Cardio Freak MMA News Report 10.09.08: Kimbo Loses To Some White Guy

Posted by Jeremy Lambert on 10.09.2008

Cardio Freak is back with a live report from EliteXC: Heat. How crazy was the crowd when Kimbo lost? Who was the hottest celebrity in attendance? How amazing did Gina look? It's a live perspective on all the craziness that went down this past Saturday. Plus news on Tito Ortiz and the next fight for the Diaz brother. All that and the latest news from the MMA world. It's hotter than Gina Carano wearing nothing (ok, maybe not), it's Cardio Freak on 411.



Welcome back to Cardio Freak everyone. I am your trainer Jeremy ‘Just Killin Time In Between Fights' Lambert.

For the record, I've adopted that nickname as my permanent nickname because it's awesome and I'm getting tired of coming up with something new every week.

10 Hours a Day, 7 Days a Week

Live at EliteXC: Heat

Instead of my usual recap of events, I decided to mix it up this time around. So you'll be reading my live thoughts on EliteXC on CBS 3 as I sat cageside this past Saturday. Enjoy.

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I'm here in the press room eating a hot dog and drinking a coke as Mark from purefighter.com sits next to me. Mark says, "hey" to everyone reading this. I've been here an hour and have already experienced a full experience. That's my Mike Goldberg line of the column. You know like "his precision is precise." Go back and watch Anderson Silva vs. James Irvin. I swear he says it. Anyway, I met Dave Meltzer and even gave him a ride to the arena. WHO WANTS TO TOUCH ME?!?!?! For those wondering, Dave is exactly what he seems like in the Observer or on radio shows. Once he gets going, he doesn't stop. I also met guys from CBS Sports, MMAJunkie, and Fightlinker. All good people. I've just finished up my hot dog and coke so I'm going to head into the arena.

I'm sitting cageside at the arena and it's nothing like I expected. I feel important yet everyone in the arena probably views me as some geek with a computer. Well this geek is sitting cageside for free so suck on that. I'm sitting next to Jim from Full Contact Fighter Magazine. He just told me that there is a rumor that the main event is off although no one is able to confirm this. Seth Petruzelli has stepped up to fight Kimbo if needed. That'll pop a rating. There's going to be a lot of pissed off people if this is true. Fights were supposed to begin at 6:00. It's now 6:15. Does that mean something is up? Like Lex Luger trying to get his t-shirt off, I DON'T KNOW!!!! I'm enjoying listening to the likes of FloRida, Rick Ross, T.I., Guns N Roses, and Metallica as I wait for the event to get started. The cage dancers just made their way to the ring as every guy here started whistling. The music has died and it's now time for this baby to get started.

I thought we were getting this baby started but the officials don't know how to make their way to cageside. Give me a black shirt, some gloves, tell me who needs to win, and just call me That Stoppage Ref. Tito Ortiz sans Jenna Jameson has just arrived in a blue suit with his blonde head. Tito is standing right in front of me. If I were a 18 year old girl, I'd probably wet myself. Media marks are taking pictures. I'm too cool for that. I already got my picture with him yesterday anyway. 6:30 and still no first fight. Kimbo vs. Ken could really be off folks. Dave just confirmed that the fight is in jeopardy but there's no official word. Everyone here on media row is posting or texting that the fight is in danger. Cris Cyborg just walked behind me. If it were Gina, I would have reached for something. Not because I don't think Mrs. Santos isn't an attractive lady but her husband was right behind me as well. It's 6:38 and it looks like we're about to start.

Jorge Bouchat vs. Nicolae Cury is our first bout. Both guys are from Florida and each get a nice reaction. Cury is overwhelming him early, even knocking him down with a weak leg kick. Cury got high on his back, almost looking like a reverse triangle choke, and dropped elbows as Bouchat tapped. Quick fight with Bouchat looking like he didn't want to be there from the start.

There's a hot blonde ring girl in front of me. I think I'm in love. Jim just offered me some Reese's Pieces. That's the type of bond we share here on media row.

