EliteXC/CBS "Saturday Night Fights" Media Meal a Disgrace; Show Pretty Damn Good Though

The EliteXC/CBS "Saturday Night Fights" event, which played out before a live audience of 8,033 and was broadcast on CBS, featured a media meal of hot dogs, oversized cookies of varying types, and large bowls of kettle-cooked potato chips - a disgraceful selection and an abomination to the world of free food. Yes, there was a fully-stocked refrigerator with cans of soda and bottles of water, all of which was well-chilled, but it did little to offset the bad taste left in the mouths of those forced to dine on frankfurters mired in sauerkraut. To add insult to injury, the production crew's buffet was opulent with chicken breasts and vegetables and assorted desserts of the fruit tart, eclair and napolean variety. Does EliteXC think so little of the freeloading media? Is this how they hedge their bets against possible bad reviews? I sincerely hope not. In other news, the rest of the EliteXC/CBS event - from the fights on down to production - was pretty damn good. Stellar, in fact.

Kimbo Slice is Everywhere - Does He Deserve the Hype?

Oh hell yeah.

Scenes From an EliteXC Presser in NYC

Kimbo Slice, Matt Hughes, Bas Rutten, Jon Murphy and free food. What more could you want?

Q & A with Urijah Faber's Nutritionist

When WEC featherweight champ Urijah Faber squares off against Jens Pulver this Sunday, it won't just be one of the smallest fighters in the world taking on another equally small dude. No, when Faber throws down, it will mark the collaborative efforts of coaches and training partners - and even a nutritionist. MMA Journalist caught up with Hans Fitzel, the man who feeds the incumbent champ, and got his perspective. Tell us about Faber's diet. What does he eat when training for a fight? During a training cycle, Urijah eats what any highly-active mammal of comparable size would eat. Namely, fresh vegetables, seeds and insects like grasshoppers. When his training cycle winds down, we try to supplement his protein and carb intake with a few grams of hamster food. You know, just to make sure he peaks energy-wise. What will he eat the day of the fight? Generally, the skin of fruits such as apples or pears - to keep his blood sugar up - and maybe some whole grain oats. Urijah often carries food in his spacious cheek pouches, so he'll mostly eat from that. Do you advocate any energy drinks or Gatorade for your fighter? Absolutely not. Urijah's tiny nervous system isn't equipped for the shock an energy drink would give him, and he has a water bottle attached to his cage that's more than enough for replenishing his fluids. What about for his post-fight celebration? Urijah seems content to munch on a gram or two of cheese. Interesting. Well, thanks for your time. Thank you.

"Saturday Night Fights" Preview Madlib

This Saturday, EliteXC makes __(noun)___ with their live network debut on CBS - the first ___(noun)____ to reach primetime television. The ___(noun)___ is headlined by Kimbo Slice, considered by many to be one of the most ___(adjective)___ heavweights in the ___(noun)____. Opponent James Thompson, on the other hand, is ___(simile)___ , and will no doubt ___(metaphor)___ once the cage door shuts. Also on the card is Phil Baroni, the ____(superlative)____ warrior ___(preposition)___ the East Coast, taking on ___(adverb)____ Joey Villasenor, while Gina Carano __(verb)___ to mix ___(anaphora)___ up with Kaitlin Young. Says EliteXC Grand Poobah Gary Shaw, "___(onomatopoeia)___ this Saturday. With Dana White ___(slang)___ and ___(expletive)____ , we're going to ___(rhetoric)____ and ____(hyperbole)____ the competition."

What The Hell Are You Thinking?

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That Other Show in New Jersey This Weekend

Saturday and EliteXC and CBS and Kimbo Slice and Newark and blah, blah, blah! Okay, now that that's out of the way, there's actually another MMA event in New Jersey this weekend. It's called the World Fighting Championships, and whereas most promotions like to go the highly-publicized route, the WFC is coming to the Tropicana Casino & Resort in Atlantic City on Friday in full-on stealth mode. Good for them! Screw potential ticket buyers knowing of your event! Who needs 'em anyway! As the Florida-based WCF has done such a bang-up job getting their event out there, very little is known about the card other than Kit Cope, Andrew Montanez, Eric Henry and Hercules Benjamin are fighting. Maybe. Or maybe you'll get a cloth sack thrown over your head and a healthy dose of baseball bat love if you show up to the venue. Who knows?

Strikeforce on NBC a Hit with Coveted Vampire Demographic

"Strikeforce on NBC", NBC's weekly Strikforce compilation program that airs on Saturday nights at 1:30am, is a ratings hit according to industry sources. A recent ratings breakdown indicated that Strikforce on NBC is the most-watched show in the coveted vampire demographic, with the program also scoring consistently high among insomniacs as well as in the meth addict and zombie demographics. "We're pleased to see our product do well with the soulless and other creatures of the night," said Strikforce CEO Scott Coker. "We're looking forward to delivering more action-packed programming to NBC viewers - be they living or dead - throughout the year."

Scenes From an Affliction Presser in NYC

Josh Barnett, Tim Sylvia, Fedor, Donald Trump and free food. What more could you want?

Strong Pre-Show Concession Sales for July Affliction Event

Two months out and Affliction's debut MMA event is already off to a strong start. According to a report in USA Today, the July 19th Fedor Emelianenko/Tim Sylvia-headlined event at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California has seen strong pre-show concession sales, with fans purchasing over $200,000 worth of hot dogs, $225,000 worth of beer, $75,000 worth of cotton candy and $25,000 worth of nachos from the venue in anticipation. By comparison, UFC 83 in Montreal - which sold out not long after tickets became available and ended up setting a North American attendance record of over 21,000 spectators - saw huge pre-show concession sales, with fans purchasing over $150,000 in hotdogs, $200,000 in soft pretzels and $75,000 in ice cream Drumsticks prior to the April event. If this trend continues, Affliction's future certainly looks bright.

A Piece of MMA History: the 2002 UFC Lightweight Tournament

It seemed brilliant at the time. When inaugural lightweight champ Jens Pulver departed due to a contract dispute in 2002, the UFC was left with no clear heir to the 155-pound throne. So why not have jiu-jitsu master Matt Serra, Shooto champ Caol Uno, fighting phenom BJ Penn and well-rounded warrior Din Thomas battle it out? On paper, the four-man tournament stretching over two East Coast shows should've made for one heck of a compelling storyline - both for the weight class and the inevitable champ. Unfortunately, reality made for something much less interesting. At UFC 39, Penn won an uninspiring decision over Serra while Uno barely squeaked past Thomas, and at UFC 41 Penn and Uno fought to a draw. Not quite the dramatic turn anyone had been hoping for. The UFC brass put the 155-pound belt on ice soon after, and it would remain there until Sean Sherk claimed it as his own in 2006 (when there were enough events annually to sustain the division). It seemed brilliant at the time, but the UFC's infamous 2002 lightweight tournament was a colossal failure.