ProElite and Image Entertainment know they have a good thing going. Back on May 13, they released "EliteXC: Renegade" and "EliteXC: Destiny," mixed martial arts sets timed to promote the "EiteXC: Primetime" event televised on CBS on May 31. So, obviously, it goes without saying another set hit the shelves in time for the second CBS outing, "EliteXC: Unfinished Business," which aired July 26. In every respect except actual content, "EliteXC: Street Certified" is a carbon copy of the earlier releases. Nearly identical menu systems, bonus features, tech specs…and main event Kimbo Slice.
(This EliteXC event aired on Showtime, not CBS, to be clear.)
Anyone who perused those earlier discs will recognize a lot of the fighters here. Slice, Brett Rogers, Yves Edwards, Antonio Silva, Jon Kirk, Kyle Noke and James Berto all put in appearances, some to greater effect than others. But the eventual outcome doesn´t really matter, does it? Especially considering the final decisions have been known for at least six months now? No, the fact Kimbo Slice puts Tank Abbott out of his misery in a mere 43 seconds isn´t key. What is, though, is how each fighter accomplishes his mission.
The next big thing in MMA, apparently, is Kimbo Slice, whom we were introduced to in the "Renegade" set. He may be a marquee name, rising from nothing (a street fighter in Miami) to the guy ProElite promotes as much as it can. One problem: there is so much hype and not nearly enough fighting from Kimbo to let us get used to his style. Whereas every other fight lasts for some prolonged period of time, Kimbo is an efficient artist, going after Tank Abbott with a tenacity no one can possibly match.
Yes, the idea is to win the fight by any (legal) means necessary, no doubt, yet with the announcers breathlessly hyping the Main Event every chance they get, you´d think the event would, well, last a bit longer. Let Kimbo play with Tank for a couple minutes, maybe even a full round. Okay, maybe "let" is the wrong word. The referees and doctors have nothing to do with the resolution to this bout. Abbott folds, gives up and utterly crumbles under his opponent. Despite talking a good game in the pre match interviews, he has nothing to back it up, much like Bo Cantrell, a fight lasting a whopping 19 seconds.
Despite being the match up everyone is waiting for, the final televised fight is the least of the bunch. Actually, none of the televised fights are up to the par of Kyle Noke blasting a hole in Doctor Seth Kleinbeck´s forehead. Frankly, there is little blood here. To be honest, isn´t the red stuff the reason people tune in to MMA and other extreme sports? No one wants to see one punch and a heavyweight flopping to the ground. It´s the blood, of course, which draws the crowd.
In order to get there, then, we have to move to disc two and the undercard. Dave "Pee Wee Herman" and Mario Rinaldi is a brutal, bloody and nearly unfortunate affair. Rinaldi has every conceivable body part smashed into his face, creating a mashed up mess very early in the match while Herman remains relatively unscathed. It´s actually quite amazing the two get out of the first round, let alone to the third. Some part of me, in spite of the bloodlust running through my veins, felt bad for Rinaldi. No grown man deserves the beating he takes. Except when he instigates it.
Another noteworthy match is Yosmany Cabezas vs. Jon Kirk. The first thing which stuck in my head about these two men was the sheer agility they bring to the ring. Bouncing around the cage, very little stops either of them from throwing all the energy they have into fighting the other. It´s in stark contrast to the Kimbo/Tank fight or most of the other duos. And then there´s poor Mike Bernhard, a fighter who nearly has his fight against Lorenzo Borgameo in the bag until he commits one little error and the Italian gets the upper hand.
ProElite and Image Entertainment know they have a good thing going. Back on May 13, they released "EliteXC: Renegade" and "EliteXC: Destiny," mixed martial arts sets timed to promote the "EiteXC: Primetime" event televised on CBS on May 31. So, obviously, it goes without saying another set hit the shelves in time for the second CBS outing, "EliteXC: Unfinished Business," which aired July 26. In every respect except actual content, "EliteXC: Street Certified" is a carbon copy of the earlier releases. Nearly identical menu systems, bonus features, tech specs…and main event Kimbo Slice.
(This EliteXC event aired on Showtime, not CBS, to be clear.)
Anyone who perused those earlier discs will recognize a lot of the fighters here. Slice, Brett Rogers, Yves Edwards, Antonio Silva, Jon Kirk, Kyle Noke and James Berto all put in appearances, some to greater effect than others. But the eventual outcome doesn´t really matter, does it? Especially considering the final decisions have been known for at least six months now? No, the fact Kimbo Slice puts Tank Abbott out of his misery in a mere 43 seconds isn´t key. What is, though, is how each fighter accomplishes his mission.
The next big thing in MMA, apparently, is Kimbo Slice, whom we were introduced to in the "Renegade" set. He may be a marquee name, rising from nothing (a street fighter in Miami) to the guy ProElite promotes as much as it can. One problem: there is so much hype and not nearly enough fighting from Kimbo to let us get used to his style. Whereas every other fight lasts for some prolonged period of time, Kimbo is an efficient artist, going after Tank Abbott with a tenacity no one can possibly match.
Yes, the idea is to win the fight by any (legal) means necessary, no doubt, yet with the announcers breathlessly hyping the Main Event every chance they get, you´d think the event would, well, last a bit longer. Let Kimbo play with Tank for a couple minutes, maybe even a full round. Okay, maybe "let" is the wrong word. The referees and doctors have nothing to do with the resolution to this bout. Abbott folds, gives up and utterly crumbles under his opponent. Despite talking a good game in the pre match interviews, he has nothing to back it up, much like Bo Cantrell, a fight lasting a whopping 19 seconds.
Despite being the match up everyone is waiting for, the final televised fight is the least of the bunch. Actually, none of the televised fights are up to the par of Kyle Noke blasting a hole in Doctor Seth Kleinbeck´s forehead. Frankly, there is little blood here. To be honest, isn´t the red stuff the reason people tune in to MMA and other extreme sports? No one wants to see one punch and a heavyweight flopping to the ground. It´s the blood, of course, which draws the crowd.
In order to get there, then, we have to move to disc two and the undercard. Dave "Pee Wee Herman" and Mario Rinaldi is a brutal, bloody and nearly unfortunate affair. Rinaldi has every conceivable body part smashed into his face, creating a mashed up mess very early in the match while Herman remains relatively unscathed. It´s actually quite amazing the two get out of the first round, let alone to the third. Some part of me, in spite of the bloodlust running through my veins, felt bad for Rinaldi. No grown man deserves the beating he takes. Except when he instigates it.
Another noteworthy match is Yosmany Cabezas vs. Jon Kirk. The first thing which stuck in my head about these two men was the sheer agility they bring to the ring. Bouncing around the cage, very little stops either of them from throwing all the energy they have into fighting the other. It´s in stark contrast to the Kimbo/Tank fight or most of the other duos. And then there´s poor Mike Bernhard, a fighter who nearly has his fight against Lorenzo Borgameo in the bag until he commits one little error and the Italian gets the upper hand.
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