Gary Shaw, Elite XC promoter who helped bring MMA to CBS, dies at 79
Gary Shaw, the famed boxing promoter who famously crossed over to MMA when he helped launch Elite XC, has died. He was 79 years old.
WBC president Mauricio Sulaimann first posted about Shaw’s passing. Shaw’s longtime friend Seymour Zivick also confirmed the news to Kevin Iole.
Shaw got his start in combat sports in 1971 when he began working for the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board, where he served for almost 30 years. He eventually transitioned into promoting events in the early 2000s, perhaps most notably when he helped stage the 2002 heavyweight title fight between Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson.
In 2007, a new upstart MMA promotion Elite XC launched, with Shaw eventually becoming the public face of the company as the live events president. He also appointed his son Jared “$kala” Shaw as an executive to help with talent development and matchmaking.
The following year in 2008, Elite XC inked a deal to bring MMA fights to CBS for the first time in history in what was originally a multi-year contract for several events. The debut CBS card in May 2008 featured famed street brawler turned MMA enthusiast Kimbo Slice in the main event, where he scored a knockout of James Thompson that helped rocket him to even bigger stardom.
Elite XC also championed women’s MMA, especially after signing Gina Carano, who became one of the faces of the promotion with a win over Kaitlin Young on that same CBS card.
Unfortunately, only a few more Elite XC shows took place after that initial CBS debut, but the promotion was instrumental in helping to give a bigger platform to notable fighters such as Jake Shields, Cris Cyborg, and numerous others.
The promotion’s demise largely came later that same year when Slice suffered a devastating 14-second knockout to late-replacement opponent Seth Petruzelli after UFC legend Ken Shamrock suffered a cut warming up backstage for the fight.
In October 2008, Elite XC’s parent company Pro Elite filed for bankruptcy, which ultimately led to the end of the promotion after a total of 20 events.
Despite Elite XC falling, Shaw remained a stalwart in combat sports for years and continued to work in boxing, promoting fighters such as Shane Mosley, Diego Corrales, and Winky Wright.