For the second time in just a few months, a substantial mixed martial arts promotion has closed up shop. First it was the IFL, which was hit by the guillotine in August, and now we have Pro Elite biting the dust with its top MMA promotion, EliteXC.
In this article, we analyze where they should go and speculate on the most likely scenarios.
No-brainers
For a good portion of former Pro Elite athletes, their future paths seem traced out. Dream lightweight tournament MVP Eddie Alvarez is likely going to return to the Japanese promotion that helped his star rise this spring and summer. Potential fights against Joachim Hansen or Shinya Aoki on New Year’s Eve put the Philadelphia fighter’s continued run in Japan in concrete terms.
Following him to the FEG-controlled promotion should be his countrymen Nick Diaz and Joey Villasenor and former Pride fighter Murilo "Ninja" Rua. In the medium term, the future of former Cage Rage welterweight champion Paul Daley could be with Dream as well. First, though, a bidding war between U.K. promotions could break out for the services of the explosive kickboxer from Nottingham, England.
Choicest parts
While you might question whether Pro Elite is good with money after losing more than $55 million in the past two years, the company did spend a large portion of its means on the creation and subsequent promotion of its star fighters. As a result, crown jewels like titleholders Robbie Lawler, Antonio Silva and Karl James Noons should be at the top of the wish list for every aspiring promotion.
With good connections through their camps, EliteXC middleweight champion Robbie Lawler (a member of Matt Hughes’ HIT Squad) and top light heavyweight contender Rafael Feijão (training partner of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Anderson Silva) are well placed to land a gig in the UFC. Especially the hard-hitting Lawler could make an instant challenger to Anderson Silva’s middleweight gold.
Although they have excellent contacts with pretty much every major promotion around the globe, Antonio Silva of American Top Team and Benji Radach could be destined for rising Japanese promotion Sengoku. With lots of heavyweight talent already under contract and the Japanese’s known soft spot for musclemen and supersized characters, World Victory Road could also be the future employer for charismatic brawler Kimbo Slice. It's also possible he could turn up on CBS again as part of a rumored Affliction-CBS partnership.
EliteXC featherweight champion Wilson Reis and KJ Noons -- who was the promotion’s lightweight champion before being stripped of his title -- are also much sought-after free agents. At this time the playground for 145-pounders is the WEC, and it could present the 23-year-old Reis with all kinds of intriguing matchups -- against former IFL kingpin Wagnney Fabiano, Leonard Garcia or superstar Urijah Faber.
Noons, on the other hand, seems best destined for Affliction. With the imminent union of the popular clothing company and boxing promoter Golden Boy to put on joint shows with both mixed martial arts and boxing fights on the same card, the 25-year-old could push both his MMA and boxing careers.
Open cases
Of course the downfall of Pro Elite may not be to everybody’s advantage. A couple of renowned fighters could very well have to take a backward step professionally, making them worse off in terms of salary and media exposure. Or they could break through bigger than ever before.
Perhaps the most prominent case is Jake Shields. Even though the EliteXC welterweight champion had pretty much outgrown the promotion in terms of ability, EliteXC still did a good job of finding him fights that made him look very good and had him climb up the rankings. Performance-wise, Shields belongs to the UFC, no doubt about that.
Zuffa passed up on the opportunity to sign the submission specialist on multiple occasions in the past three years, however, which makes it seem questionable whether the UFC owners would move for him now. From a solely sporting perspective, Shields has earned the right to go head to head with Thiago Alves, Diego Sanchez, Jon Fitch and company. Especially the bout against Sanchez is one hardcore fans have been demanding for years.
Should Zuffa not make him a contract offer again, it is imaginable that the 29-year-old will follow one of his Cesar Gracie teammates either to Dream or to Strikeforce. He could also go to Affliction, whom he has reportedly talked with in the past.
The Kimbo-conquering Seth Petruzelli could also be stuck in a peculiar position. Who is going to give the “Silverback” the opportunity to capitalize on his big win over the notorious brawler? While the UFC could make him an offer, it is hard to imagine Petruzelli making a bigger impact there than in his first stint with the promotion in 2006-2007, which saw him go 0-2. Another scenario could see Petruzelli following Kimbo wherever Kimbo goes.
Ladies' choice
Last but not least there is the EliteXC women’s division, which was arguably one of the strongest in all of MMA. Where are centerpiece Gina Carano and the army of other ladies gunning for her going to be plying their trade in the future? There are strong rumors right now that either Affliction and/or CBS will snag them up.
If this isn’t the case, it will likely be back to smaller shows for the likes of Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos, Julie Kedzie, Shayna Baszler, Tonya Evinger and Rosi Sexton.