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KELLER'S EliteXC Report 5/31: MMA's network broadcast debut on CBS more freakshow then showcase of sport By Wade Keller, MMATorch supervising editor
May 31, 2008 - 10:39:08 PM
-They opened with a relatively low-key intro with scenes of the Statue of Liberty and the Prudential Center in Newark. Then they went to a series of artsy shots of the key fighters on the show. It was a lousy way to hype the event as they didn’t establish any personalities or backstory of the matches. They didn’t mention any titles or provide any context to EliteXC itself.
-Gus Johnson introduced the show form ringside. He said, “For those watching for the first time, this is real, this is extreme, hand-to-hand combat, cerebral, vicious, and violent.” Ugh. Do we really need to say it’s “real” and “violent.” He brought in Mauro Ranallo to join him, adding a ton of experience to the broadcast as he hosted the Pride events on U.S. PPV. He talked about MMA history dating back to Pancracian fighting. Next came Frank Shamrock being profiled with clips of his EliteXC fights. Shamrock then joined Johnson and Ranallo at ringside. He said tonight will feature “honor, discipline, and respect” while noting that Bruce Lee was the forefather of modern MMA. Shamrock then said viewers will see “deadly martial arts” and said any one of these fighters could knock you out with one punch or put you out with a sleeper. That was amateurish. Who’s writing this stuff? Why include terms like “deadly” and state the obvious, which is that these fighters could knock out viewers with one punch. They have a chip on their shoulder they don’t need to have.
-The cut to an entrance stage and ramp that’s more reminiscent of a pro wrestling stage than what UFC fans are familiar with.
[Commercial Break]
-Back at the arena they showed a female dance team on the ramp which bordered on cheesy. Johnson previewed the five-fight card. They continue to refer to Kimbo Slice as an “Internet sensation.”
-They went to a video package with Shamrock talking about the various fighting styles, common holds and moves, and the rules. He closed by saying the competitors are Olympic level athletes.
-Back to ringside, Shamrock talked about how the art of fighting is a lifelong study. He closed with what sounded like a scripted line about how fighting to bring home the bacon is sexy.
-They showed the Street Fight trailer network premiere. It’s risky to go more than 20 minutes before even beginning the first fight. I understand wanting to explain the rules and set the stage, but this was a little much. It felt like an Olympics presentation, but this isn't 24 hour coverage where you can afford to pace yourself like this.
1 -- JON MURPHY (30, 6-3, 260, Philadelphia, Pa., 4-2) vs. BRETT ROGERS (27, 6-5, 263, St. Paul Minn. 6-0) -- Heavyweight Division
PREFIGHT: Rogers talked about fighting to put food on the table. I would have left out talk about anyone fighting to put food on the table because it says one of two things: (a) the fighter is poor and just starting out and literally will starve if he doesn’t fight, which isn’t a really flattering portrayal of a network-level fighter; it feels more like a bar fighter; or worse (b) he’s a spoiled rich athlete who overstates, like so many athletes, how he he won’t be able to feed his family if he doesn’t fight... The announcers talked about how Rogers quit his full time job to train and they continued to talk about his being a family man. They’re setting him up as a likable figure... Murphy talked about shaving his head and giving it up to charity. He also talked about his faith; his nickname is “The Man of Faith”... Busta Rhimes introduced Rogers live on the stage... Ranallo talked about Murphy battling cocaine issues and alcoholism, but having completed a treatment program... Jimmy Lennon Jr. did the ring introductions of the judges: Romulo Bittencourt, Eric Colon, and Douglas Crosby...
ROUND ONE: The bell rang to start the fight 26 minutes into the show. I would have had the bell ring for the first match no later than 5 minutes after the start of the show and then explained rules and aired the video packages between fights as filler if needed. Murphy surprised Rogers and stunned him slightly with an early punch, but Rogers came back and knocked out Murphy 30 seconds in with a right hook. The ref moved in immediately when Rogers fell forward onto all fours and showed no sign of being able to defend himself should more punches come. He asked afterward, once he got up and moved back to his bench, “Did he hit me with is right hand?” We got more talk of “bringing home the bacon” which just sounds so tired and cliched.
WINNER: Rogers via TKO.
STAR RATING (*+): A good and bad first fight. Good in that they delivered a decisive KO. Bad because technique-wise, the average viewer isn’t going to see the Olympic-style athleticism and art that the really, really long 26 minutes of set-up hyped. In fact, they looked like two bar fighters or tough-man competitors. UFC went through growing pains in terms of their production in the 1990s, and now they make this look easy. It’s apparently not because presentation-wise, this is clunky and poorly paced and overall just has a less-than-slick feel to it.
POST-FIGHT: Johnson interviewed Rogers. He forgot to take out his mouthpiece at first, which was funny when he tried to talk. He said he’s moving up and it feels good.
