Investigation into Elite XC fight influencing to be focus of 'Inside MMA'

by James Iannotti on Oct 17, 2008 7:05 AM EDT Comment 34 comments

An interview with Alexis Antonacci -- press secretary for the Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) in the state of Florida -- will be featured on "Inside MMA" tonight on HDNet, beginning at 9 p.m. ET.

DBPR is currently conducting a preliminary investigation into Elite XC following some remarks from "Heat" main event winner Seth Petruzelli that claim the promotion paid him to stay on his feet against the popular street brawler Kimbo Slice.

Here's what he said word for word on October 6, the Monday following fight, on a popular morning radio program in Orlando:

"My original plan was to throw out push kicks, have him think that I’m gonna throw them more, and then to shoot in on him, obviously. But the promoters kind of hinted to me, and they gave me the money to stand and trade with him. They didn’t want me to take him down, let’s just put it that way. It was worth my while to try to stand up and punch with him."

Shortly therefter, Elite XC denied any wrong doing and Petruzelli claimed he was misquoted.

But the DBPR feels there could be some foul play involved and right now its in the beginning stages of a possible investigation into Elite XC. Tonight's program will be a great place to here what the DBPR has to say about what they've found so far during the inquiry.

Bas Rutten and Kenny Rice host the hour long program every Friday night on the premium cable and satellite channel HDNet. The show will also feature an in-depth interview by Ron Kruck with the man who was originally scheduled to face Kimbo Slice in Sunrise, Florida on October 4, UFC Hall of Famer Ken Shamrock.

His comments on the matter should be interesting as well.

Stayed locked into MMAmania.com for more on the developing story.

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This should be interesting…I’m looking forward to this..
Thanks for the heads up!.

by Stagger-Lee on Oct 17, 2008 7:12 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

stagerr:" what up my friend? your thoughts on UFC 89?

by john on Oct 17, 2008 9:58 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

john, My thoughts are that this should be a very solid card…With it lacking in big names, Joe Silva definitely put together some great fights(for a change)..IMO this card could end up being one of the best cards this year..Great match-ups!!

I have wanted to see Bisping fight Leban since the day he dropped down to MW..The fighters in the main event might not be “main event” type for my standards, but I cant complain with the match-up, because this fight should be crazy..I got Bisping in this fight.

I have been a Vera fan(and still am) from the get go..I am happy he is finally fighting at 205, but I am not sure if thats the weight he should fight at just yet..He really might be better suited at HW..Jardine is a great test to see exactly where the Truth is at..agian great match-up..

And you probably already know that I cant wait for my boy luis banha, to get down!!.I am a huge Soko fan and hate to see him lose, but I really feel Cane has it..But if Luis does lose, it wont be all that bad for I feel Soko is still a top fighter, and still ranked way higher then Cane..

All in all? it should be a great night, and to top it off, it is free…

by Stagger-Lee on Oct 17, 2008 11:07 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

And congrats on your Phillies making it to the world series..I dont watch baseball, but I do know that your Sixers beat my Raps the other day in a pre-game..I just want you to know that its not going to be that way come the start of the season when we win your home-opener..lol

by Stagger-Lee on Oct 17, 2008 11:31 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

GO RED SOX!!!!!!
WE’LL HAVE TO MAKE A BET JOHN IF IT’S PHILLY/BOSTON!

by kevin (most moderated guy on mmamania) on Oct 17, 2008 3:05 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Alot of good were gona get out of this! Considering the host (Bas) there will be alot of denying. It will be interesting to see what they say?

by JV on Oct 17, 2008 11:28 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Should be interesting to get Bas’ take on the whole situation being that it was his guy involved.

by PJJ on Oct 17, 2008 8:06 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Very interested in what Bas has to say.

This is really a shame. NOw that EliteXC cards are getting better, this crap has to surface. WTF!

by john on Oct 17, 2008 8:13 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Better than what?, having your eyes carved out with a rusty spoon.

by Ro-j on Oct 17, 2008 8:26 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

It sucks for MMA. Us maniacs new the deal.. but for Seth to open his mouth.. " kept it real ".. puts a black eye on MMA. Bastards!

by PhilQNY on Oct 17, 2008 9:01 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

exactly Phil! WE all knew the deal, but I didnt want the rest of the world to know because it severely taints our beloved sport! Petruzzelli is such an idiot! He is destroying the sport and his only chance of being a relevant mma fighter. Didnt Seth make 6 figures for his 10 second fight with Kimbo? where else is that mediocre idiot ever going to get 6 figures from again?

