EliteXC Needs Tito Ortiz Now More Than Ever

A few things are apparent after the first edition of EliteXC "Saturday Night Fights" last night on CBS:

1. The ratings for the event were strong enough that CBS will definitely continue airing the show. According to the Wrestling Observer, the show did a 2.7 rating, peaking at 4.7 for the Kimbo Slice - James Thompson match. If you include the half-hour overrun (which included the Slice vs. Thompson fight), this overall ratings number will likely rise as high as 3.0 - 3.3. As the Wrestling Observer states, this number isn't astronomical, but a definite success.

2. EliteXC can not continue to base their promotion around "Kimbo Slice". Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson was exposed last night in his fight against James Thompson, scoring a controversial third round TKO victory. He was clearly behind in the fight until the referee made his controversial decision to stop the fight. "Kimbo" was a great way to hype the first show on CBS, but people will not continue to tune in if he continues to put on sub-par performances. James Thompson was the closest thing to a "real" opponent that Slice has ever had, and he nearly lost. As it stands right now, the entire promotion would likely fail if "Slice" loses his next fight.

3. EliteXC needs some more marketable talent. Who are the two biggest names in EliteXC right now? Probably Gina Carano and Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson. Carano didn't make weight, and Ferguson was humiliated in front of a live national audience (he was booed out of the arena). EliteXC needs some more "name" talent, and they need it fast.

So where does this leave us?

Clearly EliteXC has to go out and make a big splash in the free agent market, or else they will risk watching their ratings (and promotion) go down the toilet.

Who are the big free agents out there right now?

Fedor Emelianenko is one, but he comes with an extremely high price tag (million plus per fight) and really doesn't draw that well. PPV's that he has recently headlined have not drawn that many buys. I can't see EliteXC shelling out a million and a half dollars per fight to have Fedor fight for them.

Randy Couture? He may think that he's a free agent, but he's still under contract to the UFC. Not going to happen.

How about Tito Ortiz?

Ortiz seems to be the logical choice here. He just recently cut ties with the UFC and is now a free agent. He may be getting older, but he is still a big draw and extremely popular with casual MMA fans. Fans would be tuning in not only to see him fight, but to hear what he has to say about his former employers (more specifically, Dana White). He is a former world champion (held the light heavyweight belt in the UFC from April 2000 to September of 2003) and has a fair amount of "star power". With Tito Ortiz, you get a controversial interview, you get ringside shots of Jenna Jameson in the audience, and you get a fighter that can still draw.

In my opinion, EliteXC MUST sign Ortiz. It's a no-brainer. He is the only logical choice for the promotion right now, and the only available fighter in the world right now who could deliver "Kimbo Slice" type of ratings. Tito Ortiz and his team know this, and his asking price just went way, way up after the "Saturday Night Fights" debacle. Expect EliteXC to make Ortiz a substantial offer over the upcoming months (if they haven't already done so).

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