weigh in

Hello everyone! Last night was a big one in our house- the Mixed Martial Arts company Elite XC (XC for eXtreme Combat) debuted the sport on national television. We were over the moon excited. Of course, I would have much preferred it if the UFC had done it first, because I prefer their fighters, their style and their octagon vs. the circular cage of EliteXC. But nonetheless, MMA on the televison that isn't 6 months or more old or cost us a ton of money is very exciting. So I asked Zach to add his thoughts-- Zach's blogging debut!-- you'll find Stefanie in the itallics and Zach in bold. Enjoy. We're a bit... enthusiastic.

Oh, Elite XC. Yikes. If anyone had any question about who does this whole MMA thing the best, it's the UFC. The production and presentation of the event last night was seriously bush league compared to what the UFC puts out. It would have been much better for the sport if this would have been a UFC event rather than an Elite XC one. Having said that, there were some good fights. It was also great to see one of our favorite fighters, Gina Carano, fight live. So here's my thoughts on the fights.

Brett Rogers vs. Jon Murphy

Well it was over quick. Brett Rogers put Jon Murphy down in a minute. Not too much else to say about it. Boring, one sided fight.

I liked Jon Murphy in this fight. His nickname is "Man of Faith" and he's such a good person- he's overcome a lot and he's used God and competitive fighting to banish his demons. It's admirable. Too bad his performance was... less than stellar. So that was one fighter down that I liked... but it wasn't a big deal.

Phil Baroni vs. Joe Villasenor

Phil, please retire and stop subjecting us to your stupid antics and poor fighting. Another boring, one sided fight.

Oh my. The instant I saw Baroni in his red, sparkly, bedazzled get up that he entered the arena in, I knew who I was rooting for- Villasenor. Good thing too, because Baroni was all swagger until his tacky stuff came off (complete with ugly chicks tearing off his shirt-- classy, way to make the sport presentable) he looked like a scared puppy dog in the cage. What a loser-- there's a reason Dana dumped him. Good call, Dana.

Gina Carano vs. Kaitlin Young

Gina's in the black trunks and black top. She's punching Young. Duh.

This was the fight I was excited to see, and it didn't disappoint. Definitely the fight of the night. Gina rocked the freakin house! Kaitlin Young is a good young fighter, and she fought hard, but was flat outclassed by Gina in this fight. If there is a female MMA fighter in the world with better, more dangerous striking than Gina Carano, I would like to see her. Kaitlin Young's striking ability got hyped up alot going into this fight by people who basically just don't like Gina Carano and wanted nothing more than to see her lose. The fact is that Young had a 3-2 amateur Muay Thai record. That's not bad, and she did land a couple of good shots, but Gina compiled a 12-1-1 professional Muay Thai record and was the first American woman to win a Muay Thai championship in Thailand. Advantage Gina. At the end of the fight, Gina was relatively unscathed, and Kaitlin looked like someone had taken a baseball bat to her face. Gina caught alot of flack going into this fight about her shortened training camp due to her filming American Gladiators up until 3 weeks prior to the fight. It did look like this may have affected her conditioning a bit, but Young was sucking just as much wind as Gina was. At the end of the day, Gina dominated every aspect of this fight, and all the people who talked all their crap about Gina get to eat that crow right up and enjoy it this morning.

Okay, so what is there to say that Zach hasn't already said? Obviously, we were overjoyed at the outcome. I was nervous at first, especially since Gina looked so nervous before the fight started. Poor girl could hardly find her way back to her corner for the fight to start. But as nervous as she looked, it was nothing compared to her dad-- but it was cute and refreshing to see a parent supporting their fighter child, while at the same time looking like a presentable member of society. Add to that the fact that he played football for the Cowboys (hate them, love the state, duh) and that makes it even cooler. So the fight... Gina tore it up. Young did not. End of story. I wish I could find a picture of Young's face to show you from the end of the fight- she looked... astounding. I've read the "bump" growing under her eye from Gina's hits described as an orange, a mouse and a tumor. Gina was humble and declared her love of the sport and hopefully left few people to speculate about her passion for fighting.

Robbie Lawler vs. Scott Smith

Fantastic fight with an unfortunate end. These guys put on a heck of a show. Both men came out firing, and it was a back and forth battle the whole time. This would have been fight of the night, but in the 3rd round, Lawler accidentally poked Smith in the eye, and the doctor stopped the fight without even giving Smith the 5 minutes he's supposed to get to recover.

