The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly 9.16.08: EliteXC Destiny - Shamrock vs. Gracie DVD Review

Posted by Scott Kuczkowski on 09.16.2008

Can EliteXC’s inaugural event deliver the action promised? Do we witness history in the making as Renzo Gracie and Frank Shamrock battle for glory and family pride in the EliteXC cage?



The inaugural EliteXC event emanates live February 10, 2007, from the DeSoto Civic Center, in Southaven, Mississippi.

The opening sequence for the event included a gladiator-like theme. Do you think they stole that idea from the UFC?

Good/Bad/Ugly

Noons vs. Bennett: Bennett embodies everything that is wrong with MMA. The guy seems like an ordinary street thug, but maybe it's just for show. KJ Noons, for his part, seems like an O.K. guy.

The Good: KJ threw a lot of good leg kicks and really seemed to be the aggressor for the first part of the fight. It was obvious KJ had a boxing background, as his punches looked crisp. Krazy Horse seemed content to let KJ establish his game. Krazy Horse eventually caught KJ with a stiff right hand and ended the fight via TKO in the first round.

The Bad: This match was pretty slow to start off the event. The majority of the fight was KJ taking shots at Bennett while Bennett would circle and close the distance or circle and backpedal.

The Ugly: Bennett was a total idiot post-fight. It's actually obvious why this guy is in EliteXC; I don't think he could get a job anywhere else. Considering EliteXC eventually made Kimbo Slice their front man, I probably shouldn't be surprised they kept someone like Bennett in their employment.



Carano vs. Kedzie: This would be the first female MMA bout to appear on some type of mainstream card or venue. Steve Mazzagatti even gets the round duration wrong during the pre-fight instructions, claiming the fight consists of three 5 minute rounds (when it is actually three 3 minute rounds).

The Good: Carano really pressured Kedzie throughout the entire fight. Carano picked her apart and peppered her with shots at will. I would actually say that there wasn't any point that Kedzie was in the fight. Carano easily took the decision victory. Both fighters were funny during the post fight interviews, as Kedzie seemed kind of out of it. Both women showed a lot of class.

The Bad: Kedzie had no answer for anything Carano threw at her and really just hung in there out of toughness.

The Ugly: None.

At this point the action slows down while the highlights from the first two fights are reviewed…and reviewed…and reviewed. I guess this was an attempt to kill time between fights, but it probably could have been cut from the DVD.


Loiseau vs. Villasenor: David "The Crow" Loiseau is best known for being slammed like a ragdoll by Rick Franklin. He also reminds me of a black George St. Pierre, but without the talent or the charisma.

The Good: Villasenor dominated this entire fight. He took Loiseau down at will and was never in an ounce of danger. He actually handled Loiseau easier than Rich Franklin did. Villasenor landed a hard right hand in the third round that looked like it knocked Loiseau out, but he woke back up when he hit the ground. Villasenor easily took the decision victory.

The Bad: Loiseau was never in this fight, and didn't even look like he wanted to be in the cage. I don't know if the weight cut was that hard on him or what, but he just didn't seem like himself.

The Ugly: Just about anything Loiseau attempted was ugly. I'm surprised he didn't trip walking to the cage.



Silva vs. Correira: We have "Big Foot" vs. "Cabbage". I couldn't even make up those nicknames.

The Good: Silva had very fast hands for a big man and put together some great combos. Cabbage didn't have an answer for anything, and seemed content to just eat blow after blow. Silva scored a nice takedown and then finished Cabbage for the TKO victory with a quick high knee after a standup.

The Bad: The fact that these guys fought at superheavyweight seems a little strange. I think both guys could have made the cut to heavyweight, but were just too lazy to try.

The Ugly: None.



Shamrock vs. Gracie: Shamrock comes into this fight weighing 185 while Renzo only tips the scales at 180. The build up for this is that Shamrock finished Cesar Gracie in 21 seconds during his previous fight, so now he wants to take on Renzo.

The Good: Lots of good action. Renzo took Shamrock down pretty easily whenever he tried. Shamrock had good hands, but couldn't stop the takedowns. Whenever Renzo took Shamrock down, he pretty much had his way with him. Frank would have to try to catch a lucky scramble to get the fight back on the feet after each takedown.

The Bad: Lack of a finish. Read below.

The Ugly: Shamrock threw two knees to the back to Renzo's head from the bottom position. You could tell the first knee just stunned him while the second one hurt him. Shamrock lost via disqualification afterwards and Renzo was carried from the cage. Shamrock acted like he either didn't know what he did was wrong or didn't care that what he did was wrong. Either way, he came off as a cocky prick and a loser.

If I had purchased this event on PPV and this was the finish, I would have been highly pissed. If I was in charge of EliteXC, I probably would have fired Shamrock, as he totally screwed the main event. The crowd seemed totally let down. After all the build up for this big main event, it ended in a disqualification. Very anticlimactic finish. I would have wanted my money back.

