History will be made Saturday night May 31st in Newark, New jersey as EliteXC and CBS have teamed up for the first ever nationally televised Mixed Martial Arts event. Ironically, the fighters on this particular card will show very little “Martial Arts”. Considering the main event will pit an “internet street fighter” (Kimbo Slice) against a former debt collector (James Thompson) I don’t think we’ll be seeing any slick jiu-jitsu moves on display. That said, I do believe CBS will get huge ratings (I know I’ll be watching) because who doesn’t like a good knockout?Ordinarily I like to give a little insight (for what it’s worth) as to why? Or how? A particular fighter is going to win. With this event it’s a safe bet they will all end in a (T)KO. I could break down each fighter’s strength and weakness but they’re all very similar (above average strikers, not really great at anything else) In fact the most well rounded fighter on this card is Gina Carano. If you have never seen a Carano fight, you’re in for a treat. And No! I’m not just talking about her appearance, this girl can throw down! Ok, she looks good too!I’m not sure this is the best group of fighters to showcase MMA to the country though, not to take anything away from them, they’re all very good at what they do. My hope is the “uneducated viewer” doesn’t see this and think its just boxing with smaller gloves. Let’s face it there are no BJ Penn’s or George St.Pierre’s on this card. Nevertheless we should at least be entertained, say what you will about Kimbo but he does get the fans on their feet. Robbie Lawler and Scott Smith always put on a good show and let’s not forget “The New York Badass” Phil Baroni, (I swear this guy could have been in Pro Wresting). So even though I feel guilty for some reason I’m still looking forward to these fights. Sorry Dana but FREE, LIVE, fights trumps reruns of Chuck Liddell any day!My guess on these fights is any ones? Everyone has KO power, so it’s just a matter of who lands it first. Here’s who I think will.1) Kimbo Slice vs. James Thompson = Kimbo2) Robbie Lawler vs. Scott Smith = Smith3) Gina Carano vs. Kaitlin Young = Carano4) Phil Baroni vs. Joey Villasenor = Villasenor5) Brett Rogers vs. Jon Murphy = Rogers
