News of the professional separation has been confirmed by Five Ounces of Pain with an involved source.

Petruzelli went 5-0 outside of the famous eight-sided cage, including his notorious victory over Kimbo Slice in October 2008, after dropping a pair of bouts in the UFC on the heels of completing a stint on the Ultimate Fighter Season 2. Known for his heavy-hands and colorful personality, “The Silverback” is 12-6 overall with ten TKOs to his credit.

Of course the two faced off during one of the most highly viewed bouts in the history of mixed martial arts, as the “Silverback” stepped up on just hours notice for Ken Shamrock who had sustained a cut just prior to the CBS headlining bout, knocking the heavily marketed street brawler senseless with a barrage of punches a mere fourteen seconds in the contest.

Kimbo went AWOL from the sport upon the demise of EliteXC, recently resurfacing at the Ultimate Fighter house during the current, tenth season, featuring nothing but the heavyweights.

Everything was rekindled when Seth recently made a post on the popular mixed martial arts forum, The Underground, stating that Kimbo was basically ducking him. Below is a portion from the post in Petruzelli’s own words:

there were 3 times that we could have fought after the elite show for you to get a rematch, but you declined all 3 times. now you go on ESPN making excuses, saying the only reason you lost was that it was sprung on you the last minute and that you can beat me with one hand behind your back!!!! you can go F yourself…maybe now that the UFC is having me back we will see for sure.

However, when confronted with the topic today during the scheduled media call, Kimbo was quick to fire back, threatening to take it to the street if need be.

“Seth needs to be careful now because we both live in the same backyard, and I know that little sissy ice cream shop,” commented Kimbo. “I can walk in at any given time and go, ‘Yo, what’s up, man?’”

Most fans would probably agree that they would much rather see the rematch take place somewhere they could watch it. Preferably on TV, and not the Smoothie King Seth currently owns and operates in Kimbo’s own stomping grounds of Miami, Florida.

As the bearded brawler from the Bahamas explained, everything Petruzelli had to say in his recent post was nothing short of complete nonsense.

“No one ever approached me with no rematch with Seth, and I never turned that s*** down,” said Kimbo. “That right there is B.S., bull****. It didn’t happen.”

So will we be seeing Seth vs. Kimbo in the Octagon together anytime in the near future? It seems like a good possibility. Just as long as Kimbo’s thug mentality doesn’t end up landing him square in a Miami State Prison for a slew of charges relating to a fight he provoked in front of a bunch of unsuspecting women and children in a Florida ice cream shop on a hot sunny day.

“If Seth signed with the UFC, and Dana and them want to match it up, damn right I’ll run it again with him,” exclaimed Slice.

“We don’t even need to do it in a ring. We can do it bare-knuckle style because I don’t like liars.”

Seth Petruzelli

“The Silverback” dropped his opponent Chris Baten with a big punch midway through the first round. From there the fight was called off following a few more well placed punches to the grounded Baten, awarding Petruzelli the first round TKO victory at just 2:23 into the opening round.

There is no news currently available as to where Petruzelli plans to fight next but Strikeforce and the UFC can definitely be considered likely options for the high-profile slugger from Florida.

Art of Fighting IV took place at the University of South Florida’s Sun Dome in Tampa, Florida.

The news comes via a report by Sherdog late this evening.

“We are confirming that EliteXC has folded. What this means for our fans and supporters is that there will not be a Nick Diaz vs. Eddie Alvarez fight on November 8th,” reads a notice on the Graciefighter.com website, a website which is run by member of Diaz’s camp. 

Showtime Networks had filed public notice with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in early September that had announced the Networks’ intention to enter into preliminary negotiations to purchase ProElite. It seems that all was well and moving forward with the purchase heading into CBS’ third installment of Saturday Night Fights two weeks ago.

However, with the comments made by Seth Petruzelli to a morning talk show that he was paid to keep the fight standing, negotiations seem to have come to a screeching halt. The negative press combined with the preliminary investigation of the October 4 show by the Florida Boxing Commission may leave the company hanging out to dry with no funding and a huge $55 million dollar deficit which may cause ProElite and, in turn, EliteXC to close their doors.