Bryan Hamade vs. David Gomez is next. Both guys are making their pro debuts. I just met Johnny Beyrooty, the guy who was nice enough to send me the credential application for this event. Hamade mounted Gomez and was dropping bombs but Gomez escaped right into a guillotine choke. After standing up and hanging on for the longest time, he finally dropped and tapped. I missed most of the fight because I was talking to Johnny but the ending was good stuff.

The blonde that was dancing in front of me has left. That makes me sad. I have the Phillies vs. Brewers game in the background of my word file so not only will you get EXC coverage but some baseball coverage as well. Speaking of, the Brewers just scored. Dave just confirmed that Ken vs. Kimbo is on. For now. The internet gave out for a second, which had some people freaking out. The Brewers scored again to make it 2-0. Other people on media row are watching the game so I don't feel so bad. Tom Attencio just walked over to talk to Tito Ortiz. It was a very short conversation so I guess he asked about Tito's current schedule.

Mikey Gomez vs. Lorenzo Borgomeo is up next. I know Mikey Gomez from listening to BTR so I hope he does well here. Fight is all on the feet early. Borgomeo is getting the better of the exchanges. Gomez scores a takedown late in the round but did little with it. I'd give it to Gomez as the exchanges weren't that one sided and he got the takedown. A fan behind us thought a fan sitting in front of us was Kimbo Slice. He was highly disappointed when the guy turned around and saw it wasn't Kimbo. Gomez gets the fight to the ground early in the second and starts working for a rear naked choke. He settles for an armbar and gets the victory. Good for Mikey.

The blonde has returned to dance in front of me. I'm just going to name her Kelly because she looks like a Kelly. Borgomeo and Gomez just walked behind me. I just got up to say hi to my parents who came to the event for no other reason than to support me and on the way back to my seat there was a mob as Tito decided to greet some fans. Josh Gross just arrived and chatted with Jim and I. It's 7:43 and there has only been three fights.

Conor Heun vs. Edson Berto is up next. The next listed fight is Seth Petruzelli vs. Aaron Rosa, which might mean Seth has stepped up to face Kimbo as rumored. Media row believes the Kimbo vs. Shamrock main event is on though. This should be a fun couple of hours. All on the feet early. Berto caught a leg kick and dropped Heun. Heun survived that and an armbar attempt. Back on the feet Berto picked him apart until Heun suplexed him. The round ended with Heun pounding on Berto from the guard. Really fun first round and I gave it to Berto. Berto connects with a beautiful flying knee but Heun survives and gets a takedown. Heun gets warned for an illegal elbow. Heun is dropping bombs on a bloody Berto. The ref finally stops it. Awesome fight and the crowd is going crazy.

Frank Shamrock, braces included, just walked by and said hi. I guess he's still trying to impress Gina with the braces. Word is that the main event is off as the doctors didn't clear Shamrock for the fight. Frank Shamrock and Seth Petruzelli are the front-runners to take his place against Kimbo. Frank probably won't be cleared because of the weight issue among other things so it looks like Pretuzelli vs. Kimbo is the main event. They're showing a video for Kimbo vs. Tank. Maybe that's the new main event. They're showing the entire Kimbo vs. Tank DVD to kill time. Word is that Kimbo turned down the Petruzelli fight and he's looking to fight Aaron Rosa. They couldn't even show a video properly so we're back to music. In a baseball update, it's still 2-0 Brewers. Nevermind, it's now 3-0 Brewers.

8:25 and Yoko Takahashi vs. Cris Santos is now up. Looks like Rosa or Seth in the main event. Yoko is doing back rolls around the cage. If only that were Gina. THEY COME OUT SWINGING~! Cyborg drops Yoko as everyone goes crazy. They change positions on the ground with Cyborg constantly going for the armbar. The round ends. Easily giving it to Cyborg. Cyborg drops Yoko but she grabs a leg and survives. Yoko is taking a beating. The ref should have probably stopped it by now but I think he's trying to get Yoko killed. Round ends with Cyborg dominating again. Brooke and Hulk Hogan just walked by. They didn't really acknowledge the crowd. Third round ends with Cyborg dominating again. She should easily win the decision. Some fat chick was behind me screaming. I think I lost my hearing. KELLY IS BACK IN FRONT ME~! Cyborg won the decision, as expected. Great heart shown by Yoko even though I think the fight should have been stopped.

