Mike Chiappetta • E-mail

It didn't take long for Gina Carano to capture the eyes of the world. Just three fights into her pro mixed martial arts career, the promising rookie was brought to the attention of EliteXC promoter Gary Shaw. The group had yet to promote an event, and Shaw was looking for a way to stand out in the suddenly crowded MMA landscape.

The veteran boxing promoter set up a meeting with Carano, and within seconds, knew he'd found what he was looking for.

"When I met her, I said to her immediately, ‘you're going to be the women's face of mixed martial arts," he recalls.

About two weeks from now, a new chapter in mixed martial arts history will be written. It won’t sound like much to fans of established sports like pro football and baseball, but on May 31, CBS will air EliteXC: Primetime, the first live MMA broadcast on network TV.

For the first time in primetime, MMA will be treated by a major network as a major sport. And Carano, who is known by a whole different demographic of fans as the American Gladiator "Crush," will be among the featured fighters, taking on Kaitlin Young.

EliteXC is the only major promotion that features a women’s division, and it is something that can set the upstart organization apart from its primary rival, the UFC. The question is: will it set them apart in a good or bad way in the eyes of the fans?

“It's been my feeling all along that women should be treated as equals,” said EliteXC President Gary Shaw. “If they can go to war, they sure can fight in mixed martial arts. We're proud to have Gina on this card. We're proud to have Kaitlin. It's going to be a very good, very tough match. But more than anything else, the world will be able to see two professional athletes that can really fight.”

Shaw added that there was no resistance on CBS’s part in putting a women’s fight in the first MMA show. In fact, he says, they were thrilled to have Carano's star power as part of the event.

It’s not the first time Carano is blazing new trails in the sport.

The 26-year-old Las Vegas resident, who is the daughter of former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Glen Carano, fought in the first-ever sanctioned women’s match in Nevada, beating Rosy Sexton via TKO in September 2006. Then in February 2007, she and Julie Kedzie fought the first women’s match at EliteXC’s inaugural show. Carano won via unanimous decision in a slugfest most observers considered the best fight of the night.

Carano, who is trained by MMA legend Randy Couture and represented by a Hollywood agent, is being groomed for greatness, and Shaw regards her as the cornerstone of his women's division. He hopes that on May 31, the same formula that made the company's first show successful will bring the organization national attention on CBS.

This time around, however, things will be a little different for Carano, who was recently featured on ESPN’s E:60 program. Because of a hectic shooting schedule on Gladiators, she was not able to complete a normal-length training camp, but said because of the high-profile nature of the event, she felt compelled to compete.

“I have to just get back to Gina being the fighter,” said Carano, who is 5-0 in her MMA career. “I have been in a completely different world for the last nine months.  And it's really fascinating to me because I’m coming back to the fight world.  But I like my little refreshing outlook that I have on it and it's really kind of lightened my load and kind of refreshed me. I am reminded I love doing this. I love fighting. If I didn't, I wouldn't do it anymore. If it's something I love to do, I'm not going to dread it. I'm not going to run from it I'm just going to embrace it and I love the feeling that comes along with it.”

Carano was actually scheduled to do a promotional tour for Gladiators but canceled her appearances, deciding that she needed to focus on the fight at hand.

“I'm kind of just detoxing from the public eye for a second,” she said. “Then I'm training and just getting my mind straight for the fight. I would have liked to do it sooner. I've got a beautiful life and I'm just surprised I’ve gone so far. I'm just going to stay positive and go for it.”

Tom Casino / EliteXC Kaitlin Young is hoping to end Gina Carano's unbeaten run.

Young has also had things other than fighting on her mind. The Minnesota native is just 22 years old and is a student at the University of Minnesota where she is majoring in kinesiology. Like many students this time of year, she has been busy preparing for exams.

But she’s also a student of the game, training at the Minnesota Martial Arts Academy under renowned coach Greg Nelson, and has logged time improving her wrestling with former UFC lightweight champ Sean Sherk.

Young was a relatively obscure name until she burst on the scene last November and won a one-night HOOKnSHOOT tournament by knocking out all three of her opponents in less than a minute each.

Now, she gets a chance to make a huge name for herself by beating the biggest name in the women’s division.

“It really is such a great honor,” Young said. “I do feel a tremendous obligation to perform well and represent female fighters well.”

Carano has faced some backlash and criticism from some in the fighting community. Some question her commitment to the sport because of outside activities like Gladiators; others say she is not worthy of being the “face of women’s MMA” due to a limited resume of only five fights.

Carano takes the criticism in stride, saying she realizes that there are other women with the credentials to fight in a big match, and that she holds no contempt for those who question her place in the pecking order.

“I think there are a lot of other female MMA martial artists out there that have been in it a longer time than I have and they have bigger records – and so they're wondering why I'm where I'm at and why they aren't here,” she says. “ I sympathize with them and I don't know why, either. I think that, you know, EliteXC looked at me and saw something that they could really build and they saw talent. And people sign new talent all the time.”

In fact, Shaw said that EliteXC has explored adding a women’s championship belt to the mix as early as the fall. The Carano-Young winner would likely take part in such a title match.

As for the stylistic battle, both women are primarily standup fighters. Carano had an extensive Muay Thai background before transitioning into MMA in 2006. She trains at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas. Young started in Olympic-style Taekwondo, then moved into Muay Thai before beginning MMA training.

For both women, it's an opportunity they relish, holding the banner of a sport in front of the nation. From relative obscurity, Young has a chance to become an instant star, while Carano has the opportunity to add to her fast-growing fanbase.

I'm not surprised that all the females are starting to get attention in the sport because it's well deserved,” Carano says. “We put on great fights all around the country, all around the world -- fights that people walk away from (still) talking about. So I think females getting attention is awesome and it's well-deserved.”