[Commercial Break]
-Back to the female dancers on the rampway.
-They played soundbites from Phil Baroni and Joe Villasenor, from which we learned nothing. Baroni just mumbled another cliche: “You can run, but you can’t hide.” He guaranteed a knockout. We also learned that Villasenor likes flyfishing. He said Baroni knows what’s coming. He didn’t let us in on it.
[Commercial Break]
2 -- PHIL BARONI (32, 5-9, Albuquerque, N.M., 25-6) vs. JOE VILLASENOR -- Middleweight Division (32, 6-0, Long Island, N.Y., 10-9)
PRE-FIGHT: Johnson tripped all over his scripted lines about Villasenor wanting to earn a title shot. They haven’t done anything to establish with the viewers who the champions are. They did, though, say that the fighter who won their opening match lost to the opponent of Kimbo in the main event, bringing into question the wisdom of the match-making... Ranallo and Shamrock talked about Villasenor training with Greg Jackson and dropped some names of other well known fighters in that camp including Rashad Evans... Baroni said winning this fight will put him in contention for a title shot, and that’s his ultimate goal. There is a lot of talk of fighters wanting titles, which is good... Baroni came out to Pale Face’s “My Rifle, My Gun." He did his signature dance to the ring. Shamrock said he thinks he can beat Villasenor if he hides his right hand and surprises him with it. He said he should dictate the fight and use wrestling. Ranallo uttered the initials UFC for the first time, saying that he was depressed when UFC "released him" until Pride brought him in. It's factual, but it portrays Baroni as a UFC washout to the viewers. Instead, from a hype standpoint, leave out that UFC "released" him and instead say he went from fighting in front of a few thousand in America to 60,000 in Japan, but has yet to reach the top tier. Say he has had big fights before, but hasn't won the most important ones, and this is a chance to redeem himself... A graphic hyped EliteXC on Showtime on June 14 at 10 p.m...
ROUND ONE: Baroni was aggressive at the start and moved in quickly. He swung a few times. Villasenor threw a left high roundkick, but Baroni caught it and took him down. He threw a barrage of lefts, but Villasnor went into guard. Baroni let him stand again. At 1:00 Villasnor applied a guillotine. Baroni fought it off, so Villasenior let go and stunned Baroni with four punches that dropped Baroni. The ref stepped in and stopped it. Ranallo noted that the Middlweight Title is vacant...
WINNER: Villasnor via TKO in 1:10.
STAR RATING (*+): Another mixed bag. This match showed a nice guillotine and solid TKO at the end, but it just didn't feel like a full-fledged contest between two world class fighters. On a production note, they're breaking one of the no. 1 rules of camerawork which is indiscriminately switching to complete reverse angles so one second a fighter is on the right, and the next second he's on the left of the screen even thought the fighters haven't moved. It's jarring as a viewer and there's just no good reason to do that. It's the equivalent of a quarterback throwing a pass down field with the ball moving left-to-right, then switching jarringly to a new camera angle where the wide receiver is catching it while running right-to-left.
POST-FIGHT: Villasenor paid some respects to Baroni as being a showman and a good fighter. He talked up his winning streak and came across as a good guy.
[Commercial Break]
-Karyn Bryant interviewed Gina Carano. Bryant asked if her celebrity attention has taken away fro her training for the fight. Carano said there is some truth to that, but she's thinking about the fight now. He was chewing gum during the interview. Bryant said if any viewers think women can't or shouldn't fight, these two will absolutely change their minds.
[Commercial Break]
3 -- GINA CARANO (26, 5-8, 144.5, Las Vegas, Nev., 5-0) vs. KAITLIN YOUNG (22, 5-9, 140.5, Circle Pines, Minn., 4-1)
PRE-FIGHT: A video feature aired on Young. She said MMA fighting is safer than sheet metal fabrication, her other vocation. Clips aired of some of her Bodog knockouts... She came to the ring to Avenged Sevenfold's "Lost"... Ranallo talked about Young winning an eight-woman one-night Hook 'n' Shoot tournament in Evansville, Ind. where she knocked out each opponent in a total of 1:25... Carano came out to From First To Lasts's "Hell March"... Ranallo said she's been battling the scale and "obviously" has Hollywood aspirations. As a result of weighting four pounds over the limit, she has to share part of her purse with her opponent... They showed Carano's father watching nervously from the crowd. Can't blame him for that... The women fight three minutes rounds...
ROUND ONE: Young blocked two early heavy front thrust kicks from Carano. Carano brought Young down, but they ended up on their feet again after a brief guard position by Young. young threw a nice high roundhouse kick, but it didn't land. Young tackled Carano to the mat, so Carano got to show off her guard. Carano held her in tight for a stalemate for a minute. Young kicked at Carno as she stood and even threw a spin kick. Carano jabbed Young in the chin, then caught her foot and held onto it for a few seconds. Ranallo said after one round that they were well on their way to stealing the show just as he predicted. They definitely gave female fighters a new image with those punches and kicks.