This is a horrendous situation. Best case scenario is that EliteXC will survive this mess and Skala will be Fired/Replaced with someone thats actually CREDIBLE and not a complete cokehead/Scumbag!

by john on Oct 17, 2008 9:41 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I got to disagree with you two. He might have told us what we already knew, but obviously there had been no investigation before, so it wasn’t so obvious to the casual fan or the commission didn’t seem too concerned. I commend seth for telling the truth! Elite shot themselves in the foot on this one.
All you guys that missed it yesterday, it wasn’t my 16k, it was a stolen credit card. Back in the day, we did crazy things, spending 16k on a party wasn’t even close to the craziest, but it’s a true story. I got no reason to lie about dumb crap on here…especially when some guys have seen my family. The link above goes to my myspace, I’ll put a family pic up so you guys can flame on me (I mean hate on me)

by kevin (most moderated guy on mmamania) on Oct 17, 2008 10:05 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Phil and john! You guys are so completely in the wrong on this one that I am shocked. How can you blame Petruzzelli? It’s not his fault. It’s Elite’s. If there’s underhanded dealings going on, how else could it be cleaned up? Granted, if he was going to open his mouth, it shouldn’t have been on some radio show, but rather to the Athletic Commission itself. But don’t blame the fighter for the cheating done by the organization. If Seth has done done anything, it’s not a disservice, but rather a SERVICE to the sport.

by chefdaddy on Oct 17, 2008 10:13 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

pics are up

by kevin (most moderated guy on mmamania) on Oct 17, 2008 10:15 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

cute family

by roy on Oct 17, 2008 11:53 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

chef: This whole situ stinks.. the only positive is the casual fan.. now knows Kimbo is a novice MMA fighter.

EliteXc.. F’d up. In more ways than one.. but for Seth to do what he did.. and then try to re word himself.. I stand strong with my earlier post.. I blame Seth.. yes sir I do.. he spoke the truth.. but on the wrong platform.. because of him I have to hear Wilbon from PTI compare the great sport of MMA to WWE.. oh man.. I was tight.. at who?? at Seth.. those who disagree may.. but it is what it is.. a black eye for MMA.

by PhilQNY on Oct 17, 2008 1:43 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

thanks roy, now you guys can put to rest the thought of me lying, i’m an open book man

by kevin (most moderated guy on mmamania) on Oct 17, 2008 2:50 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

That show has a conflict of interests, period.

by Ro-j on Oct 17, 2008 8:25 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I dont want to hear from ken shamrock!! I think i seriously hate him as a fighter and I dont think he knows a damn thing about MMA. He won like 3 fights back in the day when noone knew wtf was going on and guys were kicking each other in the nutz. Then he lost like 10 in a row and he is supposed to be “the most dangerous man”?? Ef that guy, he is a loser! Everytime you see replays of him, you see him with a broken head ( Tito did it, Franklin did it)

by What?? on Oct 17, 2008 8:46 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

something looks weird about his left shoulder in that picture, maybe it is just the angle. kind of reminds me of sakuraba after wandy slammed him on his shoulder.

by DirtyML on Oct 17, 2008 9:09 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

This is such a non-story.

Where in here….

“But the promoters kind of hinted to me, and they gave me the money to stand and trade with him.”

…does it say they paid him off and told him not to go to the ground? KO bonuses are par for the course, and nothing in his statement says anything other than “Stand up, KO him, and we’ll give you a bonus”.

What’s the big deal?

This reeks of some Athletic Commission nobodies trying to get their 15 minutes of fame……nothing more.

by introvert on Oct 17, 2008 9:39 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

KO bonuses are par for the course—paying them up front is not. Also is it a KO bonus if they ‘give me the money to stand and trade with him’?—That sounds like a stand-up bonus which is not ‘par for the course’. I mean come on: “They didn’t want me to take him down”. If someone told a gambler ahead of time that Seth wasn’t going to try and take Kimbo down, I’m fairly certain no one would have bet Seth to win. It isn’t a non-story when you got people legally gambling on a fight. Not to mention this is a sport not coreographed wrestling. MMA not Boxing.

by chuckjbt on Oct 17, 2008 10:19 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Then those gamblers should not be gambling, considering Seth is a K-1 kickboxer with far superior striking skills than Kimbo Slice. I knew this, you knew this…….pretty obvious that Elite XC would know this too.

Has anyone given any thought to the fact that they matched Kimbo up with a GROUND FIGHTER in the first place? Or, do you think they paid Shamrock to “stand and trade” too?

They set up a fight with a grappler… then put in a striker as a replacement, and pay him off to “not take him to the ground”? If they wanted Kimbo to solely fight standing…why Shamrock then?

This is so stupid it’s funny.

(rolling my eyes at all of this)

by introvert on Oct 17, 2008 10:57 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Paying a guy more money to move up in weight and fight on a main event is par for the course…..hate to break it to you.

by introvert on Oct 17, 2008 11:03 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Its a big deal.
Do you work for EliteXC? Seems like it.

by PencilPusher on Oct 17, 2008 10:25 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

So, an overrated street fighter gets ko’d, and a fighter that isn’t even on the radar says “it was worth my while to stand and trade”….and you guys seem to think this is like Watergate or something.

