Fighter scales back wardrobe

The photogenic fighter dubbed "the face of women's mixed martial arts" had to bare a lot more than her mug to make weight for Saturday's Elite XC bout in Sunrise, Fla.

Gina Carano, who in her previous fight forfeited part of her purse after weighing in more than 4 pounds over the limit, needed three tries and none of her clothes Friday to finally make weight for her 140-pound bout against Kelly Kobold.

After missing weight by 23/4 pounds on her first attempt, Carano shed her skivvies and, shielded by towels, including one held by her father, former UNLV and Dallas Cowboys quarterback Glenn Carano, stepped back on the scale.

The 5-foot-8-inch Las Vegas-based fighter weighed 142.5 pounds the second time and 141 the third (fighters are allowed up to a pound over the limit to account for minor discrepancies in the scale).

Carano defeated Kobold by unanimous decision Saturday.

• WHO'S COUNTING -- Denver Broncos coach Mike Shanahan followed the Lane Kiffin saga closely because he, too, was fired by Raiders owner Al Davis.

But who knew he had been following this closely?

Said Shanahan to reporters:

"I was there 582 days. Lane Kiffin was there 616 days. So what it really means is that Al Davis liked Lane more than he liked me. I really don't think that's fair.

"I won three more games, yet he got 34 more days of work. It just doesn't seem right."

• STAY AWAY -- Warren Sapp, who starred as a Raiders defensive tackle for four seasons, said on Showtime's "Inside the NFL" that "nobody tells you how bad it is" to play for a Davis-owned team.

Sapp added, "Any person that calls me on the telephone, (I tell them) do not go anywhere near Oakland."

• NATION OF ONE --

Fark.com, reacting to news that the Los Angeles Clippers have launched an interactive fan Web site: "Fan said to be very excited."

• LOVE LOST -- New Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle wants his team to shed its nice-guys image and be more like, well, his former Detroit Pistons teams.

Carlisle explains in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram:

"How do you get guys to be nasty? Well, hating the opponent is a start. We've got to develop that as we go along."

For starters, Carlisle has banned his players from hugging their opponents.

• FOUR AND OUT -- A high school football team in Nevada canceled its season because, simply, it was getting walloped by the competition.

Yerington High's coaches made the decision after the Lions' last game, a 62-7 loss, during which five players suffered injuries, three of them concussions. Yerington had a 1-3 record.

• CUSSER'S LAST STAND --

Twenty-five years after then-Cubs manager Lee Elia unleashed a postgame tirade peppered with 50 profanities, Newcastle soccer manager Joe Kinnear -- berating reporters who he said had disrespected him -- beat it by two naughty words Friday.

• LOOKING BACK -- On this date in 2001, the Seattle Mariners won their 115th game of the season to become the winningest team in American League history.

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