Brooke and Hulk are getting a lot of attention. Ashley, Brooke's hot friend on the show, is here and she should be the one getting the attention if you ask me. Tito Ortiz and Hulk Hogan just took a picture together. I was blinded by the blondness. Tom Attencio is now talking to Hulk. Maybe he's trying to get a loan. The Phillies scored to make it 3-1. They're showing the Kimbo vs. Tank fight on the big screen. They just officially announced that Seth Petruzelli is the replacement for Ken Shamrock. The crowd is PISSED! They're trying to make Kimbo look like a hero saying he, "saved the show" by taking this fight. If he were a real hero he would have faced Arlovski or Nelson. For the record, I'm changing my pick to Petruzelli because he's not old or a can. Before the CBS show starts I'm going to grab a coke from the media room. BRB. I've always wanted to use that in a column.

It's 9:00. The music has stopped and the pre-fight video package has started. Kimbo, Gina, Jake, and Andrei are the fighters featured in the pre-fight video. I guess we know who EXC wants to win. They're showing the Kimbo/Shamrock footage from the weigh ins. Too bad it means nothing now. Dave and I did discuss whether or not they would show it though and I guess we got our answer. They're talking to Ken backstage and the crowd is booing so much that you can't hear a thing. Shamrock's eye is stitched up and he seems upset about not fighting. Why the hell was he doing any type of contact fighting 24 hours before the event? The doctor explains his decision to not let Shamrock fight.

It's 9:10 and we're getting a video for Benji Radach vs. "Ninja" Rua. Johnny Bey is laying down the law, telling the people in front of us to sit down so we can see. Rua is eating bombs early. The Brazilians at media row are yelling at Rua. The Santos family just made their way to cageside. Rua keeps looking for a heel hook but doesn't get it. The round ends. Fun on the feet, not much on the ground. I'd give it to Radach. Rua looks a lot better to start the second round. Rua slips and Radach knocks him out with some bombs on the ground. The crowd loves it. Big win for Benji.

Andrew "Test" Martin and Terri Runnels of WWE fame are standing just a few people down from me. I really want to smell Martin's fingers considering he's been with Stacy Keibler and Kelly Kelly. Gina "Shy" Carano does an interview on the big screen. It's now 4-1 Brewers. Someone walked by and spilled a guys drink. He then pulled out a large roll of cash and paid the guy back. Great humanitarian acts like that shouldn't go unrecognized.

Kelly Kobold vs. Gina Carano is up next. Kobold is representing Big Black of Rob and Big fame although he is sadly not in her corner. Gina gets a huge ovation, as expected. Hulk is marking out for Gina. Gina lands a bomb early. Kelly is working hard for a takedown that just isn't coming. Gina is dominating the exchange but Kelly is hanging in there. There's a huge cut on the forehead of Kelly. The fight continues. Gina continues to dominate the exchanges but Kelly keeps clinching to survive. Kelly finally gets the takedown but it comes too late in the round. Kelly needs a TKO or submission to win. "GINA" chants as she defends the takedown. Gina once again dominated on the feet and defended the takedown nicely. BRING ON GINA VS. CYBORG~! Kim Couture and Gina just had a hug that lasted longer than a hung of friends should. NOW THE CHEEK KISS~! I envy everyone at Xtreme Couture who sees these two roll every day. They're interviewing Gina and there's no audio in the arena. Bullshit. Hulk congratulates Gina after the fight.

A fan trying to take a picture just mistook Cyrbog for Gina. How does that happen?

Roy Nelson vs. Andrei Arlovski is next. Nelson gets a minimal reaction that was mostly boos while Arlovski is over but less than Gina and Cyborg. The fight is mainly on the ground and Nelson can't seem to do much with Arlovski. The ref stands them up when Nelson has side control. Myself and media row don't like that stand up. Arlovski is picking him apart on the feet. The round ends. They're interviewing Tito and we once again have no audio. Arlovski stumbles but I'm not sure if the punch connected or he just slipped a bit. Arlovski picks apart Nelson before dropping him in the second. He then threw his mouth-piece right in my area. I sadly (or fortunately) did not get it. Nelson is punching the corner, visibly upset that he lost.

