FIGHT CARD ANNOUNCED AND TICKETS ON SALE NOW:FRANK SHAMROCK vs. RENZO GRACIE
EliteXC “DESTINY”
Legendary Fighters Headline Spectacular Fight Card
Feb. 10 at DeSoto County Civic Center in Southaven, MS
On SHOWTIME 10 p.m. ET/PT
LOS ANGELES (January 5, 2007) — Pro Elite (PELE.PK) announced the fight card for its first live EliteXCTM mixed martial arts (MMA) event featuring legendary middleweight Frank Shamrock versus Renzo Gracie of the first family of Brazilian Jujitsu making history on February 10, 2007 (10 p.m. ET/PT) from the Desoto Civic Center in Southaven, Mississippi. Tickets are on sale now at the DeSoto Civic Center Box Office and at Ticketmaster outlets, it was announced today by EliteXC President, Gary Shaw.
The main event of Shamrock vs. Gracie will be televised live on the leading premium television network SHOWTIME along with four undercard bouts including world-class fighters Antonio Silva, David Loiseau, Joey Villasenor, the next female MMA star Gina Carano, and more. Additional undercard fights will be streamed live beginning at 7 p.m. (ET) at EliteXC.com, a growing Internet destination for the MMA community.
“Because I promote boxing matches across the country, I know fans love a great fight. That is what Shamrock and Gracie will deliver,” said Shaw. “Shamrock and Gracie are royalty in this sport and this is a match-up that is long overdue. I am certain these athletes are primed for combat, and having these two leaders in the world of Mixed Martial Arts go to battle against each other on February 10th is truly Destiny.”
Shaw is the well-known event promoter who enters the world of Mixed Martial Arts for the first time with this fight. Shaw brings a high level of professionalism, great match-ups and years of promotional experience to the sport.
Shamrock, 34, of San Jose, Calif., has been looking for the right opportunity to make a noteworthy return to the sport. The five-time defending middleweight champion semi-retired from competition after defeating Tito Ortiz by submission in 1999 and has returned for just three fights since.
“Renzo is the Gracie I respect most. He is the Gracie I have always wanted to fight and come Feb. 10th, it will be our moment,” said Shamrock. “I always want to fight tough opponents. I want to fight guys who think they are tougher then me, so we can prove who the best in the world is.”
Gracie, who was recently featured on CBS’s 60 Minutes, is coming off a win over Carlos Newton in an IFL super fight last December. Gracie, originally from Rio de Janeiro now teaches and trains in New York City.
“It is a great pleasure for me to be part of such a great and history-making event,” said Gracie. “When EliteXC told me the whole plan for this organization and for this event, I could not decline. It is a great honor to be fighting Frank. I was afraid he was going to wait until I was too old to beat him.”
“We’re excited to be in this market where Southern hospitality reigns – but not in the cage”, said Shaw.
For more information, please visit EliteXC.com.
Fight Card
SHOWTIME Live Telecast (10 p.m. ET/PT)
Middleweight Frank Shamrock vs. Renzo Gracie
Heavyweight Antonio Silva vs. Welsey Correira “Cabbage”
Middleweight Joey Villasenor vs. David Loiseau
Lightweight Charles Bennett vs. KJ Noons
Women Gina Carano vs. TBD
Internet Live Broadcast of Undercard
Middleweight Seth Kleinbeck vs. Riki Fukuda
Heavyweight Bo Cantrell vs. Tim Persey
Lightweight Adriano Periera vs. Javier “Showtime” Vazquez
Welterweight Mike Pyle vs. Ross Ebanez
Lightweight Edson Berto vs. John Shackelford
(card subject to change)
Tickets are priced at
$25, $50, $75, $100, $125, $150, $175 and $250
About Pro Elite, Inc. (www.proeliteinc.com)
Pro Elite, Inc. is an entertainment and media company dedicated to producing world-class sporting events and empowering the participation of athletes and enthusiasts. Pro Elite, Inc. fosters the growth of the core principles of competition – Pride, Spirit, Honor and Sportsmanship. ProElite, Inc. owns the following brands and companies: EliteXCTM (mixed martial arts live event production), ProElite.com (online community that provides content and tools for martial arts enthusiasts), and LifeLogger (top-rated internet blogging site and mobile application developer).
About Showtime Networks Inc.
Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CBS Corporation, owns and operates the premium television networks SHOWTIME®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ and FLIX®, as well as the multiplex channels SHOWTIME® TOO™, SHOWTIME® SHOWCASE, SHOWTIME EXTREME®, SHOWTIME BEYOND®, SHOWTIME NEXT®, SHOWTIME WOMEN®, SHOWTIME FAMILYZONE® and TMC XTRA. SNI also offers SHOWTIME HD®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL HD™, SHOWTIME ON DEMAND™ and THE MOVIE CHANNEL ON DEMAND™. All SNI feeds provide enhanced sound using Dolby Digital 5.1. SNI is also an owner and manager of SUNDANCE CHANNEL, a venture of NBC Universal, Robert Redford and SNI. SNI also manages Smithsonian Networks, a joint venture between SNI and the Smithsonian Institution. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscribers on a pay-per-view basis through SHOWTIME® PPV.