Hm. So. This was fantastic while it lasted. I've got to say- I'm a bit disgusted with EliteXC. Lawler had Matt Hughes in his corner-- Matt Hughes, arguably the best Welterweight fighter ever. But since he's not EliteXC, since he fights for the UFC, they didn't even mention it. That's a big dang deal! The thing is that if you really want to introduce the SPORT of MMA to the general public, atleast acknowledge that there are other (better) fighters out there. I was annoyed. Plus, I would have liked to see how Hughes looked, since he's got a pay-per-view fight next Saturday. But I digress. Lawler looked good, Smith looked good, the fight was entertaining and interesting and I'm just sad it ended the way it did. Shoddy calls by the doctor... I think next time they want to put the fights on national television, they should do it in Vegas, where they know what the heck is going on with MMA and the way things work. Friggin astounding.

Kimbo Slice vs. James Thompson

Do you like Kimbo landing that punch? I mean... not landing that punch? Doesn't he look like a wannabe Mr. T?

Wow. Just wow. Kimbo got exposed in a large, large way. Like I've said from the beginning, he's nothing more than a big, strong guy who punches really hard and has no technique at all. I don't dislike him, I think he's a decent guy who deserves alot of credit for using MMA to turn his life around. He's just not that good of an MMA fighter. He basically got mauled for 2 rounds by a mediocre fighter. Then he landed some good shots early in the 3rd and the ref pounced on the opportunity to stop the fight and give Kimbo the win. God help Kimbo if they ever let him fight a real heavyweight. This chump would be a cellar dweller in the UFC heavyweight division.

Do I have some opinions on this!? Kimbo Slice is a big, fat, stupid joke (but he's not really fat). The guy is 34. THIRTY FOUR. That's old. Look at the rest of the fighters that were featured. Well, Baroni is 32, but he needs to go away as well. But seriously, this guy is 34 and he was fighting in his THRID MMA fight- Baroni was at least fighting in like, his 20th or something. And this is the man that EliteXC wants to pin its hopes and monetary dreams on? It's a joke! To get him to the point where he's going to be ABLE to compete with the likes of fighers in his weightclass outside of EliteXC (because they won't give him fights that he could loose, thus he's fighting chumps), it would take years and years of training. He has no style, no clue and no ground game. Thompson is not a great fighter, but Kimbo Slice sure made him look like the better fighter last night. I think it's disgusting and disrespectful to the rest of the fighters that this guy is the main ticket fight. If he was in the UFC he would not have been the main fight, he might have even been on the undercard- which is where he should be! Nobody with only two professional fights deserves to be highlighted in such a fashion. The Lawler/Smith fight should have been the main fight- and even though it ended in no contest, it was at least a respectable representation of what MMA really is. Also, Thompson should have won the fight- the judges gave him the first round, the judges (save one, who obviously hasn't got a dang clue) gave him the second round. Kimbo is a worthless fighter and EliteXC needs to start shopping for a young guy who can actually perform to the level they're hyping him at. Bad show, Kimbo Slice, bad show.

I also have to add a little aside: James Thompson's ear is the nastiest thing I have ever seen in an MMA cage. I thought he had his mouth piece over his ear when he made his entrance it was so gross. Cauliflower ear=nastiness, Thompson, get it taken care of.

Closing thoughts from Stef:

I sure am glad that MMA is making its way into the spotlight a little more. It's enjoyable and exciting and it's so easy to pick your fighters and support them with your heart. But I'm also glad that Dana White has done what he has for the UFC, I only wish he would swallow his ego a little bit and notice that women have a place in MMA- look at the card last night. Gina performed and presented everyone with the best fight of the night. OVER four other fights, all male. Whatever- at least Dana only signs good fighters, and I would have given anything to have been a fly on the wall when Dana watched Kimbo suck it up last night. I have a love/hate relationship with Dana White, but right now, I love him. He has the best fighters, he keeps the best fighters, and he makes the best fighters produce, and keep producing. Look who he's pushing now- Rampage Jackson, Forrest Griffin, Anderson Silva, Matt Hughes, Matt Serra, Georges St. Pierre, Wanderlei Silva, BJ Penn. Who does EliteXC have who can TOUCH the talent of these guys? Oh, that's right. Gina, and some of the other women they have signed. Hm... interesting.