Roy Nelson just walked by and said, "that stoppage was bullshit." I can't agree with him there. He looked pretty out of it. Maybe he was talking about the stand up, it was pretty tough to hear. The Brewers won 4-1. Good for them. Everyone is taking pictures of a guy that looks exactly like Kimbo, complete with beard and everything. The Dodgers are beating the Cubs 2-0. Sucks to be a Cubs fan.

Paul Daley vs. Jake Shields for the EXC Welterweight title is next. These two got into it at the weigh ins so I expect this to be a good one. There's a huge Paul Daley fan in front of me. Shields mounts Daley as the Daley fans yells, "get up off of him." Shields is having his way with Daley on the ground. Shields goes for an armbar and Daley ends up in guard as the round ends. They're interviewing Kimbo between rounds. Kimbo has no charisma. "It is what it is." Shields is having trouble taking down Daley and looks scared to stand. He finally gets the takedown and mounts. Shields just drooled on Daley while in mount. Shields locks in an armbar. Daley fights it but finally taps. Not the most exciting fight ever. Shields was fine on the ground but looked scared on the feet.

Hulk Hogan just walked by and gave me a "brother." As a Hulkamaniac since I was like 6, that was awesome. Kelly is dancing to Rick Ross in front of me. I feel obligated to throw some dollars her way. It's 10:53 and neither fighter has entered so they're obviously going over. Gina was just shown on the screen with a couple of cuts on her facing. Nothing a little me couldn't fix. Johnny Bey just announced that the building sold out at 7,100 people. "Kick Ass Kimbo" signs are being passed around. 11:00 on the dot and still no fighters. Maybe this fight has been canceled as well.

Main event time. Kimbo is insanely over. Petruzelli was dancing during Kimbo's entrance, which was awesome. This crowd is going to be pissed if Kimbo loses. AND IT'S OVER~! SETH PETRUZELLI BEATS KIMBO SLICE~! THE CROWD IS PISSED~! Kimbo is trying to take down the ref. Jared Shaw is screaming at the ref. A dude behind me is yelling like crazy, spitting in the process. Cups and signs are being thrown around. I just got hit with an empty cup and it felt awesome. Seth's corner and Kimbo's entourage are yelling at each other. The crowd is yelling all kinds of obscenities. Kimbo is humble in defeat. There's a lot of pissed off people in the arena. The post-fight press conference should be awesome. On replay it looked like Seth dropped him with a hook and then just pounded him out. 14 seconds. Awesome.

I'm heading to the post-fight press conference now. I'll be back with some live thoughts from that.

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I'm sitting next to some guys from Cage Warriors. Good people.

Kimbo Slice is not at the press conference as of now.

Heun says a few words and says he has the greatest job in the world. Yoko says "Great stage, great people, I'm happy." Santos says she wants to fight Gina. Rua is at the hospital getting checked out. Lappen says EXC has the best 185 fighters. Anderson Silva disagrees. Benji puts over Rua hugely. Benji plugs all of his sponsors. Kobold thanks the media and fans before putting over her sponsors. Gina says she hopes that she fights Cyborg next. Gina told me to buy Red Alert 3 so now I've got to buy Red Alert 3. Nelson wants a rematch with Arlovski. Nelson thinks Arlovski is the #2 best Heavyweight in the world. Lappen says Antonio Silva would give Arlovski a run for his money. Isn't he suspended for a year? Arlovski is a man of few words. Daley puts over Shields. Lappen calls Shields the best Welterweight in the world. GSP disagrees. Shields is a fast talker. He puts over Daley and thanks sponsors. Seth thanks Ken Shamrock. Seth would give Kimbo a rematch since they both took the fight on short notice. Lappen puts over Kimbo for taking the fight. Arlovski doesn't clap for the put over of Kimbo.