All I have to say to that is chill, donkey. Chill.

There are plenty of people out there, myself included, that knew that if Kimbo faced a legitimate opponent that he would most likely lose. So why is everyone so up in arms? And why are they up in arms and spewing hatred towards Kimbo Slice? The man has been more than happy to admit that he’s a youngster in the game of MMA. He has readily admitted that on numerous occasions. So who should the finger pointing be directed at?

EliteXC, plain and simple.

If there’s anyone to blame for the hype surrounding Kimbo, it’s EliteXC. If there’s anyone to blame for booking Kimbo as a main event, it’s EliteXC. If there’s anyone to blame for billing Kimbo as something we all knew he wasn’t, it’s EliteXC. Well, I take that back. The only people who maybe didn’t know were the talking heads at ESPN and these other mainstream outlets who are more suited to talking about stick and ball sports than they are anything resembling combat sports. But the point still stands. EliteXC is to blame for the “Kimbo hype.”

If it was Kimbo who was out there billing himself as one of the “champions of MMA” and one of the best fighters in MMA then I could understand where the hate is coming from. But Kimbo wasn’t out there talking any smack about the fight even when Ken Shamrock was his opponent. Nor has he ever championed himself as anything more than he actually is which is a 3-1 fighter. On Saturday he showed just that. He’s an inexperienced fighter who’s 3-1. Period. No more, no less. And he’s never claimed to be more than that. EliteXC is to blame for feeding him the Tank Abbotts of the world, not Kimbo.

Could Kimbo and his camp have objected to the way Slice was being portrayed in the advertisements and in the media? Sure. They could have told EliteXC not to put him in main events. But they’re thinking about what’s monetarily best for their fighter. I’m sure the pressure on Slice was enormous to main event nationally televised cards when he’s so inexperienced. But he was being paid handsomely for it. This is America and if you can make that much money by doing so little then so be it. Good for Kimbo that he was paid handsomely based purely on the fact that he had won some street fights. If he can parlay that into a big payday then so be it. That’s the American dream, right? Who are we to shit on him?

Kimbo Slice could have packed his stuff up and went home on Saturday instead of fighting Seth Petruzelli. He knew he was facing a much more dangerous opponent. He knew that it was a risk. But instead of calling it a night because he wasn’t facing who he had prepared for he stepped into the cage anyways to give the fans what they paid for. Granted it didn’t turn out in Kimbo’s favor but you have to at least commend the guy for going out there and doing what was right.

To call Kimbo Slice “the ultimate fraud” and to say that “he sucks” is taking it too far. Does he need work? Yes. Lots of it. His chin is now in question along with his power and his ground game. But what do you expect? He’s 3-1. There’s lots of 3-1 fighters out there with lots of holes in their game. But to say that he doesn’t belong in the sport and that he sucks is out of line. If you know anything about MMA you know that Kimbo Slice was going to fall from grace at some point or another. But remember that the “grace” was built by EliteXC, not by Kimbo Slice. Hate the way he was built up. Hate the house of cards that EliteXC built on the back of a fighter who was so unproven. But don’t hate Kimbo Slice for getting his slice of the pie and taking things as they came. He’s never claimed to be anything more than what he is: a 3-1 fighter with 3-1 skills.

What was Ken Shamrock doing sparring?

I mean, seriously. Is this for real? Hours before the fight you’re going to do heavy sparring and get cut? Bush league, Shamrock. Freaking bush league.

Seth Petruzelli shocked some, not all

And I say this because when I heard that Petruzelli was stepping in as Kimbo Slice’s opponent, I knew that Kimbo was in trouble. Not only had Kimbo prepared and trained specifically for Ken Shamrock but Petruzelli is so much more dangerous than Ken Shamrock will ever be. Even had Kimbo prepared for Petruzelli he probably wouldn’t have fared much better. Petruzelli is a very legitimate mixed martial artist who is young, possesses a lot of background in traditional martial arts, has lots of MMA experience and was legitimate enough to be considered a UFC prospect at one point in his career. All of those things didn’t stack up well in Kimbo’s favor. Anyone who knows about Petruzelli shouldn’t be surprised by his victory. Those casual fans out there who thought Kimbo was invincible, however, sure got a rude awakening tonight. 

