Arlovski vs Nelson on October EliteXC Card

Bloody Elbow (link below) reported earlier today that there will be a one-fight cooperation between Affliction and EliteXC for the October 4th EliteXC CBS card. Andrei Arlovski, one of Affliction's biggest names and a former UFC champion, will be taking on Roy Nelson, formerly of the IFL. The match hasn't officially been confirmed as of yet, but apparently representatives from both sides are saying that a deal has been verbally agreed to by both sides.

This fight (if it happens) will give a substantial boost to a card that was in dire need of one. Ken Shamrock vs "Kimbo Slice" is more of a circus sideshow, and an Arlovski vs Nelson fight will give the card a legitimate heavyweight battle between two legitimate heavyweight fighters. This fight, along with the Jake Shields vs Paul Daley tilt, should help to bring over some of the more hardcore MMA fans who were likely planning on skipping this event.

Andrei Arlovski was originally supposed to fight on the October Affliction card in Las Vegas against Josh Barnett, but this card was postponed until January. With Arlovski fighing on the October EliteXC card now, it might be safe to assume that Barnett and Arlovski won't be fighting on the January Affliction card. This might open up the possibility of a Fedor vs Barnett fight for that card.

Arlovski has a lifetime professional record of 13-5-0 with nine knockouts. He has won his last four fights in a row, including an impressive performance over Ben Rothwell on the first Affliction card.

Roy Nelson has a lifetime professional record of 13-2-0, and has won his last five fights in a row, which all took place in the IFL. One of Nelson's losses came at the hands of Ben Rothwell in April of 2007.

It will be interesting to see what kind of impact this match has on the all-important ratings number for the October show.



Source: Bloody Elbow