Released on = February 23, 2007, 10:01 am

Press Release Author = Judy Mulkern

Industry = Small Business

Press Release Summary = Jim Hughes and Royce Gracie Brazilian Jiu Jitsu congratulate
Renzo

Press Release Body = On Saturday night, the Showtime Network broadcast EliteXC
[Elite Extreme Combat] ended in controversy with the disqualification of Frank
Shamrock in the main event. For fans of Mixed Martial Arts [MMA], this event was a
historic event. The card included the first non-payperview televised women\'s fight,
and the first five fights of the under card were broadcast on the Internet for free.
Unfortunately the event was marred by controversy in the main event. Frank Shamrock
[Submission fighting specialist] vs Renzo Gracie [Gracie Brazilian Jiu Jitsu expert]
was supposed to be the finale to a 10 fight card.
As the fight progressed, Royce Gracie\'s cousin Renzo was able to take Shamrock down
a number of times. The fight appeared to be going in favor of Gracie through the
first round. In the second round, a warning was given to Shamrock for striking the
back of the head [strikes to the back of the head are illegal]. Gracie was on top of
Shamrock controlling the position while Shamrock attempted to use knee strikes from
the bottom. The first questionable strike was clearly to the head [an illegal strike
while on the ground], and the second questionable strike was clearly to the back of
the head and neck [strikes to the back of the head and spine are illegal]. Herb
Dean, the referee, and no stranger to controversy, called a stop to the bout, giving
Gracie an opportunity to recover from the illegal blow. Gracie was unable to
continue due to a concussion, and the official decision was a Renzo Gracie win,
because of disqualification. The sport of MMA has evolved, since its inception and
rules have been implemented to ensure fighter safety.
After the fight, Shamrock said "I thought we came here to fight" and alluded to the
idea that he was unaware of the rules. It seemed as though he was minimizing his
inability to adhere to the standardized rules while casting aspersions on the
reputation of a proven warrior. While there have been rumors that Renzo \"faked\" the
injury, it should be obvious from his history that this is not the case. He fought a
who\'s who of great fighters under standard rules for the respective event, and
accepting wins and losses with the same graciousness regardless of the outcome. A
more likely reason for the fouls, and resultant disqualification might be that
Gracie was dominating Shamrock on the ground and rather than risk a loss to a
Gracie, a disqualification was preferable. Royce Gracie commented about his cousins
fight: "Wow! Renzo is my hero, he has taken three fights with top opponents in the
last 6 months, who does that?"
Jim Hughes, gracie-jiu-jitsu.com, Royce Gracie\'s representative in New England is
responsible for 10 Royce Gracie Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Self Defense Academys throughout
New England and Puerto Rico explained: in the early days there were no rules, Royce
beat Ken Shamrock rather easily. At their second match, the fight process was
interrupted when Royce and Ken were stood back up. This gave Ken a slight advantage.
Frank had an advantage over the Gracie\'s in this bout where they would be stood back
up after a short period of being on the ground. You think Frank would appreciate the
rules and abide by them since they favor his strengths. If knees were allowed, Renzo
could have easily reigned down knees and won by knock out." Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Blue
belt and BJJ enthusiast Sam Mayville, founder of financialleadership.com, says this
about the fight "I am outraged by Shamrock\'s blatant disobedience of the rules, and
his comments after the fight only show his lack of sportsmanship, Renzo is clearly
the better fighter. On the positive side Showtime did a great job on the venue."


Web Site = http://www.gracie-jiu-jitsu.com

Contact Details = Jim Hughes and Royce Gracie
www.gracie-jiu-jitsu.com, www.roycegraciejiujitsu.com
41 Crossroads Plaza #300
West Hartford CT 06117
860 233 3000