Both Kimbo Slice and Seth Petruzelli deserve props

Both of these guys deserve some love for taking the fight on such short notice. They deserve to be recognized for still going out there and giving the fans what they paid for. I’m sure that Petruzelli had no problem going from a prelim fight to the main event but Kimbo and his management could have said “Screw this, we didn’t train for this guy and he’s a more dangerous fight for us and we’re going home.” Instead they manned up, took the fight on a few hours’ notice, and gave the fans the main event they came to see and that’s to be commended even if it didn’t turn out Kimbo’s way.

Kimbo Slice’s chin is weak sauce

Wow, was that a jab that knocked him almost completely out? Yes, that’s exactly what it was. Slice is still a youngster in the sport as far as experience and technique go but he doesn’t have a lot going for him right now. He couldn’t knock out James Thompson, a man known for his weak chin, with his best shot. He had no answer for Thompson’s side control. And now he’s getting knocked silly by jabs? If there was ever any doubt that Brett Rogers would eat Kimbo Slice alive then they were answered today. The only questions left are those surrounding Kimbo and his inadequacies. I guess the silver lining is that he didn’t lose to Ken Shamrock?

Moving on to the other fights (yes, there were other fights)…

Jake Shields’ ground game looked great, striking not so much

Shields looked to have an off night tonight and was clearly outclassed as far as the striking game goes but he was able to will the fight to the ground and dominate where he feels most comfortable. His mount was very impressive and the armbar to finish was textbook. His shots, at times, were very telegraphed and he was stuffed a few times by Daley. If he ever runs into a fighter who has a very good takedown defense then he might be up the creek without a paddle. He’s not as complete as he could be and I feel that he would be absolutely dominated by someone the caliber of Georges St. Pierre who is so good at everything, especially in regards to takedown defense.

Gina Carano doesn’t ever disappoint

She was on another level than Kelly Kobold tonight and Kelly Kobold is a damn good fighter. She will beat most of the other women in the sport and Gina thoroughly dominated her from start to finish. Gina never seems to disappoint when it comes to her fights. She always puts on a thorough striking clinic and has an uncanny ability to turn it on when it’s needed. After Kobold took her down at the end of the second round she came out pissed in the third round and really took it to Kelly. Dominating performance from Gina against a very, very legitimate opponent. Up next is Cyborg and that should be a damn good one.

Roy Nelson got robbed

And not because of the stoppage but because of the standup from side control. Since when is it okay to stand a guy up from side control when he’s working for a submission? This is just silly. A lot of referees see full guard as a 50/50 position so I can understand standups from there. But from side control? That’s a dominant position. I don’t care if he’s just laying on him from side control, you don’t stand the fighters up from that position. Listen, I’m not saying this is the reason that Nelson lost the fight. In no way is that what I’m trying to convey here. His lack of cardio is eventually what did him in but the standup didn’t help his cause any. Arlovski won the bout fair and square and wore Nelson down to a point where he couldn’t defend himself from Arlovski’s combinations anymore but standups from side control are just ridiculous. Nelson’s only chance in this fight was on the ground and the referee robbed him of an opportunity to try to end it.

Other Musings:

• Mauricio Rua didn’t look so hot from the get-go in his fight against Benji Radach but took some real good shots and made the fight entertaining. Radach vs. Lawler would be a fun bout.
• Did anyone else hear Frank Shamrock dissing Ken at the beginning of the show, talking about “disgracing the Shamrock name”? That was hilarious. Frank was just salty because he was hoping Ken would win and he could hype the Brother vs. Brother pay-per-view but that wasn’t to be so he decided to just take a dump on Ken. How brotherly of you, Frank.
• Tito Ortiz to EliteXC in a week? We’ll see about that. 
• Not to beat this into the ground but why the hell was Ken Shamrock sparring? Freaking amateur hour.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com confirmed the news with Rosa via e-mail over the weekend.

