EliteXC: Primetime was a mixed martial arts event promoted by Elite Xtreme Combat taking place on May 31, 2008 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

EliteXC: Primetime
PromotionElite Xtreme Combat
DateMay 31, 2008
VenuePrudential Center
CityNewark, New Jersey
Event chronology
EliteXC: Street Certified EliteXC: Primetime EliteXC: Return of the King

Background

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In February 2008, it was announced that EliteXC had reached an agreement with CBS to broadcast live shows on Saturday nights. This marked the first show of the agreement.[1] The main card aired live on CBS, marking the first time a MMA event aired in primetime on major American network television.[2]

As with earlier EliteXC events, the preliminary card aired for free online at Proelite.com.[3]

Results

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Main card (CBS)
Weight class Method Round Time Notes
Heavyweight Kimbo Slice def. James Thompson TKO (punches) 3 0:38
Middleweight Robbie Lawler (c) vs. Scott Smith No Contest 3 3:26 [a]
Catchweight (144 lbs) Gina Carano def. Kaitlin Young TKO (doctor stoppage) 2 3:00 [b]
Middleweight Joey Villasenor def. Phil Baroni TKO (punches) 1 1:11
Heavyweight Brett Rogers def. Jon Murphy KO (punch) 1 1:01
Preliminary card
Lightweight Chris Liguori def. Jim Bova TKO (cut) 2 4:31
Heavyweight Carlton Haselrig def. Carlos Moreno TKO (corner stoppage) 1 5:00 [c]
Lightweight Matt Makowski def. Nick Serra TKO (Retirememt) 2 3:57 [d]
Bantamweight Wilson Reis def. Justin Robbins Submission (rear-naked choke) 1 4:06
Bantamweight James Jones def. Calvin Kattar Submission (rear-naked choke) 1 4:49
Bantamweight Zach Makovsky def. André Soares Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–26, 29–26) 3 5:00
Bantamweight Joe Sampieri def. Mike Groves TKO (punches) 1 4:58
  1. ^ For the Middleweight Championship; Lawler inadvertently poked Smith in the eye.[4]
  2. ^ The ringside physician stopped the bout between rounds 2 and 3.
  3. ^ Moreno's corner stopped the bout between rounds 2 and 3.
  4. ^ Serra refused to get up from the ground, resulting in the referee ending the fight.

[5]

Television ratings and coverage

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In terms of ratings, the show averaged 4.85 million viewers and peaked during the main event at 6.51 million viewers,[6] making it the most watched MMA show in television history until UFC on Fox: Velasquez vs. Dos Santos.

However, not all CBS stations carried the program at the scheduled time. At least five – WBNS-TV in Columbus, Ohio, KXJB-TV in Fargo, North Dakota and three stations in Montana – aired a telethon to benefit the Children's Miracle Network instead.[7] All those stations aired the EliteXC card early the next morning. Also, WFMY-TV in Greensboro, North Carolina and the surrounding Triad area refused to air the program because they disliked the sport – it was passed on to a low-powered independent station, WGSR-LP.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "EliteXC expected to announce deal with CBS". MMA Junkie. 2008-02-27. Archived from the original on 2008-03-02. Retrieved 2008-02-27.
  2. ^ "UFC Not the First on Network TV, but Can It Learn From Others' Mistakes?". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  3. ^ "Report: EliteXC "Saturday Night Fights" prelims to air online". MMA Junkie. 2008-04-28. Archived from the original on 2013-10-13. Retrieved 2013-10-13.
  4. ^ "CBS "EliteXC: Primetime" Saturday Night Fights Live Results and Updates". bloodyelbow.com. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  5. ^ "EliteXC: Primetime". sherdog.com. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  6. ^ "CBS scores with initial ratings for EliteXC's "Saturday Night Fights"". mmajunkie.com. Archived from the original on 2013-11-10. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  7. ^ See our works Archived 2008-06-02 at the Wayback Machine
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