Lappen walks us through the process of finding a replacement for Kimbo. Ken called early on Saturday and gave notice that he may not be able to fight. He showed up and the doctor told him he couldn't fight. Seth says he was overcome with emotion when he was asked to fight Kimbo. Jake says he was cautious with the armbar in the second because he was unsuccessful in the first. Lappen says there's no discussion to bring back Kimbo. Roy was upset that the ref stood them up in the first round. He says that Andrei is going to beat up Fedor. Seth talks about his stand up. Gina thinks she has to work on some technique before she fights Cyborg. Lappen says Seth was the only fighter approached to fight Kimbo. He then continues to put over Kimbo and still considers him a headliner.

Kimbo enters the press conference.

Lappen thinks Kimbo can be a World Champion. Kimbo is still over huge although I think it's mostly his entourage and family clapping. "He knocked me out in front of my family, that's fucked up." KIMBO SHOWS CHARISMA~! He then leaves and answers no questions. Jared Shaw puts over the sport of MMA and says Seth Petruzelli is now a star.

They end the press conference. I guess once Kimbo decided to leave they just wanted to end it.

I'll be back with a complete wrap up of the show.

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Ok, I'm back at my hotel at 1:00 AM and I'm tired as hell. It's a lot different attending a MMA event as a fan and as a media member. The perks of being a media member are much greater than being a fan but sitting there, not really cheering anyone, paying attention to everything that's going on in and around the cage, and doing this report just becomes draining. I'm going to try and get through this all tonight but if I can't, there's always the plane ride back to North Carolina tomorrow

Oh look, the Dodgers just swept the Cubs. Sucks to be a Cubs fan again.

So where do I start? How about the main event that lasted all of 14 seconds. What a roller coaster ride this whole situation turned out to be. Ken Shamrock was cleared and then not cleared about 10 different times according to different media members and then once we got word that Seth Petruzelli would be the opponent, we all thought it would be a bad fight for Kimbo. We never thought it would be 14 seconds bad. This really puts a company that's already in a big hole into a bigger hole. The thinking behind the Shamrock vs. Slice main event was that no matter who won, EXC won. On this night, Seth Petruzelli won. This would be great if Seth Petruzelli wasn't some guy no one has really heard of unless they heard that he wasn't the winner on The Ultimate Fighter 2. It's not like Kimbo lost to a guy they can really build because Petruzelli isn't really a great fighter. He's got a great personality, he'll win some fights, and he's more legit than Kimbo (not saying much) but no one really cares about Seth Petruzelli. Will a 14 second knockout change that? Probably not.

To the hardcore MMA fans, he just becomes the guy that exposed Kimbo. It was bound to happen sooner or later, Petruzelli just made it a lot sooner. To the casual MMA fans, he just becomes the guy who got lucky against Kimbo. Everyone in the arena still thought Petruzelli was a, "punk ass pussy bitch" after the fight. Where does EXC go from here with a guy that no one buys in a very thin division?

At least with Ken Shamrock they had an easy Shamrock vs. Shamrock set up had Ken won. I can't even think of another EXC Heavyweight outside of Brett Rodgers and Antonio Silva. One guy is the guy everyone wanted Kimbo to face, the other guy is suspended. And does EXC even have a 205 division? Oh yeah, they have Rafael Feijao, a guy who would probably destroy Petruzelli should they ever fight. This company worries me.

They really tried hard to keep Kimbo strong at the post-event press conference but I don't think many people bought it. Kimbo Slice may be young in terms of his time in the sport but he's not young in years. A 21 year old entering the sport is a lot better off than Kimbo Slice entering the sport. Can he improve? Sure but anyone who thinks Kimbo is going to compete until he's 45 and only get better with age like Randy Couture is kidding themselves. He's never going to develop a great ground game and his chin has to be questioned after tonight. Maybe that beard is used to soften the blows. The only positive spin EXC can put on this is that Kimbo got caught and stuff like that happens. He could potentially pop a rating for one more fight but if he disappoints in that one, it's all but over for Kimbo.

