MIXED MARTIAL ARTS
Slice cut down by fill-in in opening seconds
Miami's Kimbo Slice was pummeled by Seth Petruzelli, who was brought in when original opponent Ken Shamrock was deemed unable to fight because of an injury.
BY GARRETT W. HYLTON
ghylton@MiamiHerald.com
The legend of Kimbo Slice is broken.
The sensation from Miami suffered his first loss in an officially sanctioned mixed martial arts fight when he lost by technical knockout at the hands of Seth Petruzelli 14 seconds into the bout at BankAtlantic Center.
Slice was supposed to fight mixed martial arts legend Ken Shamrock, but Shamrock was injured during training before the match and was unable to fight.
Petruzelli was scheduled to fight Aaron Rosa on the undercard, but accepted a shot at Slice when Shamrock couldn't go.
''He obviously didn't need to take the fight,'' Petruzelli said. ``When you get a fight, usually you get five or six weeks notice to train for that specific person. He's a warrior for stepping up at the last minute; I did the same. If he ever wanted a rematch, I'd 100 percent give it to him.''
He earned the biggest win of his career in the main event of CBS EliteXC Saturday Night Fights in front of a network television audience and a hometown crowd of more than 7,400.
He caught Slice in the head with a knee after Slice rushed him to open the bout and then delivered blows to Slice's head until the referee called the match.
Petruzelli jumped and pumped his fists while Slice remained dazed on the mat and a crowd that included Hulk Hogan and his pop star daughter, Brooke, let out a collective gasp.
''I didn't really feel too, too, too bad about it,'' said Slice, who did not take questions but gave a statement. ``This is an opportunity for everybody to be part of something big. A rising tide lifts all ships.
``At the beginning of the night, we didn't know who this guy was. Now everybody knows who he is.''
Slice's original opponent, Shamrock, was supposed to offer him a legitimate opponent.
Despite being 44 years old and losing in the first round of five consecutive fights, Shamrock is one of the sport's most recognizable names. Dubbed ''the world's most dangerous man'' for his submission expertise, Shamrock has a 26-13-2 record and is in the UFC Hall of Fame.
Petruzelli is a former UFC light-heavyweight champion, but he doesn't have a résumé to match Shamrock's.
Shamrock apparently took a head butt during a training session Saturday and sustained a laceration that required stitches. According to a news release, Dr. Alan Fields of the Florida State Athletic Commission examined the eye and deemed Shamrock unable to fight.
The crowd at BankAtlantic Center, waiting to watch the hometown Slice, booed loudly when the change was announced.
Shamrock helped build hype for the fight by guaranteeing victory in the preceding weeks and then shoving Slice at Friday's weigh-in.
Despite his short career, Slice has become a central figure in MMA's march to the mainstream sports world.
Slice first became a sensation on YouTube, where the popularity of his unsanctioned street fights exploded.
UNDERCARD
Other than Slice, the most popular fighter of the night was Gina Carano, who is ''Crush'' on NBC's American Gladiators and has been featured on Maxim.com. Carano took a three-round decision over Kelly Kobold to push her record to 7-0.
Also on the undercard, Andrei Arlovski knocked out Roy Nelson in the second round, and Benji Radach beat Murilo Rua with a second-round knockout of his own.
Jake Shields also had a big fight, retaining the EliteXC welterweight championship after beating Paul Daley with an arm bar in the second round.
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