Breaking News: ProElite, EliteXC Done After 22 Months

The company that brought Kimbo Slice to the mainstream and made a media darling out of Gina Carano is now a chapter in the annals of MMA history, according to multiple sources.

After 22 months in business, ProElite - the conglomerate of EliteXC, King of the Cage, Cage Rage, ICON, and Spirit MC - told its employees and fighters Monday that it was closing the doors immediately. This was first reported by Sports Illustrated's Josh Gross and is now being confirmed by other major MMA blogs and sites.

Despite great ratings for two of its three events on CBS, the company was in a major financial hole, estimated at around $55 million. It was looking like Showtime was going to purchase the controlling interest of the company, which was at 20%. However, that apparently fell through and ProElite made a last-ditch effort to save the organization, selling off fighter contracts and some of their various organizations. It was no dice and now the company is expecting to be fully closed up by the end of the week.

From MMAWeekly.com tonight:

"In an August SEC filing, EliteXC disclosed they were seeking 3.5 million dollars to fund operations through the end of the year. Only a month later, another SEC filing said they had received only $1 million in funding, provided by Showtime networks. Elite CEO Chuck Champion last month told MMAWeekly.com that the Showtime loan came after two principal investors in the company had elected not to provide the $3.5 million "bridge financing." An SEC filling dated Oct. 9 revealed that CBS had funded "Heat" due to ProElite's inability to pay for the show."

More on this story as Tuesday rolls on, but if you're thinking about doing a dance of joy, keep this in mind. No matter what you think of EliteXC management or how much better the UFC was, the company going under means a lot of fighters are now out of work. There's no guarantee or reality that another group is going to swoop in and take everybody under their wing, even if Donald Trump helps finance Affliction. There is now less MMA on TV and less guys/females that can live their dream. Just keep that in mind as we begin to hear more details and when the eventual blame game begins.

Josh Nason has written and maintained Ropes, Ring and Cage since 2007. He can be reached at [e-mail].

Sources: MMAWeekly.com, SI.com