I saw a promo featuring Gina during The Price is Right and the last few frames had a "Presented in HD" graphic. It is listed in the CBS schedule (http://www.cbs.com/info/schedule/index.php) as an HDTV show.

I saw a promo featuring Gina during The Price is Right and the last few frames had a "Presented in HD" graphic. It is listed in the CBS schedule (http://www.cbs.com/info/schedule/index.php) as an HDTV show.

EliteXC has alway been shown on Showtime in HD(unless the event was in Hawaii).

What happened to the Kimbo fight? I recorded the pgm and when I went back to watch it, there was no Kimbo fight?

The Kimbo fight started at 11:10 so if you didn't add any extra time to your recording you would have missed it.

The Kimbo fight started at 11:10 so if you didn't add any extra time to your recording you would have missed it.

0)&^%$%$^*((()_( !!!!
:mad:

Don't care much for this UFC-type fighting. I only watched enough to see that bearded dude get the stuffing beat out of him. He still somehow managed to win and turned his opponent's ear into cauliflower. Gross.

Thompson's ear was not made for HD to begin with. When Kimbo went after it , that was brutal.

Thompson's ear was not made for HD to begin with. When Kimbo went after it , that was brutal.

Haha, I thought that was disgusting but awesome at the same time. I don't know, it's just fun seeing somebody getting the **** kicked out of them, while they're covered in blood. Anyways, it was the only fight I watched, and I loved it, it was a great brawl. I know some kids from my HS who were there last night, wish I could of seen it live in person.

Don't care much for this UFC-type fighting. I only watched enough to see that bearded dude get the stuffing beat out of him. He still somehow managed to win and turned his opponent's ear into cauliflower. Gross.
this wasnt a very good showing for mma. if you want to see what a real mma broadcast looks like watch the WEC event tonight on Versus-HD. No dancing girls, no pyro, fighters that can actually defend themselves and have a ground game.

Atleast all this nonsense of Kimbo Slice being a legit fighter can stop. I would be interested in seeing how the ratings would shape up for this event. I cant see someone who has never seen MMA before sticking with the sport based on last nights fights. With the exception of Gina Corano, who despite having her worst fight of her career, stole the show and proved that woman do have a place in this sport.

In August,hopefully they focus more on the fights. A great way to do that is to have the Robbie Lawler/Scott Smith rematch for the title be the main event.

/rant

and trust me, the WEC card will be much more entertaining tonight.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/news?slug=ki-elitexctv060108&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

Wow they really trashed this event. Called it a mockery

Atleast all this nonsense of Kimbo Slice being a legit fighter can stop. I would be interested in seeing how the ratings would shape up for this event. I cant see someone who has never seen MMA before sticking with the sport based on last nights fights. With the exception of Gina Corano, who despite having her worst fight of her career, stole the show and proved that woman do have a place in this sport.



Kimbo Slice isn't a legit MMA fighter right now, but he's going to be training alot and striding to be a legit fighter. It's a difficult transition from being a street fighter to a MMA fighter. It's a whole 'nother world. His ground game wasn't good at all, but he wasn't absolutely horrendous, I mean they don't fight on their backs on the asphault in street fighting.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/news?slug=ki-elitexctv060108&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

Wow they really trashed this event. Called it a mockery

Can't argue with that article. Spot on.

Kimbo Slice isn't a legit MMA fighter right now, but he's going to be training alot and striding to be a legit fighter. It's a difficult transition from being a street fighter to a MMA fighter. It's a whole 'nother world. His ground game wasn't good at all, but he wasn't absolutely horrendous, I mean they don't fight on their backs on the asphault in street fighting.

Agreed. Most guys don't have their 4th fight on national television. If you take a look at some of the guys on Ultimate Fighter you will see them making the same mistake. It looked like Kimbo wanted to show he wasn't a one-dimensional fighter, but he picked the wrong fighter and the wrong time to do that. He should have stopped the guy in the second round, but he tried a guillotine and it did not work out.

