EliteXC: "Heat" Results
by Robert Sargent
Capped off by one of the most shocking performances in recent history, EliteXC: "Heat" saw light heavyweight Seth "The Silverback" Petruzelli step in at the last moment for an injured Ken Shamrock and knock out Kimbo Slice in 14 seconds.
Shamrock, who was inadvertently cut by a headbutt while warming up backstage before the fight, was denied clearance to compete, leaving Petruzelli with a golden opportunity.
Seth "The Silverback" Petruzelli vs Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson
Originally scheduled to be a heavyweight showdown between Ferguson and Ken Shamrock, this hastily-assembled last-minute bout saw Petruzelli rise from a scheduled light heavyweight bout on the undercard to take on Ferguson in the night's brief main event.After the referee's instructions, Petruzelli went to touch gloves with Ferguson in a show of sportsmanship, but Ferguson had none of it. As soon as the fight started, Ferguson came pressing forward, as Petruzelli threw a pair of front kicks while backing up to the cage. He followed it up with a weak right Superman Punch, which had the impact of a jab, that promptly dropped Ferguson to the mat. After a barrage of follow-up punches, the referee was forced to call a stop to the fight just 14 seconds in. The conclusion to the brief battle will greatly impact MMA in North America in the weeks and months to come.
In a somewhat comedic display, EliteXC Vice President Jared Shaw could be seen screaming at the top of his lungs to the referee, claiming that the strikes from Petruzelli were hitting the back of Ferguson's head, as Ferguson mistakenly tackled the referee after the fight was halted, believing him to be his opponent. It was crystal clear that Shaw knew that his prized fighter's loss could spell doom for the company, as his bias could not have been more evident.
Winner: Seth Petruzelli by TKO (Punches) at 0:14 of round one. He improves to 10-4-0.
EliteXC Welterweight Championship
Jake Shields vs Paul "Semtex" Daley
Daley, the reigning Cage Rage British and Welterweight Champion, made the journey to Florida to challenge Shields for his title, but came up short and succumbed to a second-round armbar.Shields seemed to want to test his striking in the opening seconds, throwing a pair of kicks that partially landed. Daley scored with a stiff left jab, however, which promptly forced Shields to try unsuccessfully for a takedown. Daley landed a quick leg kick and narrowly missed with an uppercut seconds later. Shields dove for a leg and managed to score a takedown. He moved to mount and remained there, landing punches and elbows, for nearly the entire duration of the ground. Daley, not at all known for his ground game, managed to keep Shields from doing much damage or securing a submission. Late in the round, Shields went for an armbar and Daley reversed position. He landed strikes from the top for the final 30 seconds, doing more damage than Shields had done in three minutes.
Already beginning to fatigue, Shields was even slower than usual in round two, and seemed primed to be picked apart by strikes from Daley. A kick and punches landed for Daley, forcing Shields to backpedal. Daley landed a knee and Shields went to the ground. Shields then pulled guard and looked for a heel hook, but Daley got back to his feet and stuffed a takedown. Another uppercut just missed from Daley, and Shields scored a brief takedown. Shields took Daley down again and once again landed in mount. He scored with elbows and slowly but surely set up an armbar. After well over a minute of landing weak strikes from the top, Shields finally locked on an armbar that Daley could not escape from, forcing Daley to submit. A solid submission for Shields, but a fairly mediocre overall performance.
Winner: Jake Shields by Submission (Armbar) at 3:47 of round two. He improves to 22-4-1 and remains the EliteXC Welterweight Champion.
Andrei "The Pitbull" Arlovski vs Roy "Big Country" Nelson
Arlovski won his second straight against former IFL heavyweight stars, defeating the final IFL Heavyweight Champion by TKO in the second round after a pair of vicious punches.Nelson pressed forward with jabs and Arlovski countered with a couple of inside leg kicks. Nelson went for a takedown, but was quickly reversed. However, he wound up on top and began working from side-control. After landing weak elbows, Nelson looked for a keylock on Arlovski's left arm. He gave it up and moved to North-South position. A Kimura attempt from Nelson was unsuccessful, and the referee bizarrely stood the fight back up, despite Nelson holding a dominant position in side-control. Nelson continued to push forward with jabs and wild haymakers, while Arlovski was content to keep him off-balance with leg kicks. A big knee scored for Arlovski as Nelson looked for a takedown in the clinch. Arlovski stunned Nelson with a punch, then followed up with a series of leg kicks and punches before the bell.
Nelson rocked Arlovski with a left hook early in round two, and the fighters clinched against the cage. Nelson landed knees to the thighs, but could not take Arlovski down. A pair of big punches landed for Arlovski, but Nelson gamely fought back with shots of his own. Arlovski scored with knees to the midsection and a flurry of quick punches. Nelson landed two punches of his own, but was rocked by an uppercut and a huge right cross that sent him crashing to the canvas, ending the fight. A very impressive victory for Arlovski, who becomes the first person to ever stop Nelson.
Winner: Andrei Arlovski by KO (Punch) at 1:46 of round two. He improves to 14-5-0.