Rosa began his career with a 10-0 record before suffering the first loss of his career after being submitted in the second round by Jared Hamman during as ShoXC event in October of 2007. Facing Jaime Fletcher on short notice during another ShoXC event this past March, Rosa dropped his second his second consecutive fight when he was declared the loser via unanimous decision.

He returned to his winning ways during Adrenaline MMA’s first-ever show this past June, where he TKO’d Ron Fields at 0:34 of round 2.

Petruzelli is 9-4 and is a veteran of two UFC fights, both defeats. In his UFC debut he lost a unanimous decision to Matt Hamill in October of 2006 during the live Spike TV special that featured Tito Ortiz vs. Ken Shamrock. He would return to the Octagon in April of 2007 at UFC Fight Night 9, where he was submitted by Wilson Gouveia at 0:39 of round 2.

EliteXC’s Oct. 4 event will be broadcast on CBS and will feature Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson vs. Ken Shamrock, Jake Shields defending his EliteXC welterweight title vs. Paul Daley, Gina Carano vs. Kelly Kobold-Gavin, and Murilo “Ninja” Rua vs. Benji Radach.

Joining Rosa vs. Petruzelli during the non-televised undercard will be bouts between Mike Aina vs. Edson Berto and Cris Cyborg vs. Yoko Takahashi.

However, what caught my eye was Cox’s candidness about his feelings towards rival agent/manager Ken Pavia.

When asked by Ariel Helwani about Pavia sticking to managing and not promoting, Cox responded by saying:

That’s the difference between Ken and I. Ken struggles to be a manager let alone trying to promote. I mean, it would be horrible to fail at both professions. So, he should just stick to what he’s doing.

But things only get more interesting when Cox started talking about the differences that exist between the two:

I’m taller than him as is most everybody (laughs)… He’s never developed a fighter in his life. You know, it is what it is. I mean, we’re completely different. You have two kinds of people: He calls himself an agent which is probably right. I’m a manager; I take guys in the beginning of their career and develop them…An agent is someone who says ‘look, I don’t really know you but I bet I can make money with you and I got nothing to do with developing your career but, hey, go with me and I got some connection and I’ll make money with you.’ It’s a huge, huge difference. Anyone can watch a UFC and pick out a guy who does well and say ‘man I should manage that guy.’ Well, that’s nice but what about the guy who’s been managing and handling that guy for the four years before he got there? In my business, we call those agents “poachers.”

That’s some pretty potent stuff right there. For more of it, just click here.

During the interview, I put Cox on the spot on multiple occasions, even asking him to address rumors as to whether rumors were true that Fedor’s management was shopping his services around again:

Q: There have been some rumors going around that Fedor Emelianenko’s management was shopping him around to other promotions. There have also been rumors that the relationship between Fedor’s management and M-1 Global was not going very well. At any point during recent discussions, was the possibility of severing ties with Fedor ever discussed?

MC: I think in the last five months we’ve looked at every scenario possible. We’ve looked at continuing without Fedor and I’m sure Fedor has looked at working with somebody else. It’s been a difficult five months but like (M-1 Chairman) Mitchell Maxwell says, anything worth doing takes time. And there’s difficulty involved in that and that’s what I think is happening here. I think it would have been easy to just say let’s go out and do a show and then figure it out. And all of us involved said “No, no, no.”

When we go out and do a show we’re going to have all of our ducks in a row. We’re going to have complete agreement as to how we’re doing something at that date and time. The language barrier is something that definitely adds to the time. All documents have to be translated into Russian, and that’s not easy. Then it goes back after a few changes and it gets translated and then we re-change it. So it’s really been a lot more difficult than I expected but we had a breakthrough this week and I think we’re getting close.

That’s just the tip of the iceberg. If you want the full inside scoop on M-1 Global and Fedor, I recommend you click here to check it out.

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I’ve received several e-mails requesting what my predictions are for UFC 82. My picks for tonight’s show are available on CBSSports.com in the Head-to-Head preview put together by editor Denny Burkholder. Burkholder, Gregg Doyel, Ben Fowlkes, and Todd Martin have all submitted picks as well. Click here to check them out.