I think the whole event would have a different spin if the Lawler/Smith fight wasn't stopped. That was shaping up to be a classic stand up fight.

I don't like Kimbo Slice (I wanted to see him get smashed). But, to say he's not a fighter....that's just STUPID. The guy IS a fighter, proven over and over on the streets of south florida. At this time, what he is NOT, is a legit MMA fighter. He could bust up anyone in a street fight, unless it was a good MMA fighter. I've been into Martial Arts my entire life and my brother as well. KS will get better as he's now training with some of the best for the ground game. Give him some time. The commissioner of the UFC will not give him a contract because he hasn't fought anyone yet with real MMA experience. Even the guy he fought last night fights "Freestyle". Put KS in the ring with a Tito Ortiz, etc, and he'd get smashed. Until he trains a little more in MMA, then he'll be a force to stop. Like Frank Shamrock said.....the dude is Scary, way too big and LOVES violence, which is scary in itself.

The Kimbo fight started at 11:10 so if you didn't add any extra time to your recording you would have missed it.

How long over the 2 hour alloted time did it run? I too only recorded the two hours according to the program guide.

Kimbo Slice isn't a legit MMA fighter right now, but he's going to be training alot and striding to be a legit fighter. It's a difficult transition from being a street fighter to a MMA fighter. It's a whole 'nother world. His ground game wasn't good at all, but he wasn't absolutely horrendous, I mean they don't fight on their backs on the asphault in street fighting.

oh i completely realize that. its only his 4th MMA fight, but their are a handful of other fighters in EliteXC that should be main eventing. And dozens of fighters in other organizations that could main event it.

But you know if Kimbo Slice can get people into MMA and if they can realize that he is a very raw brawler and that there are more talented fighters out there, then i guess he can be good for the sport.

right now he is shaping up to be Tank Abbot or boxing's David Tua.

this wasnt a very good showing for mma.

Agreed..

Can't argue with that article. Spot on.

Yup. Personally I would have focused more on submission artists for the first broadcast. I think as a first outing that is going to be a little to over the top for many people who are new to the sport and could result in a serious backlash. It seemed like they were trying to hide what the sport is really about. Last nights event came closer than any other I have seen to what John McCain calls human kock (profanity filter) fighting.

Time to put the A back into MMA.

How long over the 2 hour alloted time did it run? I too only recorded the two hours according to the program guide.

it was almost a full hour added to my dvr when the telecast ended.


another note: wasn't Gus Johnson great? he wasnt afraid to be critical of the fights. and of course brought the excitement, but with 2 play by play guys, they did step on each other a few times.

it was almost a full hour added to my dvr when the telecast ended.


another note: wasn't Gus Johnson great? he wasnt afraid to be critical of the fights. and of course brought the excitement, but with 2 play by play guys, they did step on each other a few times.

I could have done without the regular Elite XC play by play guy. He annoys the heck out of me, and Gus did a fine job calling it without him. If they do another one I say dump the other guy and just let Gus and Frank do the show.

another note: wasn't Gus Johnson great? he wasnt afraid to be critical of the fights. and of course brought the excitement, but with 2 play by play guys, they did step on each other a few times.


Gus Johnson is my favorite announcer in all of sports. The guy is amazing at commentating. There's not a commentator out there right now that comes close to him, IMO.

http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/2008/06/01/report-elitexc-on-cbs-handily-beat-the-nhl-playoffs-among-vie/

Report: EliteXC on CBS 'Handily Beat the NHL Playoffs' Among Viewers Age 18-49

Michael David SmithPosted Jun 1st 2008 3:56PM by Michael David Smith
Filed under: TV and Movies, Elite XC, MMA Media Watch
Although we don't yet know the full ratings for the first-ever prime time mixed martial arts show on network television, Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer reports that some preliminary data is in, and it's good news for EliteXC and CBS:

The half-hours in the 18-49 demo were 1.4, 1.6, 2.1 and 2.4. The first hour was nothing impressive but the second hour was the highest rated in the demo on television for any show. The level of growth was spectacular. This is only from 9-11 p.m. so we don't know how the last 50 minutes did but at least in the demo it handily beat the NHL playoffs.

