While CAA was busy getting involved in the successful UFC, CBS decided to invest in EliteXC, which turned out to be a failure.  It looks like another SportsAgentBlog.com contributor’s (Jared March) post was right on in his mock letter from WCW’s Eric Bishoff’s to EliteXC’s Gary Shaw.  I really loved fake Bishoff’s parting advice,

My only other real advice is to enjoy it while it lasts. I had this moment you’re at right now. I did this NWO thing and had a good run beating the ratings of WWF. Really, our products just aren’t as good but it sure makes for a fun ride while we are out ahead. If you need someone to book fights, I’m actually available to work now. That’s it for me, but keep up the great work. WCW and Elite XC, like brothers separated at birth.

Personally, I have received many pitches for MMA style TV shows.  I definitely believe that there is an expanding market for MMA fighters who are not only good at their trade, but have an impressive look and can act.  St. Pierre just teamed up with one of the top agencies that can parlay its connections in the sports world with its ties to the entertainment landscape.  Additionally, the relationship shows that CAA has bought into MMA’s relevance and believes that at least UFC has a business platform that should allow it to stick around for a while.  As far as Kimbo Slice and Elite XC, who knows.

The young male demographic is also entranced by a new breed of fighting. Boxing is becoming a dead sport while MMA has become the topic of conversation for many. Names like Kimbo Slice and Brock Lesnar are mentioned quite often in conversations between teenagers, twenty-somethings, and many older and younger populations. CBS has had success in its coverage of Elite XC and UFC is doing just fine as a competitor.

The market for poker reality shows is probably over saturated. MMA reality television also has more than enough competition. But what about a combination of the two in one reality show? And what if that show was also comprised of men who were some of the best billiard players in the United States? Blair Thein wants to make such a reality show the next big thing to catch the country’s attention by creating the first true pool reality show that will tap into the lifestyle of real pool hustling.

Blair contacted me a couple of weeks ago to introduce me to his idea: Pool Poker & Pain (new interactive website under construction). Contestants will battle each other at the pool table, the poker table, and in Mixed Martial Arts combat in the Circle of Truth. I get pitches about certain products, television ideas, etc. all the time, but I happened to take particular interest to Blair’s project. He has been developing the idea for the show over the past four years, has invested hundreds of thousands of dollars into the development of its platform, and is now recruiting athletes who can excel in pool, poker, and fighting to participate in the show’s first year of footage. Additionally, Blair is looking for some additional funding to help get his idea into the final stages of production. He is interested in obtaining an investor who is interested in the product and will take a nice return on investment. If interested, email me about the opportunity.

Blair’s most recent sponsor is Simonis, one of the billiard industry’s oldest companies and makers of pool and billiards cloth. Simonis is over three-hundred years old and still kicking it in the billiards industry. In a press release hosted by InsidePool Magazine, the President of Simonis, Ivan Lee, had this to say about Pool Poker & Pain,

I decided to sponsor [Blair Thein's] event to push the boundaries of pool as a universal game of nerves and skill and to see how it fares as one of the three disciplines combined to provide a new kind of entertainment and interest in our sport.

Best of all, once Blair’s idea gets the right investor and his show progresses, Dynasty has a few clients that will be involved in its first season.

I first of all want to congratulate you on such a great show. I don’t know if you know me but I used to run a wrestling organization called WCW. We were just like you in the mid 1990’s. Our sport was becoming more popular, but got trashed by WWF and Vince McMahon. People are starting to watch your sport, but it is dominated by UFC and Dana White. McMahon and White both alienate so many of their fighters it leaves us with the guys they don’t want anymore.

I really felt like you have the essence of WCW in your program right down to the Nitro Girls (actually, I think the girls you had were their illegitimate kids). I loved everything about it, not because it was good but because it just brought back so many memories. Even your lighting and camera work was substandard, just like ours. When you watch the UFC and WWE, they do such a great job presenting the fights, it feels professional. Who needs that?

The build-up to the fight was great. The ring entrances were epic. Phil Baroni was a nice touch. It was like when I brought in Roddy Piper and Mr. Perfect. You nailed bringing in a washed up fighter who has some personality. I kind of made that my signature move. Tito Ortiz is out there now if you wanted to sign him, it could be just like when I brought in Hulk. Tito used to be the biggest star too. I got a great way for you to set up a feud for him. Kimbo can’t really win fights against real competition as we found out last Saturday, so why not take one more step towards becoming the new WCW?

Sign Ortiz, and during his first fight have Kimbo ring-side. When Ortiz starts to get the best of his fight, have Kimbo hit him over the head with a steel chair. The fans give a great reaction to the steel chair shots, I can’t believe you haven’t used them yet! Then you have some promos to build up some beef before the fight itself. This particular angle is great. During their first fight, have Jenna Jameson turn on Ortiz, spiking his water or throwing salt in his eyes. Ok, I’m getting carried away with the whole Tito-Kimbo thing here but your only other option is to have him really fight MMA when he doesn’t even know how to defend himself on the ground. I could get you Disco Inferno’s number if you like. Whenever I needed one of my fighters to get a few more wins, I’d just throw him in with Disco.