Everything else came off well for EliteXC and Affliction. Arlovski got his big win although he left a lot to be desired in the first round. He still scored a good-looking KO on national TV and if he wasn't Affliction's biggest draw already, he is now. Jake Shields didn't have a dominating performance but that's a credit to a game Paul Daley. Shields still got the win although I have no idea who is left for him at 170. He expressed interest in moving to 185 but I think the size disadvantage and his lacking stand up would get him in trouble against Robbie Lawler. Gina and Cyborg were the two biggest stars of the night behind Kimbo but even ahead of Arlovski. It's going to be a huge fight when it happens but I'm not sure if it's going to be something that people will pay for. I think EXC wanted "Ninja" Rua to win but the way Benji Radach won makes everything a wash. It was a really good fight with both guys landing bombs, Rua slipped, and Radach knocked him out. They had to be happy with the way Benji looked because they know they can do Lawler vs. Radach and while that's not a main event fight, it would be a really fun.

I obviously don't have a rating as of now but when it comes out in the next few days I'll update this section with the rating and some thoughts. For now though, I'm going to bed. It's 3:00 AM and I'm tired. No, it didn't take me 2 hours to type all that as I was distracted by Kim Possible in the background. Yes, I watch Kim Possible but I only do it as a way to stay young. My sources indicate Randy Couture watches Hannah Montana and that's how he stays young so I think I'm in good company. It's been a long night but a fun one and hopefully I get a chance to do it again in the near future. Good night everyone.

**UPDATE** The rating for EliteXC: Heat came in at a 2.7 with 4.56 million viewers. It's obviously way up from the second show but down from the 4.85 million viewers that the first show did. It means EXC will finish out their four fight deal with CBS but their future on the network is in limbo after that. CBS executives were happy with the number but I can't see them renewing the deal, knowing that EXC will likely save their big fights for PPV. Simply put, this deal for EXC has done nothing for them. Sure they've pulled in over 10 million viewers for the three shows but they've had nothing to build to and the way their business is set up, they need to make money off of PPV. EXC just has nothing to plug on their CBS show. According to the people who watched the show on TV, they didn't plug their Showtime event in November and they couldn't plug their next CBS show because they don't know when it is. Even if they could have plugged the events they never seem to have fights lined up until a month before the show.

While I think Kimbo Slice was the main draw on the show, I'm interested in knowing if anyone turned off when it was announced that Ken Shamrock was out. While Shamrock is all but finished at this point in his career, I still think he drummed up enough interest that people wanted to see

The other interesting thing is that the Arlovski vs. Nelson fight lost a lot of viewers after the Carano fight. While I know Arlovski isn't the draw of Ortiz, Liddell, GSP, Lesnar, ect… I thought he was the biggest name on the Affliction card and he's sold more PPVs than Carano and Kimbo combined but I guess he isn't the name I thought he was. His fight lost viewers and he wasn't as over in the arena as I expected. I still think his fight with Fedor will do a good number but maybe it will have more to do with Fedor than Arlovski.

Playing to Your Strengths

Clay Guida vs. Nate Diaz is being talked about to headline The Ultimate Finale 8 on December 13th

The only snag holding this thing up is that Guida broke his foot in his fight against Mac Danzig and they're not sure if he'll be ready by December. If I had to guess, I would think Guida is fighting, broken foot or not.

The Ultimate Fighter Season 8 may not be doing so well in the ratings but this fight is ratings. Clay Guida and Nate Diaz have been nothing but excitement since entering the UFC and I expect nothing different should they meet. Guida will likely get the fight to the ground and Diaz will be constantly going for submissions from the bottom. It's a fight where both guys should be very active and it should make for a fun 15 minutes. It will also be the first big test for Nate Diaz, a test I feel should have come a while ago. This is a cross roads fight for both guys because if Diaz loses it will prove that he's not ready for the top guys at 155 but if Guida loses he risks becoming a gate keeper in the 155 division.

Brian Stann injured his foot and is out of his fight against Steve Cantwell at Fight For The Troops on December 10th

You know it's a slow UFC news week when Brian Stann is one of the headlines.

