a considerable speed advantage over his opponent, but Nelson stuck around with great heart and tenacity.
Nelson tried to employ a similar gameplan in the second round of the fight, pressing Arlovski against the cage, but he seemed to lose steam as time went on. A huge uppercut rocked Nelson. Arlovski followed that up with a big right hand that sent his opponent crashing to the mat, ending the fight.
Arlovski struggled at points against Nelson, but for the biggest parts of the fight he succeeded where he needed to and pulled off another impressive win over a top quality opponent in Roy Nelson.
Gina Carano is a Great Fighter
(bloodyelbow.com)Gina Carano is one of the most criticized fighters among hardcore fans, and while there is no excuse for all the problems making weight, it's unfair to focus on that at the expense of her performances.
Tonight the difference between Gina Carano and Kimbo Slice was truly on display. Both were chosen as the faces of EliteXC, and both were given a lot of hype, but only one was able to deliver. Gina displayed much-improved takedown defense and excellent muay thai on her way to victory tonight over a much more experienced opponent in Kelly Kobald.
It seems like hardcore fans are always quick to dismiss her exciting and impressive performances in order to talk about her weight issues. Just 4 months ago almost everyone turned against Gina and predicted that Kaitlyn Young would destroy her, but it was Gina that picked Kaitlyn apart with ease. Then everyone that picked against her decided to just rip her for the weight issues after the fight.
If EliteXC survives long enough to put on Carano vs. Cyborg, I suspect we'll see a number of people predicting impending doom for the "overrated" Gina Carano. And then, if she beats Cyborg, people will just ignore the accomplishment. Hopefully they just fight at 145 so we can focus on the fight and not the weight.
Ken Shamrock Injured, Main Event Cancelled!!! *Update** Kimbo vs Petruzelli tonight. 100%
(mmarated.com)MMARated.com has learned that Ken Shamrock sustained a cut above his eye in the last 24 hours while training and WILL NOT be fighting in tonight's main event bout against Kimbo Slice.
EliteXC officials are scrambling to find a last minute replacement for Shamrock. We have heard that Frank Shamrock - who is calling the fight for CBS - offered to step in at the last minute but is ultimately not fighting. EliteXC has offered Slice Seth Petruzelli - who was scheduled to fight Aaron Rosa tonight. As of right now, Kimbo has yet to officially accept the fight.
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UPdate****
UPDATE: We are now hearing that EliteXC officials may have found a doctor who may clear Shamrock tonight after all. EliteXC may be on the verge of dodging a bullet of epic proportions. Stay tuned...
UPDATE #2: They skipped the Petruzelli vs. Rosa fight. This might mean that Petruzelli is replacing Shamrock after all.
Update #3: Ken Shamrock has left the arena. He is not fighting tonight..
Jared Shaw Fires Back At Dana White
(mmajunkie.com)In the latest war of words between UFC's Dana White and EliteXC's Jared Shaw, Shaw said he was unconcerned with Dana's labeling Shaw as a "retard", but understands why others might be. He also took a shot at Dana over comparing running their business to starting a fast food joint, noting that the spokesman for the current #1 joint also was named Jared.
Ortiz Likely Headed To EliteXC, But Out 6 Months
(mmajunkie.com)Ahead of a guest appearance at tonight's EliteXC event, Tito Ortiz revealed that he's working on a deal to join the promotion, but he also will be out of action for 6 months due to upcoming lower back surgery. Ortiz also revealed that both the American Fight League and Affliction are out of the running for him.
ALL ON THE LINE, SHIELDS DEFENDING ELITEXC BELT
(mmaweekly.com)Jake Shields is perhaps the most underrated fighter in the world. He is the No. 5 ranked welterweight, according to the MMAWeekly.com World MMA Rankings. He has impressive victories over Carlos Condit, Yushin Okami, and Renato Verissimo. He is the current EliteXC welterweight champion and will defend his belt on Saturday night against Paul Daley.
Shields was heavily rumored to take on top middleweight Matt Lindland in the October Affliction show. Unfortunately, the Affliction show was postponed to January and left Shields an opportunity to defend his title on EliteXC's Saturday Night Fights.
“Initially I was a little disappointed for a couple days because I had my mind set on that Lindland fight,” he explained recently on MMAWeekly Radio. “In retrospect, I'm certainly glad this is what I did. After a couple days, I realized fighting on CBS is obviously a huge opportunity to get my name out there and the fact that the Affliction card got postponed made me really happy that I went with this fight.”
EliteXC is in need of an impressive card and high ratings in order to keep their company on a progressive path. They have really beefed up their card pitting Kimbo Slice and Ken Shamrock against each other, which is sure to garner some interest. They are also putting popular stars Gina Carano and Andrei Arlovski on the card, as well as their welterweight champion. Shields believes that this card is fantastic and would definitely watch it, even if he weren't on the card. “This is the best card I ever fought on, I think. I would definitely be happy to watch these fights as a fan. I like every fight on the card myself. I'm excited to be a part of this.”
DIRE STRAITS: CEO TRIES TO RESUSCITATE ELITEXC
(mmaweekly.com)In the corporate world, Chuck Champion is seen as a turnaround artist. After making his start in business-to-consumer marketing for newspapers, he took the reigns of several companies in financial distress. His last turnaround, online gambling website Youbet.com, went from $.45 a share to $6.50 a share in his five-year tenure with the company.
Champion had left Youbet and was “taking a break” when he received a call from a board member of ProElite, Inc. in November of 2007, asking him to take a look at the company’s ledger. Their balance sheet was a story he’d read before.
“Like a lot of startups, they’d gone out and their appetites were fairly significant. They’d bought a lot of brands and they did that very quickly,” he said. “You could see the problems that created, trying to integrate all that stuff into one company.”
The company was also bleeding cash. Champion says Sales, General, and Administrative costs, which account for the overhead of a business, were burning $1.7 million dollars a month in cash reserves. Something needed to be done, fast, or ProElite would soon close its doors.
Kelly Kobald: "I’m going to be the pretty one leaving the cage."
(mmamania.com)Apparently Kelly Kobald sees her fight against Gina Carano Saturday as being a "2 pretty women enter, 1 pretty woman leaves" deal. Kobald says in her words that she plans on hitting Gina with the "ugly stick" durign Saturday's fight as well as finishing her in the 1st or 2nd round.
Note: Link contains some bad words.
Can Ken Shamrock Save EliteXC?
(sports.yahoo.com)Ken Shamrock has been in more matches that have shaped the history of mixed martial arts than any other fighter.
This long and winding road leads to what may be his final exit on Saturday night when Shamrock headlines against Kimbo Slice on CBS in yet another pivotal night in the sport’s history.
A bad prime-time television rating, coming off the heels of poor numbers for a July card, would likely doom Elite XC’s future on the network. And it wouldn’t be a positive as Showtime makes a final decision on whether to purchase the company, which is running low on funds with more than $56 million in losses over the past two years.
“Several times in my career I’ve been put in this position where the company needed a rating or a buy rate and I’ve always come through,” said Shamrock, 44.
Shamrock still has the ability to talk up a fight, but can his body match his mouth? Shamrock says his accumulated injuries, such as knees that couldn’t hold up to the kind of training needed to fight top-level competition at his age, and a shoulder that had to be surgically replaced, are fine and he’s finished a good camp. Those who have trained with him say he’s strong, fast and hits hard.
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