Review - Elite XC: Unfinished Business

Elite XC: Unfinished Business – July 26th, 2008 at the Stockton Arena, Stockton, CA

Preliminary Bouts

Preliminary Bout #1 – Drew Montgomery vs. Brandon Tarns

I’d arrived towards the end of the fight and by the time I made it to my seat, both fighters were absolutely drenched in blood. It truly looked like a massacre had occurred. Montgomery ended up taking a TKO (doctor stoppage) victory over Tarns and with the first fight, the cage mat looked like it’d already seen ten wars.

Preliminary Bout #2 – Carl Seumanutafa vs. Mike Cook (Heavyweight)

What was shaping up to be a fairly competitive fight ended prematurely when Cook tried a belly to back suplex on Seumanutafa and aggravated a knee injury he suffered early on in the fight. The weight of Seumanutafa caused Cook’s knee to buckle and the Samoan’s weight to fall completely on Cook’s entire body, causing an end to the bout early in the first frame.

Showtime Bouts

Showtime Bout #1 – Wilson Reis vs. Brian Caraway (140 lbs)

Reis looks pumped, as does Caraway but slightly more subdued. This was a great fight to start the program, as both fighters played to their strengths, Caraway on the feet, Reis on the ground. Caraway tagged Reis numerous times with his heavy hands, namely his right hook. Reis was able to completely control the action on the ground, taking Caraway down countless times and effortlessly transitioning to mount. What could have been a pivotal moment in the fight happened when Reis shot for a takedown in the 2nd frame and was met with a hard knee right to the skull. Unfortunately for Caraway and the audience staunchly supporting him, his striking lost out to Reis’ dominance on the ground and Reis was awarded the fight with a unanimous decision win of 30-27.

Showtime Bout #2 – Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante vs. Travis “The Gladiator” Galbraith (205 lbs)

“Feijao” comes out to a strong crowd reaction. What an impressive display by Cavalcante, picking Galbraith apart by the middle of the first round, showcasing his brilliant Thai clinch and stand up. Galbraith gamely tried to hold his own with some solid shots but after successive knees and punches and a last jumping knee from “Feijao”, the tough Galbraith crumpled to the ground in a heap, then took multiple shots to the head before referee Josh Rosenthal waved off the fight. The crowd erupts for what is definitely a rising star in the light heavyweight division.

The crowd tonight is electric, really a great atmosphere for these fights.

Showtime Main Event – Justin Eilers vs. Antonio “Big Foot” Silva (for the vacant Elite XC Heavyweight Championship)

The last bout of the Showtime card starts with an intense stare down between contenders. There is a gigantic size difference between the two with Silva being much larger but Eilers looks in better shape than I’ve ever seen him. The first round was fairly competitive, with Eilers utilizing nice jabs, which Silva keeps at bay with great leg kicks, The first frame ends, with Silva slightly edging Eilers out on the feet, in my opinion. The crowd is really into the fight going into the second. Silva comes out strong, bum rushing Eilers with a barrage of strikes, knocking out Eilers’ mouthpiece. Sensing the end was near, Silva wastes no time delivering blow after blow until referee Herb Dean had seen enough, calling off the fight and awarding the win to Silva. Silva is crowned the Elite XC Heavyweight champion.

Many major MMA stars were in the building and were introduced, garnering a strong audience reaction. Frank Shamrock, “The New York Bad Ass” Phil Baroni, “Big” John McCarthy, Gina “Conviction” Carano, Kimbo Slice, and others were in the building. The live CBS broadcast begins with a raucous Stockton crowd, eagerly awaiting the fights to come.

CBS Saturday Night Fights Bouts

CBS Bout #1 – Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos vs. Shayna “Queen of Spades” Baszler (140 lbs)

“Cyborg” looks focused and intense. Baszler comes out rocking with her guitar and is being cornered by Josh Barnett. She’s such a doll. I can’t get over the energy this crowd is bringing. Almost all of the competitors are getting a great reception, whether positive or negative. This fight was an absolute war from start to finish; the crowd was on its feet for much of the fight. Cyborg’s strikes came too fast and too heavy for Baszler to handle and as both a fan and a journalist, it became increasingly harder to watch Baszler have it taken to her. Baszler tried to use her excellent submission game but wasn’t able to keep Cyborg down for long. In the second round, Cyborg prematurely believed the fight was over after knocking down Baszler but when referee Steve Mazzagatti restarted the fight, Cyborg continued her assault. She was too quick and Baszler unfortunately was never able to get her phenomenal ground game going, and she loses the fight by TKO in round 2. What a fight!

CBS Bout #2 – Jake Shields vs. Nick “The Goat” Thompson (for the vacant Elite XC Welterweight Championship)

Shields receives a warm ovation from the Stockton mass. He looked positively dominant against resilient Thompson, earning the mount fairly easily. From there the end came soon after, as Shields locked in a one-armed guillotine, leaving Thompson no choice but to tap early in the first. Shields wins the vacant Elite XC Welterweight Championship in front of the joyous throng of people.

CBS Bout #3 – Nick Diaz vs. Thomas “Wildman” Denny (160 lbs)

For the Stockton multitude, THIS was the main event, as the buzz in the building made a fast crescendo to a deafening roar. Denny was definitely entering hostile territory. The ovation for Diaz was simply astounding, as nearly everyone was standing and cheering for their hometown fighter. The first round saw frequent and incredible bursts of action, with Denny at times out-striking Diaz, making the fight a nail-biter for the Diaz faithful. Luckily for them, Diaz began finding his comfort zone towards the end of the round, tagging Denny numerous times, wobbling him. The second frame saw Diaz fully into his groove and it wasn’t long before Denny came crashing to the canvas, full of heart, but defeated. The crowd erupted even louder than when Diaz was introduced, causing me to seriously think about later having my hearing examined.

Main Event – “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler vs. Scott “Hands of Steel” Smith (Elite XC Middleweight Championship Bout)

The previous fight would be an extremely hard act to follow, but the task was laid in the very capable hands of Middleweight champion Lawler and Smith, in a rematch of their May 31st bout, which was stopped prematurely due to a doctor stoppage (eye poke) to Smith. The first round started slow but soon picked up the pace as both fighters measured each other up. Exchanges of knees, high kicks, and punches back and forth had the crowd excited and shifting allegiances often between fighters. I saw the round 10-9 for Smith. The second round began with the formerly partisan Smith crowd split practically down the middle. Both fighters had their moments in this round as well, but Lawler seemed to have figured Smith out, as he eventually cornered Smith against the cage and began tearing him down with punches and knees to the body and face. A heavy knee buckled Smith and as he was making his way up, he was met with another flurry of strikes and knees until referee Herb Dean called the fight off. Lawler retains his middleweight belt, having passed this latest test with flying colors.

As a whole, I believe the event was excellent. The pacing of time between fights was reasonable and the action left me very satisfied. The crowd was extremely enthusiastic and I was proud to be a part of such an animated audience. I think any home viewers that caught the fights (Showtime, CBS, or both) should be pleased with the quality of MMA that was presented to them tonight.

Non-Televised Bout Results (after Showtime and CBS fights)

David “Tarzan” Douglas vs. Marlon Matias – TKO (strikes), 0:12, rd 1
Anthony “El Toro” Ruiz vs. Jeremy Freitag – Unanimous Decision, 29-28