Chicks Heart Fights

Dave Meltzer from Yahoo is reporting that Kimbo Slice is going to fight Ken Shamrock in the October 4 Elite XC event that will air on CBS . Ken Shamrock, who is 44 years old, and has lost his last five fights. All five fights ended in the first round. In addition to being old as dirt, Shamrock is also a pioneer in MMA and a huge draw. I had read that the future of EliteXC hinged on this next fight, and clearly they are all pulling out all the stops.  Hmmm, you’ve got the bearded lady and the man older than Methuselah, what’s next? Clowns?

Oh. We’re all set then.

As for Slice, he gets a chance at what some will perceive as a real opponent. A “real” opponent who hasn’t been relevant since the early part of the decade, but he was great. This is Slice and EliteXC’s chance to prove their legitimacy. They also need to prove to CBS that their little MMA experiment was worth it, as this is the second-to-last show on their contract.

I haven’t forgotten about MMA, I promise. I have written plenty about wrestling in the past few weeks, just not here. I have spent a lot of time over at Yahoo! Sports Blogs’ Fourth-Place Medal , writing about every aspect of the Olympics. Basically, I was completely immersed in the Olympics, and have been unable to write (or talk!) about anything else.

But those sixteen days of Olympic madness are over, so I will be back to nurture my baby, Chicks Heart Fights. Though MMA went into a bit of a lull, presumably to accommodate the Olympics, it will kick into high gear for the month of September. UFC, UFN, WEC, oh my!

To keep you going, here are a few of the stories I have been able to read about MMA in the past month.

- Edwin Dewees was suspended for doping after the last EliteXC event . Silly Edwin Dewees.

- Although the September 20 EliteXC event was canceled, EliteXC assures us - ALL IS WELL. REMAIN CALM. ALL IS WELLLLLLLLLLLL!

- Affliction: Day of Reckoning has been scheduled for October 11 , but more importantly, Ozzy Osbourne will perform there.

- Frank Trigg and Tangori won at a Sengoku event last night. I’m going to have some news of an upcoming Sengoku event soon.

- Cheick Kongo is not concerned about Brock Lesnar .

Today, I took a break from my Olympic frenzy to go to the opening of the Curran Mixed Martial Arts in Crystal Lake, Illinois. Jeff Curran, king of Team Curran, announced that he will be cutting down to 135 for his next fights, and Team Curran member Bart Palaszewski has signed a six-fight contract with the WEC.  He then invited us into the beautiful facility that features an octagon, a ring, a wrestling room and a muay thai room. Ultimate Fighter Amir Sadollah stopped by, and he and Curran put on a grappling demonstration. Overtime Wrestling will be running another branch of their wrestling academy out of this location. DH will have pics soon, and I will link to them when available. If you’re looking for an MMA place in the Chicago area, check it out. It’s a great spot.

So I have a secret for you. Ready? I didn’t watch the EliteXC fights on Saturday. I know that might make me a bad fan, but I had my niece’s graduation party, and I just plain forgot about the fights. Apparently, I as not alone, as the ratings were down. Of course, the production approved about a gajillion percent. Oh well.

Here is the other secret that I have held in for a while - I am going to be blogging at Yahoo for the duration of the Olympics. I will still be posting over here, but you stop by. I’d love to see some IP addresses.

Winter has hit Chicago, and I hate it. When I tell people from other places that I hate the winter, they say, “how can you? You live in Chicago!” Just because I love Chicago doesn’t mean that I like shoveling my car out of its spot, or it being so cold that my boogers freeze the second I head outside. I do love this city though. The summers here are fantastic, so I figure that the winter is the penance I pay for the wonderful summers. Anyway, I digress. Onto tonight’s final TUF. The semifinals are tonight, setting up this Saturday’s final.

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My dear readers, it’s been a rough couple of days. I have no witty opening for you. In the words of Big John McCarthy: LET’S GET IT ON!

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- Sylvia has love handles.

- It would have been better for the UFC if Vera won.

- Silva will enjoy the top spot for a while because no one is all that good at that weight class.

Good night.

If you get a chance, read this article from Mark Palmer of RevWrestling. It’s about the many changes in wrestling since it became an NCAA sanctioned sport. My favorite nugget, from Myron Roderick, the legendary Oklahoma State Coach:

The philosophy when I was wrestling that if you lifted weights, you’d be muscle-bound, couldn’t move.

I love it! When I read the world muscle-bound, Brock Lesnar immediately pops into my mind. He never seemed to have a hard time moving, but looking at him, I thought that he just might have trouble moving.

Between wrestling worlds and the Ultimate Fighter, I’ve neglected the very interesting fight card line up for tonight. My picks are:

Liddell vs. Jardine

Rua vs. Griffin (SAD. I want Griffin to win, I just don’t think he will.)

Fitch vs. Sanchez 

I’m still not sure where I’m watching the fights from, but I’ll have thoughts on the results.

That’s right - they all took fifth. Doug Schwab, Joe Heskett, and Joe Williams all took fifth. Tommy Rowlands and Daniel Cormier are our only hopes for a freestyle men’s medal. More later…