Gina "Conviction" Carano vs Kelly "Blood Red" Kobold
Though undoubtedly Carano's toughest test to date, Kobold's ice-cold stare and constant aggression were not enough, as Carano dominated most of the striking exchanges en route to a Unanimous Decision victory.Kobold pressed forward to begin the fight, but ate a hard overhand right as she clinched with Carano against the cage. She persisted in trying to take Carano to the ground, but could not get her down. Kobold scored with a knee and a pair of big punches as the fighters separated, and Carano came back with a looping right hook. Both fighters threw wild punches in an exchange, with both landing. Carano landed knees from the Muay Thai clinch, cutting Kobold above the nose and right eye. Kobold tried again for a takedown, but Carano once again defended. Both landed more wild strikes just before the bell. 10-9 Carano.
Carano scored with a big right hand early in round two, then moved in looking for the finish. She landed a flurry of punches, but Kobold simply threw back punches of her own. Carano grabbed another Muay Thai clinch and landed more knees, forcing Kobold to clinch against the cage. A knee and an elbow landed for Kobold, along with a big right hook. Kobold began to mix up her strikes as Carano broke free from the clinch. Carano scored with a series of left hooks, then a right cross and a quick combination. A punch from Kobold opened up Carano's lip, and Kobold scored a takedown with just under 20 seconds left. She escaped an omoplata attempt and landed strikes from the top to the face of Carano before the bell. 10-9 Kobold in a very close round.
Kobold again came rushing forward in round three, pressing Carano against the cage. Like in the first round, Kobold could not take Carano down, but landed a series of harsh foot stomps to the left foot of Carano. The fighters were separated and Kobold came forward with wild punches. Carano landed a big punch and a knee before Kobold clinched and looked for a takedown. In a very unique turn of events, Carano locked on a side choke from the standing position, moving almost into a rear naked choke as she dragged Kobold to the mat. Kobold survived and got back to her feet. Both scored with big punches, but Carano ended the round with a series of kicks to the head and body. 10-9 Carano.
Admitting that it was her toughest fight to date, Carano stated that she welcomed all comers, as her rumoured future opponent, Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos, looked on from cageside.
Winner: Gina Carano by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) after three rounds. She improves to 7-0-0.
Benji "Razor" Radach vs Murilo "Ninja" Rua
Rebounding from a shocking knockout loss to Matt Horwich in the IFL late last year, Radach scored with dozens of massive punches in this closely-contested fight and eventually stopped the former EliteXC Middleweight Champion in the second round.Round one was very much reminiscent of Melvin Manhoef vs Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos from Cage Rage 15, as both fighters swung wildly and connected with huge haymaker punches for minutes at a time. Radach connected with a left hook that rocked Rua in the opening seconds, then followed it up with a lightning-fast flurry of punches. Rua fought right back with a quick combination of his own and both fighters fell to the mat. Another left hook and more big punches staggered Rua again. Rua survived another flurry and swung back with punches of his own. Both connected with huge right hooks at the same time and both crumpled to the canvas, semi-conscious.
After both fighters quickly recovered, Radach took Rua's back briefly before Rua reversed position and landed punches as the fighters returned to their feet. Bleeding from below the left eye, Rua survived a brief standing guillotine and came forward with a knee to the body. Radach got Rua down, but Rua locked onto his right arm and looked for a Kimura. When that failed, he leaned back for a heel hook, but Radach got out and took Rua's back. Rua regained guard and looked for a guillotine choke, then another heel hook. Rua landed strikes and looked for a rear naked choke as Radach tried to stand up. He locked on the choke just as the bell rang. Too close to call the frenetic round.
Rua landed another solid knee to the body early in round two, then began to mix up his strikes as Radach retreated. Another knee landed for Rua, but Radach countered a leg kick with a huge overhand right. Rua scored with leg kicks as Radach continued to backpedal. Radach defended a takedown attempt and Rua continued to press forward. He slipped while throwing a kick and fell to the mat. Radach took advantage of the situation by landing four consecutive rights to the face of the downed Rua, knocking him out and forcing the referee to stop the fight.
Winner: Benji Radach by KO (Punches) at 2:27 of round two. He improves to 19-4-0, 1 NC.
Undercard Fights:
Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos defeated Yoko Takahashi by Unanimous Decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. She improves to 6-1-0 and is slated to challenge Gina Carano in the future.Conor Huen defeated James Edson "Little Tiger" Berto by TKO (Punches & Elbows) at 2:18 of round two. He improves to 8-2-0.
Mikey Gomez defeated Lorenzo Borgomeo by Submission (Armbar) at 4:06 of round two. He improves to 9-4-0.
Bryan Hamade won his MMA debut over fellow debutant David Gomez by Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 2:03 of round one. He improves to 1-0-0.
Nicolae Cury won his MMA debut against Jorge Bouchat by Submission (Reverse Triangle Choke) at 1:35 of round one. He improves to 1-0-0.
While Ken Shamrock's departure from the main event was unfortunate, Seth Petruzelli made certain that no MMA fan would quickly forget the action of EliteXC: "Heat" tonight, but only time will tell as to how well the promotion can survive after its top draw suffered such a crushing defeat.