This fight being off is a bigger deal than it will be made out to be. It's not like UFC 85 having three main events in the course of a couple of weeks but it can still be looked at as a big deal. This fight was on this show for two reasons: 1. They knew Stann would get a big reaction and look like a star since he's a former marine fighting in front of the troops. 2. It was the WEC introduction into the UFC. Now both those reasons are gone. I really hope they push this fight back instead of giving Cantwell another opponent. Obviously Stann won't get a huge reaction anywhere else but UFC wants to do this fight because they know these two will stand, trade, and someone will likely go down. If they put Cantwell in there against mid-level UFC Light Heavyweight, chances are Cantwell is going to lose. I think they did this fight, not only because of the history and scenario, but because it would make a WEC guy look good with a hopefully exciting fight and knockout. We all know that the WEC Light Heavyweight division was never looked at very highly but I don't think UFC wanted to prove that by throwing Cantwell or Stann in their in a likely no win situation.

Studying Tape



A great man talking about a fight that never happened.

Sparring Session

Seth Petruzelli recently hinted that EliteXC paid him to stand with Kimbo Slice. He's since backed off those statements saying he wanted to stand with Kimbo to make the fight exciting and win the KO Bonus. Jeremy Lappen denies ever paying Petruzelli to stand.

In more Petruzelli/Kimbo news, Jared Shaw is hinting that Kimbo's camp should file a protest against the referee, claiming Petruzelli was hitting Kimbo in the back of the head en route to the stoppage

I would hope EXC isn't dumb enough to pay a guy to do a certain thing against an opponent. EXC has done many dumb things in their existence but the prospect of trying to a fix a fight just seems a little too dumb. Petruzelli gave that interview when he was reportedly hung over so maybe he didn't know exactly what he was saying. We've all been there and if you haven't, live life a little. He's since clarified his point and I'd like to believe that Petruzelli stood with Kimbo because he wanted to. Then again this is the same company that tried to make people believe that there was a towel on the shoulder of Gina Carano at the weigh ins.

I find the Shaw news a lot more interesting and I'm shocked it's not getting more attention than Petruzelli's comments. I'm sure you've seen the replay or the GIF by now of Jared Shaw screaming at the ref that Petruzelli was hitting the back of the head. After the fight he got in the cage and began talking to the ref about that same thing. Seeing the moment right in front of me, I thought the ref was going to warn Petruzelli for the shots because they were to the back of the head but it's not like Petruzelli was doing it on purpose. Does Shaw suggesting that Kimbo's camp should file a protest go against some type of ethics? We all know the shadyness of Jared Shaw but screaming at the ref and trying to make decisions for camps? Anyone who would take Jared Shaw to run their company over Dana White should probably just give me the money they're going to put in said company because they're not going to make it back any time soon.

Underwater Ice Bath

Tito Ortiz was at the EliteXC event this past weekend. When I spoke to him he said that he'll be back early-mid 2009 and that he expects to sign a contract with EliteXC in the coming weeks

This is another one of those, "I'll believe it when it happens" situations. If it comes true then it's a great personal move for Ortiz but a horrible professional move. I think it's common knowledge by now that Ortiz wants to be a star more than a fighter. If Tito Ortiz wanted to be the best fighter in the world, he would have re-signed with UFC. But Tito Ortiz wants to be a household name more than a fighter. With EliteXC, Ortiz will get a huge contract (if they're paying Kimbo Slice $500,00 then I can only imagine what they'll pay Ortiz) and exposure on CBS. This will lead to him getting some movie roles, establishing a name outside of MMA, and retiring a wealthy man. If that's what Ortiz wants, then I say good for him. He's put in work over the years and if some company is dumb enough to overpay him then why shouldn't he take the money? I know I'd do the same thing.

My biggest complaint about this deal is that there's just no competition for Ortiz. We've all accepted the fact that Ortiz isn't a top Light Heavyweight anymore but he's still a good fighter. There's no one in EXC to prove himself against though. The 205 division consists of Rafael Feijao and Seth Petruzelli and then there's big fights against Kimbo Slice, Ken Shamrock, and Frank Shamrock. Feijao isn't worth the risk of fighting because he's not a big star and he could beat Ortiz, Petruzelli is a fight they could do although I don't think many people would care if he defeats him, the Kimbo fight would do a good number but it could kill Kimbo's drawing power and a win over Kimbo proves nothing, I don't know who wants to see Tito vs. Ken 4, and the Frank fight is easily the best option. After that who knows where Tito can go. I guess EXC hopes Feijao or Petruzelli catch on and they can do one of those fights but I wouldn't bank on that.

