mmajunkie.com is reporting that EliteXC is shutting its doors...let's hope that a solution can be found, there are a lot of decent fighters under contract with EliteXC. Now they'll need to find a new home.
Watching the 14 second destruction of Kimbo Slice last night left me a little empty inside. On one hand I got to meet Bas Rutten just a week ago at the Paradise Warrior Retreat in Toronto and I can't tell you how much respect I have for Bas as both a former champ and a teacher/trainer. On the other hand having witnessed Kimbo's last fight against James Thompson I was less than impressed with his all round game.
It's not Kimbo's fault that he gets all of the press attention, but still he is not yet a top 10 (or even 20) heavyweight contender and last night certainly proved that point. Seth Petruzelli caught Kimbo with the first punch he threw and Kimbo went down, it almost looked like half knockdown and half slip Kimbo's torso didn't actually hit the ground, but it was Kimbo's groundwork afterward that caught my attention. I'm not sure if Slice was dazed or if he really is that stiff on the ground. Kimbo caught 3 or 4 of the 10 or so punches that Petruzelli threw, but offered up no real defense and that's why the fight got stopped.
I am sure that Kimbo could have continued and even looked like he was ready to get back up when the ref stepped in, but it was too late. Kimbo needs to learn how to deal with these kinds of situations or he's going to fail as a fighter. Kimbo was gracious in defeat, giving props to Seth for stepping up and taking the fight "It's all good" he proclaimed and let everyone know that the after party was still on.
I can't wait to hear Bas Rutten's take on the fight and the last minute opponent change from an injured (cut above his eye) Ken Shamrock to Seth Petruzelli.
So, what do you think? Was Kimbo exposed? Was he just caught with a big shot and dazed? Was the ref stoppage too early, or justified?
Jake Shields vs. Paul Daley (for EliteXC welterweight title)
Gina Carano vs. Kelly Kobold-Gavin
Benji Radach vs. Murilo "Ninja" Rua
PRELIMINARY CARD
Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos vs. Yoko Takahashi
Edson Berto vs. Connor Heun
Seth Petruzelli vs. Aaron Rosa
Lorenzo Borgomeo vs. Mikey Gomez
Jorge Bouchat vs. Nicolae Cury
David Gomez vs. Brett Jackowski
This is pretty nice for a free card. Admittedly, the fight between Ken Shamrock vs Kimbo is not going to determine a contender for Fedor's throne, but if Ken manages to get the fight to the ground it will tell us whether Kimbo can truly defend submissions.
On CBS Robbie Lawler vs Scott Smith (the rematch for the EliteXC middleweight title) Nick Diaz vs Thomas Denny Jake Shields vs Nick Thompson Shana Bazler vs Cristiane Cyborg
Undercard On Showtime (and Fight Network in Canada) Antonio Silva vs. Justin Eilers Wilson Reis vs. Brian Caraway Rafael Feijao Cavalcante vs. Travis Galbraith
EliteXC has scheduled 3 title fights as part of it's July 26 Saturday Night Fights on CBS fight card.
EliteXC Title Fights
Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva vs TBA (heavyweight title, shown on showtime)
Robbie Lawler vs Scott Smith (middleweight title)
Jake Shields vs Nick Thompson (welterweight title)
Also on the card is Nick Diaz vs Thomas Denny...a bout that seems like a setup to make Diaz look good and ready him for a rematch with EliteXC lightweight champ KJ Noons.
Of course, the big question is whether or not it will be Kimbo Slice facing Silva for the heavyweight title.
NOTE: The heavyweight matchup will be shown on Showtime in a 1 hour preview event.
EliteXC lightweight Nick Diaz (17-7) will meet former King of the Cage champion Thomas Denny (26-16) at the next EliteXC-CBS "Saturday Night Fights" event, which takes place July 26 at Stockton Arena in Stockton, Calif.
And, in typical EliteXC Results fashion, here is a Nick Diaz video. BTW, the guy he is fighting is Takanori Gomi, the man considered by many to be the #1 lightweight in the world.
Jake Shields will fight Nick Thompson (36-9-1) for the first-ever EliteXC welterweight title.
The title fight takes place during the second EliteXC-CBS "Saturday Night Fights" event, currently scheduled for July 26 -- possibly in Stockton, Calif.
Here is a submission wrestling video of Jake Shields vs Jon Fitch. As you probably know, Fitch will challenge Georges St Pierre for the UFC welterweight title in August.
Yves Ed'duvill Edwards (born September 30, 1976) is a Bahamian professional mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter. He is known for his fights as a lightweight in organizations such as the UFC, PRIDE, BodogFIGHT, and EliteXC.
Yves Edwards is the the founder of a fighting style called Thug-Jitsu. Edwards began training in traditional karate in his youth, moving on to kung fu before eventually taking up mixed martial arts. This also led him to Muay Thai in order to improve his stand-up.
Nickname The Texas Gunslinger
Height 5’10” (178cm)
Weight 155lbs (70kg)
Nationality Bahamian
Born September 30, 1976 (1976-09-30) (age 31)
Fighting out of Woodlands, Texas
Town of birth Nassau, Bahamas
Team/Association American Top Team
Fighting style Thugjitsu
Most notable moments
At UFC 49, Edwards knocked out Josh Thomson by way of spectacular head-kick. After the fight, commentator Mike Goldberg announced: "I will say right now, this kick has replaced Pete Williams on Mark Coleman as the greatest knockout due to a kick in UFC history."
Of course what EliteXC fan hasn't seen footage of the crazy knee KO of Edson Berto on Feb 16th. If you haven't seen it, here is a clip...and no, that isn't me in the audio on the clip
Record
Yves holds a MMA record of 33-13-1 and holds wins over such notables as Josh Thomson, Hermes Franca, Rich Clementi, Dokonjonosuke Mishima and Aaron Riley.
Yves next fight is June 14th for the EliteXC lightweight title, his opponent is KJ Noons. You will be able to find results for that fight right here.
June 14th is the next big EliteXC fight card and EliteXC Results is ready. Here is the fight card with a few predictions just to whet your whistile. After the fight card is a vid clip of some highlights of a fight between Yves Edwards and highly regarded UFC lightweight Hermes Franca.
I watch this video clip and just can't help but make the comparison between Edwards and Anderson Silva. The ease in which he puts together punches and kicks and his durability on the ground make an easy comparison. Edwards had a rough patch but seems to be back on track now.
MAIN CARD
Champ KJ Noons vs. Yves Edwards (for EliteXC lightweight title)
Prediction : Yves Edwards by KO.
Winner : KJ Noons by ref stoppage.
Muhsin Corbbrey vs. Nick Diaz
Prediction : Nick Diaz by submission
Winner : Nick Diaz by decision
Tony Bonello vs. "Ninja" Rua
Prediction : Ninja by TKO
Wayne Cole vs. Rafael Feijao
Winner : Rafael Feijao
Dave Herman vs. Ron Waterman
Prediction : Ron Waterman
Winner : Dave Herman
PRELIMINARY CARD (not shown on TV, but will be on proelite web site)
On June 14th EliteXC is hosting a fight card in Hawaii. The card features an EliteXC title bout between current belt holder KJ Noons and former UFC standout Yves Edwards. Other notable names on the card are Murilo Rua, Ron Waterman and Nick Diaz.
KJ Noons vs. Yves Edwards
Nick Diaz vs. Muhsin Corbbrey
Murilo 'Ninja' Rua vs. Tony Bonello
Rafael Feijao vs. Wayne Cole
Dave Herman vs. Ron Waterman
The broadcast will be available on Showtime in the US and I assume on The Fight Network in Canada