Petruzelli in center of Elite XC storm
By Dan Wetzel, Yahoo! Sports Oct 7, 5:55 pm EDT
Seth Petruzelli, after going from nobody to national celebrity for punching out Kimbo Slice, went on the radio Monday. He delivered a shot potentially more powerful than anything he threw Saturday.
He said his original plan against Kimbo was to get him to the ground and exploit his weak wrestling skills and submission defense. It made more sense than trading punches with a street brawler who outweighed him by 30 pounds. Petruzelli said he changed his mind though.
"The promoters kind of hinted to me, and they gave me the money to stand and trade with him," he told "The Monsters in Orlando" radio show. "They didn't want me to take him down, let's just put it that way. It was worth my while to try to stand up and punch with him."
The quote spoke of an attempt to if not rig the fight, then make it favorable for Slice, the main star and cash cow of the EliteXC promotion.
Such an action would be a disaster for mixed martial arts as it attempts to convince mainstream audiences it isn't scripted pro wrestling or a farcical Toughman contest. If EliteXC gave Petruzelli money to fight one way, it would open itself to all sorts of investigations.
The allegation rocketed around the country, making bigger post-fight news than pictures of Petruzelli in drag (more on that later. Needless to say, it's been a wild couple of days for him).
EliteXC's Jared Shaw immediately denied the fixing charge to Yahoo! Sports and fellow executive Jeremy Lappen did the same to Sherdog.com.
Tuesday, Petruzelli said he got the story confused.
"What that meant was they offer a knockout bonus, submission bonuses, fight of the night bonuses," Petruzelli said in a phone interview. "I think it just got misconstrued. I wanted to have an exciting fight and I wanted the knock out bonus so I wanted to keep it standing."
So did they say anything about keeping the fight off the ground?
"They just said, 'we want to see an exciting fight no matter what happens.' I took it as I wanted the knockout bonus."
That explanation won't appease some conspiracy theorists, if only because the original statement sounds more believable.
Then there is the general distrust of the organization, where the cards often seem more show than sport. Although the last two televised cards were mostly strong, memories remain of exploding cauliflower ears, silly introductions and using the popular but unproven Slice as a headliner.
Besides, it's no secret Elite XC had a vested interest in Kimbo winning. Jared Shaw even charged the cage and screamed at the referee that Slice had been hit illegally. Shaw has since apologized for that reaction.
"He spent a lot of money to build up Kimbo," Petruzelli said. "If I saw one of my guys I spent millions on getting his face pounded I'd get upset also."
Then there's CBS, which gave up any pretense of journalism in favor of unseemly propaganda.
The network previously embarrassed itself by comparing Kimbo to great sports figures such as Tiger Woods. This time, Gus Johnson's declaration that Petruzelli's triumph was "the most incredible victory in the history of mixed martial arts" was laughably ridiculous.
The worst was Johnson repeating the party line that Slice didn't hesitate to switch opponents from an injured Ken Shamrock. That was simply a lie. Slice demanded a cash bonus on top of his $500,000 payout just to get in the cage with Petruzelli, according to Lappen.
"We made it up to him," Lappen said.
For a stretch, the replacement wasn't going to be Petruzelli but Frank Shamrock, Ken's brother. Frank said Saturday he was even cleared by the Florida commission to fight. Lappen said he didn't think that was true, although he did admit there were discussions with Frank.
CBS was certainly privy to that information since Frank was at the arena as its color commentator. It was never mentioned on the air though. Frank told Yahoo! Sports Saturday it was CBS officials who blocked him from taking on Slice.
When the broadcasts have no objectivity, perspective or news value and the promoters are openly rooting for one fighter and not the other, how can anyone believe anything these guys say or do?
For his part, Petruzelli said he wishes he hadn't made the original comment. He swears no one from EliteXC has called him and pressured a retraction.
The entire thing has put a damper on his sudden surge of fame. That and the pictures on the internet of him in drag, of course.
"Man, people aren't going to let those down, are they?" he said. "Everything in costumes was (for) Halloween. I always dress in crazy stuff. All the leather and that sort of stuff, it's all done in fun.
"I want to put that to rest right now. I'm officially 100 percent not gay," he said. "I've been happily married for two years and been with her for five years."
He laughed at the entire speculation. He laughed at a lot of things Tuesday. And who can blame him? Last week he was a part-time fighter who was competing on the non-televised undercard for a four-figure payout. His main job was owner of a Smoothie King stand.
Now he's an overnight celebrity after 4.59 million people watched him TKO Kimbo.
He just wishes he could do it again. He's begging for a rematch and the big payout it would bring.
"But I don't think he was receptive to that," Petruzelli said. "Kimbo doesn't want the rematch. He wants no part of that."
He said that dropping Slice with a single short right despite leaning back on one foot was no fluke and he can do it again.
