ELITEXC SHOW LIVES UP TO BILLING
Posted on | November 11, 2007 | 2 Comments
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NOONS SHOCKS DIAZ TO CAPTURE ELITEXC WORLD TITLE,
KIMBO’S SMASHING IN DEBUT, SHIELDS, NOKE, SILVA TRIUMPH
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Saturday, Nov. 10, at 10 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME
The American Bank Center Arena, Corpus Christi, Texas
CORPUS CHRISTI, Tex. (Nov. 11, 2007) – On a night when Kimbo Slice made his eagerly awaited professional Mixed Martial Arts debut, KJ Noons stole the show with a shocking first-round TKO over heavily-favored Nick Diaz to capture the EliteXC lightweight world championship Saturday on SHOWTIME
The event, which took place at The American Bank Center Arena, was presented by Gary Shaw Productions, LLC, and aired on SHOWTIME at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast).
In other televised bouts, world-ranked Jake Shields, who signed a long term deal with EliteXC late Friday, earned his ninth win a row with a hard-fought first round submission (rear naked choke) over Mike Pyle, come backing super heavyweight sensation Antonio “Big Foot” Silva won his first fight in nine months via an opening-round submission (rear naked choke) over Jonathan Wiezorek and Kyle Noke, the bodyguard of the late “Crocodile Hunter,” Steve Irwin, took his EliteXC debut with a second-round TKO over “Dr.’’ Seth Kleinbeck due to orbital cut.
With the exception of Diaz-Noons, which was scheduled for five, 5-minute rounds, the fights were three, 5-minute rounds.
“This was a terrific show for EliteXC, SHOWTIME and the fans in attendance,’’ Shaw said. “It is unfortunate that the Noons-Diaz fight had to be stopped, but fans need to understand that doctors stop fights for the health and safety of the fighters.
“KJ was simply outstanding. He is the No. 1 lightweight in the world. He beat the guy who was considered the best lightweight, so he is No. 1. Kimbo showed that he is going to be a superstar. I believe we’ve got the best heavyweight in the world in Silva and the best welterweight in the world in Shields. They are going to be world champions. Noke was impressive against a tough fighter.
“All and all, it was a great night.’’
Noons (kjnoons.proelite.com), a native of Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, is also a professional boxer. He used a combination of strikes to cut Diaz above both eyes and drop him during an action-packed first round. At the conclusion of the session, the bout was stopped by Dr. Rob Williams.
The victory over Diaz in the first-ever EliteXC world lightweight championship fight was the second huge upset in a row for Noons (5-1) on SHOWTIME. On July 27, 2007, he registered an impressive third-round knockout over Edson Berto on ShoXC: The Elite Challenger Series.
“You can’t be happier than I am now,’’ Noons said. “I feel great. I put in a lot of hard work for this and it paid off. No one gave me a chance. I knew I was a big underdog. But I made the best of this chance, and that is what it is all about.
“This is just the first of many belts for me. Winning a world title in boxing is next.’’
Diaz (nickdiaz.proelite.com), of Stockton, Calif., was the aggressor at the outset. Before long, however, his face was a bloody mess.
“He landed some good shots (to cause the cuts),” said Diaz (15-7), who was incensed by the doctor’s decision and stormed out of the ring. “But he was such a small guy. I couldn’t get a grip on him. He doesn’t hit that hard. I knew I should have boxed him more.’’
Kimbo (kimboslice.proelite.com), aka Kevin Ferguson, was clearly the crowd’s favorite. Each time his name was mentioned or a video of him was shown, they cheered.
The legendary street-fighting Internet legend didn’t give them a lot to watch, however, as he dispatched Bo Cantrell in just 19 seconds.
“I wanted the fight to go a little longer so I could maybe show a little more, but it is good to get this one out of the way,’’ Kimbo (1-0), of Miami, said. “There was a little tension but now I can relax and sigh a little bit.
“I was prepared for anything he was going to throw at me. I envisioned it all so what he did at the start was no surprise.
“I am looking forward to fighting again, next week, tomorrow, it doesn’t matter.’’
Said legendary trainer Bas Rutten: “I am happy for Kimbo, but he needs an opponent that is going to push him a little. I think he can handle it, but I want to see how he does when he has to face some adversity and go a full round or two.
“Really, Kimbo got nothing out of this fight tonight – except for a nice payday.’’
Cantrell (bocantrell.proelite.com), of Citrus Heights, Calif., entered the cage with a vast advantage in experience with 20 MMA fights, but he never stood a chance.
“I am not sure what happened but just before the fight I started feeling weird,’’ Cantrell (10-11) said. “I just wasn’t myself in there. I felt a shell of myself.’’
Shields (jakeshields.proelite.com), of San Francisco, Calif., overcame a fast start by Pyle to triumph at 3:39 of the opening round. Once the Cesar Gracie protégé got Pyle on the ground, he methodically worked to get Pyle’s back and sink the rear naked choke.
“I knew this would be a tough fight and it definitely was for a couple minutes,’’ said Shields (20-4-1), who is unbeaten since 2004. “He came out very strong. Mike is a good fighter. I knew that if I had a chance to put him away I better because I did not want the fight to go any longer than it had to. I am happy with the win, and will be ready for whoever they put in front of me next.’’
Pyle (mikepyle.proelite.com), a Randy Couture disciple, came out cocky and swinging and landed a few while stuffing Shield’s takedown attempts.
“This is not what I wanted,’’ Pyle (14-5-1), of Dresden, Tenn., said. “I am extremely disappointed.’’