ROUND TWO: Young seemed fresher coming into the second round, but Carano picked her spots. Young took a shot to the nose and was reeling. Carano moved in, but didn't have the wind to finish her. Carano thrust kicked her in the gut and landed another punch, but Young stayed on her feet. Carno moved in for the finish at 2:00. Young stayed on her feet barely. Carano front kicked her to the mat and then went for a rea naked choke. Young guarded her neck with 25 seconds left in the round. Carano rolled onto her back and cinched it on with five seconds left. She was saved by the bell. She walked to her corner with severe swelling under her left eye and bloody nose. The doc asked her where she was. She said EliteXC in Newark. She was right, but the fight was called off anyway.
WINNER: Carano after the first round via stoppage.
STAR RATING (***-): Entertaining fight. Disappointing finish in the sense that it felt like it was relatively arbitrary since Young knew where she was and seemed ready to keep going (although barely). She didn't protest, at least not caught by the camera, when the fight was called off. On the down side, Carano did seem in less than stellar cardio shape. Young must've been pretty beaten down as she didn't even stand up for the TKO announcement. Young put up a good fight.
POST-FIGHT: Johnson asked if this was her toughest fight yet. She said she wasn't so sure of that, but she said Young is a "cool ass chick" and a tough opponent. She laughed as she talked about her attempted submission hold, saying while giggling, "That was fun." Carano admitted she just came back for filming American Gladiators. She waved to them (an NBC show). Johnson asked if her heart is still in MMA. She said yes, then thanked God. She admitted she felt sloppy and needs to get back into the gym and get her butt in gear. This came across pretty bad with Carano billed as a real star of MMA, but then she admits she didn't train that hard or long for the freakin' debut of MMA on broadcast network TV because she was filming a cheesy, gimmicky TV series on a competing network.
-Bryant interviewed Kimbo Slice backstage who gave a relatively low-key interview. He said he's not trying to prove anything, just win his fight and take it home.
-They showed Robbie Lawler warming up backstage.
[Commercial Break]
-They showed the dancers on the ramp again, then brief soundbites with Lawler and Scott Smith.
[Commercial Break]
4 -- ROBBIE LAWLER (26, 5-11, Granite City, Ill, 15-4) vs. SCOTT SMITH (29, 6-0 184, Elk Grove, Calif., 15-4) -- Middleweight Title match
PRE-FIGHT: Smith came out to Avenged Sevenfold's "Scream"... Smith talked about being away from his kids for two months and vowed that he wouldn't sacrifice time with his kids for anything other than a title win... Lawler came out to Elone ft. PBC's "Ima on Tour"... Matt Hughes accompanies Lawler to ringside and gave him a pre-fight hug...
ROUND ONE: Ranallo said this fight has the potential to do for EliteXC what Stephan Bonner vs. Forrest Griffin did for UFC. The crowd booed early, but it was uneducated booing as it was a totally normal start to a slugfest. They turned it up big time at 3:00 with a wild kicks and swings. Lawler dominated the final 45 seconds, but didn't really move in for the finish until there were less than ten seconds left. Smith was saved by the bell or sure, as he almost collapsed after the round. He held onto the cage and caught his balance and breath afterward.
ROUND TWO: At 2:00 Smith attacked Lawler in the style of Anderson Silva clinching and kneeing Lawler. Laler withstood it and fired back with a variety of tight punches. Ranallo cited the Wanderlei Silva vs. Keith Jardine fight. Much closer round than the first one. A case can be made for sure that Smith won that.
ROUND THREE: They took turns punching each other for three minutes. Lawler shot in for the first time at 3:00. Smith avoided the takedown and applied a choke. Lawler escaped a few seconds later and got Smith's back. They went back to stand-up and Smith took a finger to his right eye. They paused the fight for medical check and the fight was called of by the doc. Smith pleaded for them not to. The crowd chanted "bullsh---" Smith went over to Lawler and they both embraced in a show of sportsmanship. Ranallo explained that "safety is paramount." Shamrock said Smith had plenty of fight left in him. Ranallo said it was on its way to becoming an instant classic.
WINNER: No contest at 3:26 of round three. Had three rounds been completed, the judges would have decided it.
STAR RATING: (***+): Well on its way to a four-star potential classic, but the disappointing finish really hurts. That's going to leave a bitter taste in the mouths of viewers. Totally unsatisfying.
