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Gina (Conviction) Carano made weight for Saturday night’s EliteXC: Heat, but just barely. The star female mixed martial artist, who missed weight by 3.5 pounds before her last fight, needed three attempts on the scale Friday afternoon and had to drop her clothes at one point before she hit the target of 141 pounds.
Her opponent Kelly Kobold, who some sites reported her making negative comments about Carano should she not make weight, also weighed in at 141 pounds, though on her first attempt. The two are competing at a 140-pound weight limit, but fighters are allowed to be one pound over for non-title bouts.
Carano, who is also known as Crush from the new American Gladiators show, promised her weight wouldn’t be a problem for this fight. But she must have made organizers and fans at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Fla., worry when she first hit the scale at 142.75 pounds. After removing some clothes and stepping back on with a towel covering her from the crowd, she was still at 142.5. She dropped more clothes and was able to make 141 on her third attempt, Sherdog.com first reported.
The showcase women’s bout is one of the featured fights on the main card for EliteXC’s third prime-time event on CBS, and one on which the organizers are banking for the success of the promotion. In fact, it is one of two female matchups on the card — Cristiane (Cyborg) Santos, who could potentially face Carano next, takes on Yoko Takahashi in an undercard affair that could end up making the televised portion of the show.
"I am looking forward to an amazing match," Carano said prior to Friday’s weigh-ins. "I would like to thank CBS and EliteXC for continuing to give us the platform to show what we can do. Having two women’s fights on this card says a lot."
Added Kobold: "Thanks to CBS and EliteXC, I do not have to explain to everyone what I do. The exposure women’s MMA is getting has been fantastic and has opened a lot of doors for us. We are legitimate fighters.
"I would be very disappointed and surprised if this wasn’t the best fight of the night."
Everyone else on Saturday’s main card made weight on his first attempt. EliteXC’s other star Kevin (Kimbo Slice) Ferguson came in at 234.5 pounds, significantly over his veteran opponent Ken Shamrock, who weighed in at 206.5. Those were both well below that of Roy Nelson and Andrei Arlovski, also meeting on the main portion and weighing 262.75 and 240.75, respectively.
The undressing by Carano wasn’t the only thing that provided fireworks on the afternoon. A small scuffle broke out between the main card combatants when Slice turned his back on Shamrock, who responded with a shove.
"Don’t turn your back on me," yelled the UFC Hall of Famer.
Tensions were probably ignited from comments made prior to the weigh-ins by Slice, who has garnered both popularity and criticism from his internet streetfighting videos made popular on sites such as YouTube.
"Ken’s fighting in Florida, which is no place for an old man," Slice said of the 44-year-old Shamrock. "I’m mentally prepared and ready to do it and represent the crib. I want to annihilate him and win by knockout, but if I win it on the ground, that is all good, too. I come from a bare-knuckle background, so fighting with gloves is like hitting with mittens.
Slice is recognized as one of the most dangerous strikers the sport had to offer. But he also has his detractors, who say he is one-dimensional and wouldn’t even be a featured fighter if it wasn’t for the viral internet phenomenon. He is well aware of the hurdles he faces.
"I work all the time on being an all-around fighter. I am very competitive by nature so I train very hard and have the best coaches (Bas Rutten and Randy Khatami). I am going to get criticized all the time, but I enjoy MMA and try to represent the sport the best way I can.
"I have kids. I want to be the best kind of example I can be."
Shamrock (25-13-2), one of the pioneers of mixed martial arts who also made a name for himself in professional wrestling, is on a five-fight losing streak and hasn’t won a match in over four years. But that didn’t stop him from launching barbs of his own at the very green Slice (3-0).
"Kimbo has gained a lot of notoriety, but, in my opinion, he doesn’t deserve it," Shamrock said. "Snap, crackle pop. I am going to walk across the ring, hit him on his ugly beard and break his leg."
Jake Shields (169.75, defending his EliteXC title for the first time also had to be separated from Paul Daley (170) when their post-weigh-in stare-down turned physical.