My only other real advice is to enjoy it while it lasts. I had this moment you’re at right now. I did this NWO thing and had a good run beating the ratings of WWF. Really, our products just aren’t as good but it sure makes for a fun ride while we are out ahead. If you need someone to book fights, I’m actually available to work now. That’s it for me, but keep up the great work. WCW and Elite XC, like brothers separated at birth.

Love Always,

Eric Bishoff

Kimbo Slice is very dominating when it comes to knocking out schleps in his backyard, but that kind of fighting doesn’t go far in MMA. While Slice punished the 16-9 James Thompson, it was by no means an impressive performance. Slice may possess incredible punching power, but his lack of technique and conditioning will only get him by the bottom feeders of the Elite XC. After the fight Kimbo was quoted “I can take a little ground and pounding, I won’t be tapping out from that. I’m still a baby at the game, I’ve got a lot of room to grow. I won’t be smoking as much, because I’ve got a lot of training to do.” He won’t stop smoking, he just won’t smoke as much. Now that’s a champion.

This whole marketing tactic reminds me a lot of the movie King Kong. They capture this tremendous beast, and they plan to unveil it to the world in hopes of turning a huge profit. They have Kong on stage locked with indestructible chains, and while no one knows what to expect, the crowd is warned do not worry; Kong can not escape. Next thing you know Kong does escape,terrorizes Manhattan, and falls to his death.

While Kimbo Slice won’t terrorize Manhattan, he also won’t beat any real MMA fighters. He’ll be successful as long as he fights the joe schmos of the fight world. The time will come when Kimbo has to step out on that big stage, and beat the very best.

Slice, too, will fall.

All you have to do is predict the final combined score of Gm. 3 of the 2008 NBA Playoffs series between the Detroit Pistons and Boston Celtics, which will be held on Sat., May 24: at Detroit, 8:30 p.m. ET (ABC). Also include each team’s final score to be used as a tie breaker. Leave your predictions in the comments section below. The commentator with the closest prediction without going over the total score value will be awarded the DVD set.

Also be sure to check out the primetime network debut of ProElite’s EliteXC on Saturday, May 31 (9:00/11:00 pm ET/PT) on CBS.

Elite XC: Destiny DVD features:

GRACIE. SHAMROCK. Two legendary families on a collision course at EliteXC’s “Destiny”! Witness history in the making as Renzo Gracie and Frank Shamrock battle for glory and family pride in the EliteXC cage!

Also featured at EliteXC’s inaugural event: street-fighter Charles “Krazy Horse” Bennett versus young gun KJ Noons, hard-hitting Joey Villasenor versus Canada’s David “The Crow” Loiseau, Brazilian giant Antonio “Big Foot” Silva versus Hawaiian slugger “Cabbage” Correira, and a historical bout as Gina Carano (American Gladiators) takes on Julie Kedzie in the first ever televised female MMA match. Let the battle begin!

FIGHTCARD:

Renzo Gracie vs. Frank Shamrock

Gina Carano vs. Julie Kedzie

Charles “Krazy Horse” Bennett vs. Karl James Noons

Antonio “Big Foot” Silva vs. Wesley “Cabbage” Correira

“Smokin’ Joey Villasenor vs. David “The Crow” Loiseau

Elite XC: Renegade DVD features:

FROM THE STREET TO ELITE. See history in the making as street fighting legend and internet sensation Kimbo Slice makes his professional cage fighting debut at EliteXC Renegade! Set to take on Miami’s finest… hard-hitting slugger Bo “Red Rum” Cantrell.

Featuring: Brazilian giant Antonio “Big Foot” Silva versus top-ranked heavyweight Jonathan Wiezorek, former “Crocodile Hunter” bodyguard Kyle Noke versus Dr. Seth Kleinbeck, submission master Jake Shields versus Randy Couture-trained Mike Pyle, and to crown the first ever EliteXC lightweight champion, “Bad Boy” Nick Diaz goes head to head with young-gun KJ Noons. Let the battle begin!

FIGHT CARD:

Lightweight Championship Match: Nick Diaz vs. K.J. Noons

Kimbo Slice vs. Bo “Red Rum” Cantrell

Antonio “Big Foot” Silva vs. Jonathan Wiezorek

Jake Shields vs. Mike “Quicksand” Pyle

Kyle Noke vs. Dr. Seth Kleinbeck

ProElite, Inc., the title company to Elite XC, struck a deal last week with CBS on a multi year contract to air four live two-hour MMA events at a primetime time spot in each year of the contract. MMA content will also begin to be posted on CBSSports.com. The deal should put a lot of money into the pockets of the MMA producers and will be sure to bring a tremendous spike to the sport’s popularity. Apparently, IMG had its hand in the operation, joining ProElite with CBS.

But that was not the only huge MMA buzz circulating last week. The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) secured a title sponsor in Anheuser Busch. Expect to see a bunch of Bud Light signage in the octagon. Darren Rovell reports that the first time you will see Budweiser ads in UFC is May 24th at a Las Vegas event.

When a sport gains a big sponsor like Anheuser Busch and picks up a major network to broadcast its events in the same week, heads start turning.