Elite XC, a new mixed martial arts company, debuted on Showtime on Saturday with the fight card ending in controversy.
The main event, which pitted Frank Shamrock against Renzo Gracie, ended after Shamrock was disqualified for landing two illegal shots in the second round. After Gracie took Shamrock down to the ground and had him in side control, Shamrock, from his back, threw two knees that hit Gracie in the back of the neck. The fight was then stopped by referee Herb Dean, and Gracie was given five minutes to see if he could recover. It was ruled by Dean that the illegal knees were intentional, therefore Gracie was awarded the victory by disqualification.
Even as Gracie was being carried away, the unremorseful Shamrock, who kept getting taken to the ground but obviously didn't want to be there, repeated: "I came here to fight."
Elite XC had a decent night, highlighted by the Gina Carano-Julie Kedzie fight, which was a good fight that Carano won by decision. But the post-fight interviews, with the exception of the Carano-Kedzie fight, were way too long, and I didn't like the fact that they interviewed Dean immediately after the main event. A ref's job is difficult enough, don't put them on the spot like that.
Comments (1)
i think herb dean has gotten a bum rap lately. and shamrock is a d****e. renzo showed he was a class act. cant wait for the rematch. war renzo and war baroni.