Based on what they're looking for though, this is a win-win for both parties. Ortiz gets his money and exposure on a national network and EXC gets a draw who can actually fight while probably feeling a sense of accomplishment because they believe they stole Tito Ortiz from Dana White.

EliteXC confirmed that Nick Diaz will take on Eddie Alvarez for the EliteXC Lightweight Title on November 8th on Showtime. Also on the card will be Robbie Lawler vs. Joey Villasenor for the EXC Middleweight title, Scott Smith vs. Hector Lombard, Sarah Kaufman vs. Kaitlin Young, and Rafael Feijao vs. TBA possibly for the EXC Light Heavyweight title

This is a very strong Showtime card but once again shows the lack of drawing power in EliteXC. Diaz, Lawler, and Smith were part of the second CBS show that tanked, Joey Villasenor and Kaitlin Young were after thoughts on the first CBS show, and the rest are relative unknowns to the casual audience. It's unfortunate that EXC has no draws outside of Carano and Kimbo because good shows like this one aren't going to be viewed by as many people as they should be. Top to bottom, this could be the strongest show EXC has ever delivered.

Diaz vs. Alvarez is a very interesting fight but a match up I really don't like for Diaz. On the ground Diaz is as good as it gets and his PEPPERING PUNCHES frustrate lesser opponents and score points but do nothing against guys with great stand up and KO power. That's what Eddie Alvarez has. If he can keep the fight on the feet, which he should be able to do, he's going to light up Diaz with his hands. One thing I'm interested in is the aftermath of this fight. I'm just waiting for KJ Noons to speak out the day after the fight and say, "he's not the real champion." Robbie Lawler and Joey Villasenor should be a really fun stand up fight and you know Villasenor will be looking for revenge after being knocked out in 22 seconds by a flying knee the last time these two met. Hector Lombard makes his long awaited US debut against a game Scott Smith. Lombard is a judo specialist and that's a style that gives a lot of people trouble because people don't dedicate a lot of time to judo since there's just not that many judo guys in MMA when compared to wrestlers, strikers, and grapplers. Lombard has some good power as well so don't be shocked to see these two exchange. Sarah Kaufman is an undefeated female fighter who has won all seven of her fights by (T)KO and could be the next logical opponent for the winner of Carano vs. Santos. We all know Feijao is the best Light Heavyweight in EXC so it will be interesting to see who they get to fight him. My guess is that it's not Seth Petruzelli, who has already said if he fights again this year it would be late December and that's it.

I hope everyone checks out the card in about a month from now because it has the potential to be a very exciting event and I think guys like Lawler, Diaz, and Alvarez deserve to be watched.

Taking Time Off

I had a grand time in Florida. I'm not going to go into massive details like I did with my trip to Atlanta because I honestly did do much in Florida outside of go to the malls and the beach. I did buy a Wanderlei Silva t-shirt so that was awesome. I also went to the EXC weigh ins as a fan, which allowed me to get a picture with Andrei Arlovski and Tito Ortiz. Plus I saw Gina Carano at the weigh ins, which makes me better than you.

I've got to thank my parents who went with me and paid for the entire trip. They saw Gina Carano at the weigh ins as well, which makes them better than you.

Training Partners

Adam Tool, Stephen DeAugustino, BREN~!, Chris Robinson, and Morgan Marx bring the news.

Dustin James debuts his new column. Larry Csonka gives his take on EXC Heat. Matt McEwen tells you why Couture is the underdog. Scott Kuczkowski gives the good, bad, and ugly of EXC Heat. Larry Csonka gives his take on Strikeforce: Payback. BREN~! presents fact or fiction featuring Myself and Adam Tool.

AND IT'S ALL OVER~!

That does it for me folks. I'll be back next week with a preview of UFC 89 and some more news. Remember to check out the podcast at podomatic. Take care.

Cardio Freak Sources: Dave Meltzer and the Wrestling Observer, Bryan Alvarez and Figure Four Weekly, MMAWeekly, and MMAMania