Sunday, February 11, 2007
NO HOLDS BARRED: EliteXC and Gracie-Shamrock Review
On this edition of NO HOLDS BARRED, host Eddie Goldman reviews the premiere show of the new EliteXC organization, which was held Saturday, February 10, at the DeSoto Civic Center in Southaven, Miss., and shown in the U.S. on Showtime. This was the first time that this network has televised a mixed martial arts event. Among the many topics discussed is the controversial disqualification of Frank Shamrock in his fight with Renzo Gracie. As usual, this commentary is no holds barred.
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Eddie, very interesting run down.
In most cases you were right on target.......I personaly thought
Goldberg sounded very natural and informed...hope they keep him on.
How is Renzo? Yes, he was winning but Frank is very good and it wasn't over with. Perhaps Frank was just overexcited....I would perfer to think that. But either way I wish it had gone to a clean finish.
Herb Dean is really a good ref. and it was a good call.
Keep us up to date on Renzo's condition. I hope they will do the necessary follow up tests on him.
If only EYADA was still on. MANY people still talk about how much they liked and miss it.
Thanks for your commentary.
There was something that rubbed me the wrong way about the EXC event that I was hoping you'd mention, since I consider you to represent the conscience of fighting sports.
They went overboard with the sexualized marketing, don't you think? I mean, all orgs do it, but these guys really took it to another level. I had convinced some friends to watch the show with me as their introduction to MMA, and frankly I was embarassed.
Worst of all is the sexualization of the female fighters. On one hand, they claim they are finally giving female fighers the respect they deserve as professionals, and on the other, they can't help but refer to Gina Carano's looks EVERY time her name pops up. I don't speak for female fighters, but it can't be comfortable making your way to the cage surrounded by dancing girls, wondering whether you're being cheered as a fighter or as a sex object. It makes me question whether EXC are truly concerned with promoting female MMA or simply exploiting these athletes, casting them as glorified ring girls, to attract sex-hungry young males.
Sadly, many MMA cyberspace commentators followed EXC's lead. Even in articles that focused positively on Carano's performance as a fighter, most authors couldn't resist slipping in at least one sexual comment per article.
One of the low points of the evening was the evidently nonconsensual "good luck" kiss that disgusting presenter planted on Carano's face during a pre-fight interview. I cringed all over as the cameraman gleefully captured her look of discomfort.
Mr. Goldman, please put this issue out there, so it's on the radar at least. If we are concerned about MMA's image and earning mainstream respect, if we want to promote healthy social values, if we want to make MMA "safe" for female participation as both athletes and spectators... the sexual-exploitation angle has to cease.
Alright, it might never disappear entirely, but we should at least hit the brakes, and not permit the entertainment aspect to descend further down this path. Sadly, the EXC presentation, in its desperation to make a splash, has raised the standard in the wrong direction.
: 11:03 AM2 Comments:
I received the following comment from an anonymous person, but I messed up the moderating of it, so here it is:
Eddie, very interesting run down.
In most cases you were right on target.......I personaly thought
Goldberg sounded very natural and informed...hope they keep him on.
How is Renzo? Yes, he was winning but Frank is very good and it wasn't over with. Perhaps Frank was just overexcited....I would perfer to think that. But either way I wish it had gone to a clean finish.
Herb Dean is really a good ref. and it was a good call.
Keep us up to date on Renzo's condition. I hope they will do the necessary follow up tests on him.
If only EYADA was still on. MANY people still talk about how much they liked and miss it.
By 
Eddie Goldman, at
9:36 PM
Mr. Goldman,
Thanks for your commentary.
There was something that rubbed me the wrong way about the EXC event that I was hoping you'd mention, since I consider you to represent the conscience of fighting sports.
They went overboard with the sexualized marketing, don't you think? I mean, all orgs do it, but these guys really took it to another level. I had convinced some friends to watch the show with me as their introduction to MMA, and frankly I was embarassed.
Worst of all is the sexualization of the female fighters. On one hand, they claim they are finally giving female fighers the respect they deserve as professionals, and on the other, they can't help but refer to Gina Carano's looks EVERY time her name pops up. I don't speak for female fighters, but it can't be comfortable making your way to the cage surrounded by dancing girls, wondering whether you're being cheered as a fighter or as a sex object. It makes me question whether EXC are truly concerned with promoting female MMA or simply exploiting these athletes, casting them as glorified ring girls, to attract sex-hungry young males.
Sadly, many MMA cyberspace commentators followed EXC's lead. Even in articles that focused positively on Carano's performance as a fighter, most authors couldn't resist slipping in at least one sexual comment per article.
One of the low points of the evening was the evidently nonconsensual "good luck" kiss that disgusting presenter planted on Carano's face during a pre-fight interview. I cringed all over as the cameraman gleefully captured her look of discomfort.
Mr. Goldman, please put this issue out there, so it's on the radar at least. If we are concerned about MMA's image and earning mainstream respect, if we want to promote healthy social values, if we want to make MMA "safe" for female participation as both athletes and spectators... the sexual-exploitation angle has to cease.
Alright, it might never disappear entirely, but we should at least hit the brakes, and not permit the entertainment aspect to descend further down this path. Sadly, the EXC presentation, in its desperation to make a splash, has raised the standard in the wrong direction.
By , at
11:03 AM