The 18-49 demographic is the one most coveted by advertisers, so in measuring whether this event was a success or failure for CBS, the 18-49 demographic matters more than the total audience. Presumably, if that demographic steadily grew through the first two hours of the show, it would have continued to grow for the Kimbo Slice-James Thompson main event, which means that assuming Meltzer's numbers are right, EliteXC and CBS can legitimately claim that their show was a success.

The problem, though, is that just because the first showing was a success, that doesn't mean future shows will be. Now that the novelty has worn off, will viewers return for another show?

this wasnt a very good showing for mma. if you want to see what a real mma broadcast looks like watch the WEC event tonight on Versus-HD. No dancing girls, no pyro, fighters that can actually defend themselves and have a ground game.

Atleast all this nonsense of Kimbo Slice being a legit fighter can stop. I would be interested in seeing how the ratings would shape up for this event. I cant see someone who has never seen MMA before sticking with the sport based on last nights fights. With the exception of Gina Corano, who despite having her worst fight of her career, stole the show and proved that woman do have a place in this sport.


Ok. Good thread. I'm an avid sports fan. I like baseball, football, hockey, basketball and I usually watch the HBO boxing.

Previously to last night, I may have watched 5 minutes of MMA ever. I figured I'd give it a try.

I would back up your sentiment that, as someone who has never seen MMA before, I wouldn't watch again based on last night. I felt like I was watching boxing or wrestling where you always though it was fixed and often expected the disapointing ending, feeling that they were just trying to suck more money and time from me down the road. That's how I felt last night.

If I felt that way, I'm sure many other first timers did.

I have no idea if the fight should have been stopped for the guy who got poked in the eye and I don't know if Kimbo really submitted or if the fight should have been ended in a TKO late in the 2nd round. I don't know what the norm is for those situations, but I know it was disappointing to see seemingly confused doctors and refs.

As for the action, it was fairly entertaining. I was shocked to see the percentage of KOs vs Submissions. I didn't realize they could knock each other cold with one punch.

The whole WWE atmosphere turned me off as well. 3 hours for about 20 minutes total of fighting. What's the point of that? After the first fight, I gave up and fast forwarded to the start of the fight. I didn't really know or care who anyone was.

Ok, well you say there's a better event on toinght in HD, maybe I'll give it one more shot.

Lex,
I really recommend you give it a try. If you like it, I would also recommend looking at The Ultimate Fighter on Spike-HD. It really humanizes the fighters and lets you get an idea of the training and the strategy involved in MMA. But what makes it most entertaining is in the end, the guys are a bunch a frat boys rather then the monster that they are portrayed as in the media. *cough*Kimbo*cough*

actually lex I mostly just reccomend watching some fights on youtuibe and dailymotion.com Some key fighters to check out. Fedor Emelianenko he's ranked as the number 1 heavyweight right now and has beaten some of the best in the business. many consider him the best ever(he's also mostly undefeated, mostly as in he was handed a BS loss in a tournement). Antinio Rodrigo nogueira one of the best jiujitsu fighters out there and the current UFC HW champ. His only unredeemed losses are to Fedor and he's never been finished. Mirko crocop(great KO reel). Wanderlai Silva has had some inredible matches. Kasushi Sakuraba is a MMA god. Bas rutten as well. If you want some straight up good MMA cards to rent try anythong from Pride.

You guys are both missing the point, I think. I'm not going to ever be a hardcore MMA fan. But, the sport does (did?) have the possibilty of dragging me along and watching once in a while if there's a big match on in HD.

I watched last night, it didn't even pull me in as a casual fan.

I'm going to go watch some of tonight's card now and see if it's any better.

Sure, you guys are into MMA and that's great. I don't even know if you care or want it to be more of mainstream sport.

If that's what you want, last night's show failed you miserably.

You know if you care or want it to be more of mainstream sport. If that's what you want, last night's show failed you miserably.

It did. Seemingly hours of introduction and 2 bouts ending in less than 1:30 minutes. If it wasn't DVR'd, I would never have watched it. As it was, b/c of the endless intros, the show went 45 minutes over, thus defeating my DVR.
F that.

well aside from the first bout, the WEC event was great. this is the kind of event CBS should have shown. Sadly, i doubt anyone but big fans of the sport watched it.

WEC last 2 matches tonight (torres, faber) were insane.

WTOL in Toledo, OH never "flipped the switch". To the guy who suggested that they should have focused more on submissions I gotta disagree. Now I'll admit that I watched the EXC show in about 20 minutes right before watching the WWE One Night Stand PPV. MMA, especially the roll-around-on-the-ground-trying-to-get-a-submission kind bores me to tears. If I were to ever watch MMA more seriously I want to see someone get knocked the F out. Not play tummy sticks with the other guy trying to bend his arm. Just my take on it. I'm sure plenty of you would disagree.

WTOL in Toledo, OH never "flipped the switch". To the guy who suggested that they should have focused more on submissions I gotta disagree. Now I'll admit that I watched the EXC show in about 20 minutes right before watching the WWE One Night Stand PPV. MMA, especially the roll-around-on-the-ground-trying-to-get-a-submission kind bores me to tears. If I were to ever watch MMA more seriously I want to see someone get knocked the F out. Not play tummy sticks with the other guy trying to bend his arm. Just my take on it. I'm sure plenty of you would disagree.

Then watch boxing. It is called Mixed Martial Arts for a reason. I enjoy knockouts also, but when somebody gets an omoplata or an armbar or something, it is great, and even better when somebody survives it and comes back to win the fight after being nearly tapped out. But I wouldn't expect a wrastlin' fan to understand the finer points of MMA.

WTOL in Toledo, OH never "flipped the switch". To the guy who suggested that they should have focused more on submissions I gotta disagree. Now I'll admit that I watched the EXC show in about 20 minutes right before watching the WWE One Night Stand PPV. MMA, especially the roll-around-on-the-ground-trying-to-get-a-submission kind bores me to tears. If I were to ever watch MMA more seriously I want to see someone get knocked the F out. Not play tummy sticks with the other guy trying to bend his arm. Just my take on it. I'm sure plenty of you would disagree.

if your watching a properly reffed bout ground fighting should never be boring unless one fighter is specifically trying to slow action down. For instance when sakuraba had the 90 minute battle with royce gracie I was absolutley thrilled every minute. good ground fighters will GnP as well as look for submissions. a lot of teh newer fighters haven't quite worked that out yet.

I would have to say that I am in a similar situation as lex, I have watched 1 UFC event ever. I think it was UFC 1 or 2 that a bunch of friends got together at a buddy's house to see what all the talk was about. I saw that this was on and decided to give it a shot and watch it while flipping between the NHL game.

Things that bothered me:
- the length, waaay to much of nothing for maybe 20 minutes of action
- the WWE atmosphere
- stopping the 1 good match early (BS!)
- the network bugs were horrible, they almost seemed to be in the middle of the action. Pathetic!

Surprisingly the best part of the show IMO was the woman's match. I thought that was highly entertaining. If the match that was stopped early went the distance I would say that one was better. Overall, I cannot see myself watching this again. Congrats to MMA fans for having another chance to watch your sport, but I personally did not see anything that would get me 'hooked' to watch again.

I also have to wonder how their ratings would have been if the NBA had a playoff game on to challenge it (Lakers/Spurs game 6).

Man, all it takes is a major network to ruin a concept... but then, I don't think this show was directed at those familiar with martial arts in general, and MMA specifically--a group I think that can appreciate ground work and move/counter-moves--and doesn't need to see brawling to be entertained...