POST-FIGHT: The New Jersey Athletic Commissioner Nick Lembo was interviewed. He said the doctor asked him if he could see and twice Smith said no. He said a fighter can't tell a doctor he can't see and expect the fight to continue. That was lame because the rules state Smith has five minutes to recover from an accidental eye poke, so he should have been asked that question at 4:45 of that five minute period. The EliteXC president Gary Shaw said the fight was good enough that he's going to give both fighters the winning purse. Smith said when they asked him if he could see, he said he couldn't at that moment and wanted his full five minutes to recover. He said it was a great fight and it's the type of fight he loves, but he wanted to see it go to a finish. Lawler said that they need to "run it back," which I assume means have a rematch. Smith said he felt good during the fight, but he thinks he broke his right foot and his head is really starting to hurt.
[Commercial Break]
-A profile piece on Kimbo included this gem from Kimbo: "Your mind, your heart, and your balls have to be on one cord." Clips aired of him KO'ing Tank Abbott about 30 times.
-They showed Johnson, Ranallo, and Shamrock on camera again. They talked about Kimbo for a minute. Ranallo said people want to see if Kimbo is "for real" since he only has two official MMA fights. He said he's not a marketing creation, he's a legit fighter. He said Bas Rutten's willingness to train him is all the endorsement he needs. Johnson asked Shamrock why the world cares so much about Kimbo. Shamrock said he's a bad dude himself, but he's scared of Kimbo. "There's a look in his eye that scares a lot of people." Johnson said he faces his toughest opponent yet.
[Commercial Break]
-Kimbo said he has two things: power and slice. Thompson said he's going to give Kimbo a good old fashioned beatdown. He then threw his arms around weirdly.
5 -- KIMBO SLICE (4, 6-2, 235, Miami, Fla, 2-0) vs. JAMES THOMPSON (29, 6-4, 257, Manchester, England, 16-8)
PRE-FIGHT: Thompson had one of the nastiest cauliflower ears I've ever seen. It's like he had a separate brain growing in his left ear... Kimbo came to the ring to The Dunk Ryders' "Forget the Other Side"... Johnson said it wasn't long ago that Kimbo was homeless, bathing in oceans and pools. He said he fought for a few thousand here and there, but will earn well into the six-figures for this fight. Ranallo said this fame hasn't gone to his head... Even tough Thompson has lost his last few fights, he has big wins over big names including Dan Severn and Don Frye... Kimbo's discipline was labelled "brawling." He was billed again as a star of the Internet...
ROUND ONE: Kimbo went after Thompson aggressively, but Thompson took him down. They wrestled around and ended up back on their feet. Not a world class display of fighting, but entertaining and dramatic as it was clearly Kimbo's first true test.
ROUND TWO: Kimbo landed some big punches, but Thompson showed he has a solid chin tonight and managed to stay in it. This ended with Thompson pounding Kimbo on the mat over and over. The announcers said Kimbo had no answers on the ground. Kimbo looked tired at the end of the round.
ROUND THREE: Kimbo came out and landed some really good punches early. The ref inexplicably stepped in and stopped it and awarded it to Kimbo. Fiasco of a finish, actually. It might have been over in a few seconds, but it wasn't over yet. He ate four punches, but was still on his feet. Kimbo lay on his back and caught his breath. Ranallo called it a "scary, scary test." Thompson disagreed so strongly with the finish he actually shoved the ref in the face with his hand.
WINNER: Kimbo via TKO in round three.
STAR RATING: Abstain, as I missed a chunk of the second round due to the show running over and my DVR not catching it. I did see all of rounds one and three, such as it was.
FINAL THOUGHTS: This was Dana White's dream night and nightmare at the same time. This showed EliteXC is a mess of a production that isn't close to being a threat to UFC. However, it was a freak show that gave MMA a bad name. The main event finish was a suspect as the worst boxing finishes. It came across as if they were going to protect Kimbo's record if there was even a sliver of a chance to do so in the third round. It was fraudulent and an embarrassment to CBS to be associated with this. The finish of Smith vs. Lawler was also a mess. Then you had a women's fight with a star of the division who was so flippant about the whole MMA thing that she barely trained for her broadcast network debut. And then you had prelim fights that looked either like mismatches or lousy bar fighters thrown in there for bloodsport. A bad night for MMA as a sport. I would not want anyone to think that represented what the sport is about. There were some lousy UFC-knockoff events on PPV that I covered back in the mid-'90s, and this felt like a trip back in a time machine. Kimbo should be fighting openers, not because he's not a draw, not because he might not be the greatest heavyweight fighter of all time in two years (although I'd bet the ranch against it), but because he hasn't proven himself yet and out of respect to the fighters who learn disciplines and have fought for 15 years with skill and savvy to give this sport an aura of legitimacy, Kimbo should have had to pay dues before moving into the main event. Lawler vs. Smith should have been the main event. Kimbo should have been in a "special attraction" semi-final match at most. There were so many things that were wrong about this and easily fixable, it's frustrating to think about.