Special Features

The second disk is all special features, which is really the only thing that makes this DVD worth purchasing. The preliminary fights are a major portion of the special features, and revolve around a sequence where the viewer is escorted around the arena and through several backstage areas by Jared Shaw (yes, that Jared Shaw). Folks even refer to him as "Skala", which may be spelled $kala if KJ Noons is to be believed.

Shaw, for his part, acts as sort of a guide throughout this sequence and while he starts off as funny, quickly gets annoying with his commentary.


Persey vs. Cantrell: Persey's nickname is "Big Perm". These jokes just write themselves. Shaw interviews Cantrell pre-fight. Cantrell makes it sound like he's a world beater, but I think most everyone else knows better.

The Good: Persey clinches with Cantrell after a few exchanges and knocks him out. Cantrell wasn't even really in the fight and I don't think Persey ever broke a sweat.

The Bad: None.

The Ugly: None.

After that fight, Jared Shaw takes us to an area where Frank Shamrock is working out. Shaw asks Shamrock to choke him out, which Shamrock does to unconsciousness. Funny little moment where Shaw is totally out of it but acts like he's cool. I bet he pissed his pants.


Pyle vs. Ebanez: Jared Shaw refers to both fighters and "jiu-jitsu-ists" instead of jiu-jitsu practitioners. Pyle is the hometown favorite.

The Good: They clinch and go to the ground immediately and Pyle ends up finishing the fight with a rear naked choke.

The Bad: None

The Ugly: None

They now show a clip of the pre-fight press conference where KJ Noons is talking mad shit to Bennett. KJ claims he is going to finish Bennett and hurt him. Considering the outcome of the fight, KJ comes off as a douche.

They next break to a sequence where Jared Shaw takes us into an area where the promoters hang out and do their thing. Gary Shaw is shown figuring out the seating arrangements, making badges, and squaring away the tickets. He even refers to Jared as "Skala."


Nasal vs. Vazquez: Both are listed as BJJ experts. This is supposedly Vazquez's big return to the cage.

The Good: Both fighters had good standup and were able to exercise their own game plans. Nasal got some good takedowns but Vazquez was able to hold the mount on him for an extended period and did some good damage. Vazquez was able to take the decision victory.

The Bad: Both fighters grabbed the cage at various points in the fight to avert the takedown. The referee either didn't notice or didn't realize it was illegal because nothing was ever done. Even the announce team was shouting at the referee about it.

The Ugly: Both guys were really gassed by the third round and couldn't do much of anything.

Next "Skala" interviews Andre Berto and asks him how he feels about watching his younger brother Edson fight next. Andres says he is excited and nervous.


Berto vs. Shackelford: Shackelford is supposedly the hometown favorite.

The Good: Both fighters circled a bit for the first round but not much happened. Shackelford eventually got a takedown and went for a heel hook, but Berto was able to escape. Berto had better standup though and it was plain Shackelford didn't want to catch any of his bombs. Berto finished via TKO in the second round and was very classy in his post-fight interview.

The Bad: Shackelford was on his heels the entire fight trying to avoid Berto's standup game. The first round was pretty slow too.

The Ugly: None.

Next "Skala" takes us to a photo shoot with Chris Gates, who just happens to be fighting next. Shaw asks the photographer a bunch of stupid questions about films and lenses like anyone watching is going to be remotely interested.


Gates vs. Fukuda: Gates had made this fight sound like a cakewalk during his pre-fight interview, so I guess we'll see if he is as good as he thinks.

The Good: Fukuda took Gates down and knocked him out with some devastating ground and pound early in the first round.

The Bad: Gates answered his own question - he sucks.

The Ugly: None.

And that's it for the preliminary bouts.

Next we have fighter bios and pictures. There wasn't anything particularly exciting about these.

The Behind The Scenes section included a number of clips with different fighters addressing different topics. Noons talks about breaking his nose training, Shamrock tries to golf, Renzo talks about his book, and Carano just looks hot. Krazy Horse Bennett even visits the jail he was in (what a classy guy!). Some of these are more interesting than others, but would probably only be interesting to a fan of that particular fighter.

Next we have a gallery of photos from the event itself and the post event party.

That is followed by rules of the cage (which Shamrock should have read).

Finally we have a glossary of MMA terms.

The Wrap

I'd love to say that the EliteXC inaugural event comes off great, but it doesn't. With only 4 fights on the main card and a main event that ended in a disqualification, it's easy to see why the UFC is the standard bearer when it comes to putting on live events. The special features rescue the main card, but only so much.

Is the DVD entertaining? Sure, parts of it are.
Would I recommend someone buy it? Not if you can rent it or borrow it.