The women's bout was possibly the best, on a technical level...

I couldn't even finish watching the entire broadcast...

WEC last 2 matches tonight (torres, faber) were insane.
Absolutly. You have to give it up for Maeda and Pulver for keeping it very interesting against the 2 best pound for pound fighters on the planet. I hope we get to see rematches down the road. But then again with only 10lbs separating them Faber vs Torres would be an amazing match as well.

Things that bothered me:

- stopping the 1 good match early (BS!)


all 4 matches were stopped early IMO
the first match was probably the closest to actually being stopped correctly.
the second match, the girl should have been able to continue (the doctors were way too in charge compared to any other MMA match(es) I've seen)
the third fight was a great matchup, great standup action slugfest, that again was stopped way too early by the doctors.
the forth match again was stopped early, but much like the first match, one more punch may had been too many. Kimbo had him wabbling, which had nothing to do with the exploding ear.

it was like they decided that all fights were just gonna be a taste, but once there was a threat of somebody actually winning, they'd shut it down.

anybody notice the huge blood stain on the mat? apparently the untelevised undercard matches were allowed to get bloody (continue) but an accidental finger in the eye ends one of the best matches I've seen

one thing i complete overlooked when talking about the EliteXC is the main stream media does not get MMA, so they condemn it. They say it is barbaric, lacks strategy and only serves to bloodlust, yet they are quick to defend boxing because of its old school cultural relevance.
What makes matters worse, the EliteXC event only reinforced those ignorant conclusions. By having a main event with a brawler and a "freestyle" fighter, there was no strategy. It was simply throwing bombs at each other. Sure there was a choke hold here and an armbar attempt there, but nothing to the strategy of MMA is really about.
MMA to the media is like blogging. Tehy dont understand it, therefore, feel threatened by it, so they condemn it.

In other obvious news, UFC President Dana White has come out to call the EliteXC event, "Horrendous." Not exactly a surprise there, but pretty accurate.

As an MMA fan, this broadcast was very disappointing. To a first time viewer, it probably looked like a circus. The WEC on VS. was superior in every way (except for Gina Carano :) ). The fights, and sportsmanship, were in another league above Elitexc.

Art

CBS Sees Some Ratings Punch - Ratings for CBS EliteXC Saturday Night Fights Soar Above Time-Period Averages

By John Eggerton -- Broadcasting & Cable

CBS pointed to some postive signs from the Saturday debut of its new fight card.

According to the network, its new mixed-martial-arts show, CBS EliteXC Saturday Night Fights, boosted the network's time period performance in some key demos by high double- and triple-digits and in the adults 18-49 demo by about one-third over programming in the 8 p.m.-11 p.m. time period over that same period the year before.

The show averaged a 1.7/7 in adults 18-34, up 111%, and a 2.6/10 in men 18-34, up a whopping 271%. It was also up 86% in men 25-54 and 127% in men 18-49.

The show came in third in the 18-49 demo on the night with a 1.5/5 behind NBC and Fox, which were tied at a 1.6/6.

But there are more caveats to those numbers than ways to disable your opponent in an MMA bout. CBS pointed out that 5% of the country pre-empted the show to air the Children's Miracle Network Telethon. The network added that its highest-rated bout of the night came at 11:30 p.m., after the primetime block being rated in the Nielsen Media Research overnight affiliate ratings. Those numbers won't be in utnil Tuesday.

But on the other side, there was also the caveat about live programming, which included NBC's coverage of the Stanley Cup Finals, which was up against the punchers and wrasslers.

The overnight affiliate ratings are time-period ratings, where the games air earlier and other programming is in primetime. That difference will likely become more of a factor in, say, the upcoming Los Angeles Lakers-Boston Celtics National Basketball Association Finals matchup than a Detroit Red Wings-Pittsburgh Penguins National Hockey League Stanley Cup Finals games.

The fights, and sportsmanship, were in another league above Elitexc.