This is nothing. The only people who give two shits about it are UFC nutthugger’s…..period.

It’s only a story because Dana White and his fans made it one. If you and Dana were so worried about MMA’s “legitimacy”, you all should have kept your mouth shut in the first place. Now every MMA organization will be painted with a broad stroke…just like all boxing promoters were when a few bad apples spoiled the whole bunch.

Funny thing here is that nobody even knows whether there are bad apples involved, and yet you all still say they are….nice going.

by introvert on Oct 17, 2008 11:02 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Intro, dude, we (mmamaniacs) obviously know that Kimbo is/was a joke. That said, he’s now been in two of the top three most watched MMA fights in terms of North American viewership. How good either of these guys are is what’s irrelevant. It’s the exposure of the fight that makes it a big deal. And Seth said that EliteXC “gave me the money to stand and trade with him” as opposed to the “quote” you wrote above (was that from a different interview or something?).
And UFC nuthuggers are the only ones that care about this? Wrong again man. If you are an MMA fan you should be the most concerned. This gives further fuel to our sport’s detractors. You think turning a blind eye and/or sweeping this under the rug is the way to go here? Thinking fail. That might be what’s best for Elite, but that is in no way a good strategy for MMA, the sport, that is still fighting for its legitimacy.
A “stand up”/KO bonus in this case, and in the absence of a submission bonus, is an attempt to change the outcome of a fight. Which IS a big deal and SHOULD be investigated. As it would be in any other legitimate sport. You and the rest of us here may have known that Seth had a serious edge in striking but that certainly doesn’t mean that $kalla knew that.
Are you on such a UFC/D.W. hatefest that you can’t agree that an MMA organization that only gives stand up bonuses and thinks ground fighting is boring is actually in the wrong business. Now it may be that you feel the same way as Gary Shaw and Mr. Lappan, but that would mean that you should really be talking to your homies over at kickboxingmania.com.

by Canucklehead on Oct 17, 2008 3:49 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I also find it hilarious that you blame Dana White for the fall-out from Elite’s fight-fixing. So the fact that this story gets publicized because Dana wants to stamp out the kind of boxing-promoter-shit that, as you point out, “spoiled the whole bunch”, makes it his fault and not the fault of the promoter that actually made the payment? Talk about some logical gymnastics. I think you may be letting your feelings towards Dana White and the UFC cloud your judgment here man.
You know, I’ve heard that if your “hate-on” lasts for longer than a few hours you should probably consult a physician.

by Canucklehead on Oct 17, 2008 4:02 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Jz Calvacante on his training partner Tiago Alves’s up coming fight with Koschek:

Gesius: "To me, it’ll only change the name of who’ll he beat. Pitbull in flying and the way he is, they (UFC) could put Georges St. Pierre against him. I train with him everyday and know that, he’s very strong. Fight is fight, Josh Koscheck is a better wrestler than Diego Sanchez, but Thiago developed a lot his takedown defenses. Koscheck developed a lot his stand up game and might wanna surprise him, but it’ll be his disaster. If he is smart, he’ll try to take Thiago down and work to win by decision, but I don’t see this fight going the three rounds",

-tatame

by john on Oct 17, 2008 9:55 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

That’s nice….thank you. (WTF?)

by introvert on Oct 17, 2008 9:56 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

That’s how I se it as well.

by James S on Oct 17, 2008 10:07 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

how long is jz out for i can’t wait to see him fight again.if he didn’t lose that bs 2nd fight to aoki and tear his acl he would have won dream.

by roy on Oct 17, 2008 12:23 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

legit orgs promotions

affliction, dream, ufc

bad apples

shaw boxing elitexc

by dk on Oct 17, 2008 1:15 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Introvert wrote: “Has anyone given any thought to the fact that they matched Kimbo up with a GROUND FIGHTER in the first place? Or, do you think they paid Shamrock to "stand and trade" too?
They set up a fight with a grappler… then put in a striker as a replacement, and pay him off to "not take him to the ground"? If they wanted Kimbo to solely fight standing…why Shamrock then?”

C’mon man you can’t be serious. What elite did was match Kimbo up with a washed up smaller old man. He has been hitting the turf against everybody the last few years and has shown no ability to take a shot anymore. It is delusional to think they matched Kimbo with Shamrock because they thought Shamrock was going to win.
ANY attempt to change the way a fight is approached is wrong. Bonus as just that bonus. And usually they are given for every kind of outcome (KO, Fight of the night, Submission etc…)Elite had no such bonus in their short history—so to suggest he was given KO bonus is a weak argument at best. As for the he’s a K1 guy argument—Seth himself said his original plan was to try to take him down.

by chuckjbt on Oct 17, 2008 5:13 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs