FanHouse GusJohnson

On Saturday night, Strikeforce put on its first MMA show of 2009, and on Sunday night Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker talked to me about how he thinks the first show went and where he sees Strikeforce going in 2009.

Among the topics we discussed were the success of Nick Diaz, the future of Frank Shamrock, the weight of Cris Cyborg (and her likely future fight with Gina Carano), as well as the possibility that big names in MMA including Kimbo Slice, Tito Ortiz, Royce Gracie and Fedor Emelianenko could fight in the Strikeforce cage. The full interview is below.

Strikeforce will put on its first MMA event of the year Saturday night at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, and the fights will air on Showtime.

But watching on TV isn't the only way to see the fights if you won't be in the arena. It might not even be the best way.

It appears that San Diego Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson and EliteXC fighter Kimbo Slice may have more in common than just working out together in this video:

Tomlinson and Kimbo could also both have their competitions called by Gus Johnson during the first weekend in October.

It appears that San Diego Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson and EliteXC fighter Kimbo Slice may have more in common than just working out together in this video:

Tomlinson and Kimbo could also both have their competitions called by Gus Johnson during the first weekend in October.

EliteXC brought mixed martial arts to the masses by televising five fights on CBS Saturday night. But while the show was a ratings success, many MMA fans have criticized it.

Some fans say the fights were stopped too early. Some fans say the main event between Kimbo Slice and James Thompson was more freak show than fight. Some fans say the quality of the action was inferior to the quality of fights that UFC puts out.

So was the EliteXC show good for the sport? I interviewed EliteXC Live Events President Gary Shaw on Monday, and that was my first question.

Mixed martial arts referee Dan Miragliotta was harshly criticized by CBS announcer Gus Johnson on Saturday night for stopping the Kimbo Slice vs. James Thompson fight.

Since then he's been more than harshly criticized -- some MMA bloggers have even suggested that the fight was fixed.

In an interview with Cokin and Cofield on ESPN Radio in Las Vegas, Miragliotta defended his decision. Saying the criticism of the stoppage comes from "13-year-old kids on the web that never fought a day in their life," Miragliotta said his reason for stopping the fight was simple:

"Why I stopped the fight was the uppercut-cross-hook-uppercut combination that knocked him on his ass -- well, not on his ass, but it knocked him into the fence. I looked into his eyes. I saw the blank stare, I knew he was out of it, I stopped the fight, and when I grabbed him to tell him the fight was over he still thought he was fighting Kimbo. He tried to take a swing at me and didn't realize where he was at."

Although I have mixed feelings about the overall quality of the mixed martial arts show that EliteXC and CBS put on Saturday night, I am glad that the reputation of Gus Johnson as one of America's best sports broadcasters emerged unscathed. Here's how Johnson called the end of the Kimbo Slice-James Thompson fight:

Johnson showed his trademark enthusiasm for the event, but when referee Dan Miragliotta stepped in and stopped the fight, awarding the bout to Slice, Johnson shouted "Terrible stoppage! Terrible! Terrible! ... James Thompson was not ready to go down! Horrendous!"

Then Johnson stepped into the cage with Slice for the post-fight interview and noted twice that the stoppage was "controversial." There were concerns that CBS would sugarcoat its coverage of EliteXC, but Johnson didn't let that happen.

CBS broadcaster Gus Johnson is much loved by sports fans for his enthusiastic approach to college basketball and the NFL. But it sounds like he's even more enthusiastic about mixed martial arts. USA Today reports:

"I firmly believe it's the sport of the future," says Gus Johnson, who calls CBS' NFL and NCAA college basketball games and will work MMA's broadcast-network debut on CBS on Saturday. "The kids love it. And they're walking in a cage, so there's something very primal about it. The cage itself is a great piece of theater." ...

Johnson, taking jujitsu to help understand MMA, calls MMA "a complex chess match." The key, he says, will be to tell novices "what goes on when the fight hits the ground. ... What America has to understand is the guy on the bottom - especially if he's a jujitsu master - is in the better position."

I think getting Johnson on the EliteXC broadcasts was one of the smartest things that CBS did. Johnson brings instant credibility, his presence makes clear that this is a legitimate sporting event, and he makes his passion obvious. I'll enjoy listening to him call Saturday night's fights.

Earlier this month Viacom honcho Sumner Redstone said that he thought his network, CBS, was making a mistake by showing Elite XC. That seemed odd since it had been on Showtime for a while, Viacom owns that as well, and even odder with today's news that Gus Johnson will be doing play by play for the partnership's May 31st debut.

Calling the NFL and, especially, NCAA basketball for CBS has made Johnson one of the most popular sports announcers in the country. His excitability and professionalism will add a lot to the broadcast and, as the company's press release notes, he's studied martial arts himself. One potential problem with the move of MMA into a more mainstream spotlight was the scoffing that usually comes when they pay attention. Johnson will help them avoid that fate.

He'll be joined on the broadcast by veteran fighter Frank Shamrock and Showtime's normal broadcasting team of Mauro Ranallo and Karen Bryant. The group, in total, gives the event its best chance for success. A half-baked announcing team would have problems selling it and would justify Redstone and other detractors who don't think MMA has a place on network television.

Now they just need eyes on the television, always a tough sell on a summer Saturday night, to make a real go of it.

The enthusiasm that CBS announcer Gus Johnson brings to the NCAA Tournament is one of the things that makes the Tournament great. But does Johnson ever get too enthusiastic? He says he did in this clip:

That's the way Johnson concluded UCLA's 73-71 win over Gonzaga in the 2006 Tournament, and in an interview at SI.com this week, Johnson recalled that one as a call he'd like to have back:

SI.com: Do you ever think you've gone over the top with a call?

Johnson. I do. That UCLA-Gonzaga call is one. Especially when I scream "BATISTA WITH THE CATCH." It's way too much to me.

It's interesting that with most TV announcers, I prefer a more level-headed, analytical approach, but with Johnson, I love the all-out craziness he brings to his job. That UCLA-Gonzaga call was a little much, though.