Noke (kylenoke.proelite.com), of Queensland, Australia, by way of Sydney, won a hotly contested fight that was stopped at 4:12 of the second round due to nasty gash above Kleinbeck’s left eye.
“I expected a hard fight, which is exactly what this was,’’ Noke (14-3-1) said. “But I am very happy to win in my first start for EliteXC on SHOWTIME. I have fought in front of crowds of 300. Tonight, I fought in front of millions.’’
Kleinbeck (sethkleinbeck.proelite.com), of Stuttgart, Ark., clearly won the first round and may have been winning the second before he got cut.
“I felt stronger than him on the ground, but he was a really good fighter,’’ Kleinbeck (8-4) said. “In this sport, you throw elbows and when get caught like I did, this kind of thing happens.
“I should have boxed more instead of just fighting him.’’
In the opening televised bout, trim Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva (antoniosilva.proelite.com), a Brazilian now living in Miami, had his way against Jonathon Wiezorek (jonathanwiezerek.proelite.com) of Springfield, Ill., winning by submission (rear naked choke) at 3:12 of the first round.
Silva, who entered the cage at a trimmed down 265 pounds, dominated. “Everything went like I expected,’’ said Silva after improving to 9-1. All his victories have come in the first round.
Said Wiezorek (11-2), of Valdosta, Ga.: “Nothing I tried worked. He is a big, strong guy.’’
Non-televised, opening bout results that will be available on ProElite.com the week of Nov. 12: In a battle between two Corpus Christi heavyweights, Geoff Bumstead (3-1) defeated Robert Ruiz (1-1) via rear naked choke at 1:30 of round one; new American Top Team member, Yves Edwards (30-13-1), of Woodlands, Tex., submitted Nick Gonzalez (13-6), of Austin, Tex., via rear naked choke at 3:05 of round one; Matt Lucas (8-0) of Queen’s Creek, Ariz., earned a unanimous decision over crowd-favorite Jon Kirk (10-2), of Houston; heavyweight Brett Rogers (6-0), of St. Paul, Minn., defeated Ralph Kelly (6-2), of San Antonio, via ground-and-pound TKO at 1:43 or round one; and Spirit MC’s Jae Sok Lim (8-2) submitted Daniel Pineda (3-1), of Houston, Tex., via rear naked choke at 2:42 of round one.
Renowned play-by-play announcer Mauro Ranallo called the shots on Saturday’s telecast with “The Fight Professor” Stephen Quadros and Bill Goldberg serving as color analysts. The executive producer was David Dinkins, Jr. with Bob Dunphy directing.
Catch an encore of Saturday’s EliteXC telecast on SHO Sports Presents, Tuesday, Nov. 13 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on SHO 2. SHO Sports Presents is a new series airing every weeknight at 10 p.m. ET/PT on SHO 2 featuring replays of the best SHOWTIME boxing and EliteXC mixed martial arts telecasts. (For complete schedule of SHO Sports Presents, please visit SHO.com/Schedule).
Replays of Saturday’s EliteXC telecast will air as follows:
Monday, Nov. 12 at 8 p.m. (SHO Extreme)
Tuesday, Nov. 13 at 10 p.m. (SHO 2)
Wednesday, Nov. 14 at 12:30 a.m. (SHOWTIME)
For more information on SHOWTIME Sports telecasts including exclusive videos and photos, please visit SHO.com/Sports. For the most interactive MMA experience on the Web, including full coverage of EliteXC mixed martial arts events, press conferences, weigh-ins, LIVE fights, pre- and post-fight interviews, and forum chats with fighters, please visit www.ProElite.com and EliteXC.com.
About ProElite, Inc.
ProElite Inc. [PELE.PK] delivers the most exciting entertainment experience in the world of mixed martial arts (MMA) with live arena-based entertainment events, cable television programming on Showtime Networks and community-driven interactive broadband entertainment via the Internet. ProElite embraces MMA with the highest levels of honor, integrity, discipline and self-esteem all the while remaining inclusive for fighters, fans and schools. ProElite’s live fight division, EliteXC, delivers spectacular live MMA fight events that showcase the world’s top fighters [elitexc.com]. ProElite’s interactive business, ProElite.com, capitalizes on the growing popularity of the sport of mixed martial arts by building a community of mixed martial arts enthusiasts. In addition to streaming the most exciting live fights to the web, ProElite expands the fan base of the sport by providing a comprehensive set of online social networking tools for fans, fighters and organizations.
ProElite.com – Empowering the Fight Community TM
About Showtime Networks Inc.
Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CBS Corporation, owns and operates the premium television networks SHOWTIME®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ and FLIX®, as well as the multiplex channels SHOWTIME® TOO™, SHOWTIME® SHOWCASE, SHOWTIME EXTREME®, SHOWTIME BEYOND®, SHOWTIME NEXT®, SHOWTIME WOMEN®, SHOWTIME FAMILYZONE® and TMC XTRA. SNI also offers SHOWTIME HD®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL HD™, SHOWTIME ON DEMAND™ and THE MOVIE CHANNEL ON DEMAND™. All SNI feeds provide enhanced sound using Dolby Digital 5.1. SNI is also an owner and manager of SUNDANCE CHANNEL, a venture of NBC Universal, Robert Redford and SNI. SNI also manages Smithsonian Networks, a joint venture between SNI and the Smithsonian Institution. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscribers on a pay-per-view basis through SHOWTIME® PPV.