While Kimbo had a reputation for taking punches from his YouTube videos - he often let guys take free shots that didn't faze him - Petruzelli said there's a big difference between a professional fighter and those dudes.
"The thing is, they are arm-punching," Petruzelli said. "It's like little flicks with their arms. There's no weight behind it, there's no turning of the hips. It's how you throw it and where you throw it.
"If we fight again, the same thing will happen."
EliteXC should make it happen. Only this time demand its executives stay seated and its broadcast partner at least attempt professionalism.
Everyone could use the dose of credibility.
I'm not sure if this is now a cover up, or if someone just misuderstood, but it is interesting to think about.
I guess I should say that you should be glad I didn't put up here the 1st test picture I took, that would be much more then risque, think art voice vs the paper .
This was a pleasant surprise. I like this publicly risque side of you, Peter. You look comfortable and confident.
although I think I blushed at first.
holy cannoli batman!
Thanks. Even if some of the reason why I won't be using that as my costume were not in effect, I don't know if I could really do that [I think I could maybe]. In ones room it isn't so tough, but girls/ladies are brutal (they are worse then us guys I think). I think that is one of the reasons why there are so many ladies who do porn and have cams on line and stuff. There is them in a room by the selves or someone filming and then it is put on the internet and there is that kinda distance, it isn't like they are thinking well my Teacher might see this. On a side note I used to get this catalog (not sure how) called Absolute Male it had all kinds of cool clothes and leather pants. I never ordered anything, I could tell that the clothes were made for the body builder/ pro athlete / model/ wide shoulder guys. I didn't think they would look right on me. So no nudest this year now to decide what to go as maybe a Vampire of some kind. I wish there was some way to dress slutty with out being creppy but I don't know that there is for a guy.
Hahaha! You kill me, Peter. I give you credit man, that takes some serious brass stones. *drum roll*
(e:Paul), I think the medical term for the old nudist boobs is "National Geographic Boobs" but someone in the industry is going to have to back me up on that.
(e:fing) I think that what you said about the fantasy is true at least some. For some women dressing up slutty is a way to let that side out of them and use the holiday as an excuse. Maybe they want to really where some out fit made out of leather and that ties up but they don't know how to do that in there real life. Often there are two sides to people. Me for example I'm a little bit of an exhibinest but there is a side of me that is shy also. In terms of the flasher maybe it was really his stuff some guys might really be that big (I didn't see it so I could tell how big it was and compare it to porn). I don't think there is anything wrong with having a costume be part of some fantasy as long as it isn't one you really do, because then it really isn't dressing up.
(e:tinypliny) If I where to go as a nudest (not going to) it would be changing in a costume. The costume would be the hat and sunglasses and the paper covering me for those who dodn't want to see my junk that would be the costume. But it would also be a costume because (or at least to my knowledge, but it would have been possible and still is possible) no one on (e:strip) has seen me naked so it would be a form that they haven't seen me in.
"change into that costume"
That would technically be an incorrect statement in this case. :)
It is almost bed time for me so I will ad this quickly. One of the other problems with the nudest Idea is that I'm young and thin. Granted I have never been to a really nudest colony but the little bit of footage I have seen are people are older and heavy and not the model type. If I could do some fat suit and some fake penis and ball type thing then maybe the costume would work.
(e:imk2) Yes sometimes I am a little crazy but really being crazy would be to change into that costume at a crowded party and sit in the foyer.
(e:Paul) thanks I didn't know there was such a thing as perky nuts (they may look better in the picture then in real life not sure really)
(e:Jason) and (e:Joshua) that is all me. In terms of the warning I think it is only fair. I think that even if not nudity if someone is talking about something and there will be pictures there should be a warning. Say I'm eating dinner and you are talking about some surgery you had I don't all of a sudden want to see pictures from that, or say someone is talking about Self Suckin and that John Valby song and the joke in clerks about the guy who broke his neck that is one thing but then all of a sudden some dude is trying to blow himself, that is a lot different than just talking about the man from Nantucket (over even crazier a lady boy trying it).
So now I have to decide what else to go as. There are other costumes that wouldn't work, like the manager of Dethklok.
I was at a Halloween Party one year where an older man was dressed up as a flasher. He had a trench coat and some fake junk that was way to big to be human. I got the feeling though that it was more of a fantasy of his then a Halloween costume.
holy bejesus. you is craaazay!
nice nuts. Far to perky to have belong to a seasoned nudist. Old nudists, serious ones, seem to always have nuts that hang down to their knees. The older the nudest, the closer they hang to your knees, LOL. Just check out any nudist camp full of old men and you would see what I mean. It's the man equivalent of the saggy old lady nudist breasts which ate equally as droopy.
I hope those testicles are part of the newspaper prop.
Thanks for the warning!