Well, I did wind up watching the WEC event the next night and it was a much better production than the CBS event.

I did note that I was very impressed with their sportsmanship, that was a bit of surprise to me, as a novice fewer.

The fights were entertaining, I don't know that I'd really watch it again though. Maybe casually, if I catch it on again sometime.

One question. What's the whole deal with the walk in to the ring and then they stop and some guy checks out their ears and shorts and stuff. Is he checking to make sure they don't bring brass knuckles in or something?

Well, I did wind up watching the WEC event the next night and it was a much better production than the CBS event.

I did note that I was very impressed with their sportsmanship, that was a bit of surprise to me, as a novice fewer.

The fights were entertaining, I don't know that I'd really watch it again though. Maybe casually, if I catch it on again sometime.

One question. What's the whole deal with the walk in to the ring and then they stop and some guy checks out their ears and shorts and stuff. Is he checking to make sure they don't bring brass knuckles in or something?

ref checks the gloves for metal/irritants. Checks for excess lube(vasoline or lotion) on their skin. checks for a cup. afterwards the cut man puts a very thin layer of vasoline on the fighters forehead and nose to deter excess cuts.

Showtime will rebroadcast the event on Friday, 13 June at 11P ET.

Well, I did wind up watching the WEC event the next night and it was a much better production than the CBS event.

I did note that I was very impressed with their sportsmanship, that was a bit of surprise to me, as a novice fewer.

The fights were entertaining, I don't know that I'd really watch it again though. Maybe casually, if I catch it on again sometime.



I know MMA isn't everyone's cup of tea, but at least you saw the real deal after the mostly crappy EliteXC event.

I started watching back when there were few rules, and it could be pretty brutal. It has evolved since then, mostly to allow wider sanctioning, and I prefer MMA to boxing now.

Art

Don't know if anyone else saw Saturday's fight, but it was both strange and odd. Couldn't tell if Kimbo took a dive or if that kid was just lucky. While not the biggest fan of "extreme", I thought it looked bogus.

It did look very suspect, but again I knew kimbo would lose to an average MMA fighter. Street fighting is totally different than MMA fighting.

I loved it. It shows how perfect MMA is. Its not about your size or strength, its about your skills. (and the ability to take a punch.) :D

There is no way it could be a fix, (aside from Shamrocks "injury") EliteXC would have too much to lose if Kimbo lost. Once Gina Carano gets destroyed by Cyborg, it will be the final nail in the coffin of EliteXC and they will either be bought out by Affliction or go bankrupt.

Elite XC Pulls Plug On MMA Business

By R. Thomas Umstead -- Multichannel News, 10/21/2008 7:26:00 AM

Mixed Martial Arts company Elite XC will shut its doors at the end of the year, according to executives close to the company.

The Elite XC franchise, formed in 2006 by Showtime Networks and Pro Elite to compete with the Ultimate Fighting Championship in the MMA events ring, has had one of the highest profiles in the MMA business with several of its matches televised by CBS Sports. But Yahoo! Sports reported that the organization lost more than $55 million in its two years of operation. It was unclear what, if any role, the controversial 14-second knockout of heavyweight Kimbo Slice on an Oct. 4 card presented by CBS had on the decision.

The demise of Elite XC, along with the International Fight League earlier this year, leaves the Ultimate Fighting Championship with few challengers to its dominating position within the MMA genre.

An official announcement on Elite XC’s closing is expected later today, according to sources.

http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6607230.html

I love it. Hopefully this allows a real promoter to get the CBS exposure to properly educate and reel in new fans.

Once Gina Carano gets destroyed by Cyborg, it will be the final nail in the coffin of EliteXC and they will either be bought out by Affliction or go bankrupt.

Even though the fight will probably not happen since EliteXC is now gone, I think you underestimate Gina. Cyborg could very well beat her, but Cyborg is obviously using "performance enhancers". She has the muscularity, and leanness of a male athlete, so she can get by with strength over technique.

Just my view.

Art