LFL 45 - Kazarian vs Sanders 2 PBP Commentary

Undercard bout

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between John YJ (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Ichi Takeshi (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). The atmosphere really building for this one as we go over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

YJ
vs
Takeshi

200 cm
20
140 lbs
2 - 5 - 0

155 cm
20
138 lbs
2 - 1 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Good kicks
Experienced

Good takedowns
Counter striker
Experienced

[WOT] GR Design - Top quality, from $10 to $150 !
[WOT] GR Design - Top quality, from $10 to $150 !

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the bantamweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 2 - 5 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, John YJ!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Ichi Takeshi!
The judges for this bout are Yasuomi Hirokawa, Sosuke Kotani and Shirou Masuda.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
YJ swinging wildly here.
John YJ seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
YJ fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
Takeshi avoids a punch combination nicely.
Takeshi tries to score with an inside leg kick but telegraphs it and YJ is able to avoid easily.

YJ throws a loose over hand right and dives in with a double leg takedown. Takeshi tries to sprawl but it's too late and the fighters hit the mat. YJ is in Takeshi's guard.
Takeshi looking to sweep using the butterfly guard but YJ puts pay to that idea as he passes nicely into half guard.
Takeshi is looking for a sweep. YJ is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Takeshi is working for an escape here. He's hooked one of YJ's legs and he's managed to sneak out and take YJ's back!

Takeshi is working for the choke. I would put my money on him to finish from this position. He's rolled onto his back and has dragged YJ with him. YJ is trying to defend but Takeshi has an arm under the chin now! YJ grimaces and is forced to tap out!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 0:56 of round 1, we have a winner by way of Submission (RNC). Ichi Takeshi!
Ichi Takeshi made sure to mention his sponsor, [WOT] GR Design - Top quality, from $10 to $150 ! in his post fight interview.

C
A

C
B

energy
A | B

hype
A | B

pop
A | B

mgr
A | B

FIGHT
RATING
42%

Undercard bout

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Angelo Villar (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Ned Stanley (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Chooooooooon! I think Villar might be my favorite fighter, now he's come out to Kamao. Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Villar
vs
Stanley

170 cm
29
197 lbs
5 - 10 - 0

193 cm
26
194 lbs
3 - 2 - 0

Good wrestling
Dangerous knees
Very quick

BJJ White Belt
Decent boxing
Tends to cut

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the middleweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 5 - 10 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Angelo Villar!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Ned Stanley!
The judges for this bout are Taro Takaoka, Kenichi Hosakawa and Sosuke Kotani.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Villar thuds a left hand into Stanley's body.
Stanley misses with an uppercut.

Villar closes the distance, clinches up and gets a nice trip takedown into side control. Very smooth.
Stanley parries the strikes from Villar easily there. Villar is wary of posturing up too much because it might enable Stanley to escape.
Villar in side control lands a nice looking series of punches and elbows.
Villar tries to land with some ground and pound but misses.
Villar works a knee to the body and follows up with a nice elbow to the head.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Stanley wants to get back to his feet but Villar drags him back down.
Villar throws a strike aimed at the side of Stanley's head but Stanley avoids it well.
Stanley is looking to reverse the position.
Both fighters really going for it on the ground here!
Villar lands a nice forearm strike.
Villar throws an elbow but Stanley slips to the side and avoids it well.
Villar lands a knee to the body and a forearm to the face.
Villar is working Stanley over with some ground and pound from side control.
Villar scores with punches from side control.

Stanley is rocked!

It looks like Ned Stanley has been cut.
Stanley is working to avoid the ground and pound but Villar connects with a decent elbow.
Stanley is still in real trouble! Can Villar finish him?
Villar cracks Stanley with a big right hand but Stanley just smiles back at him and invites him to have another go.
Stanley is trying to escape and get back to his feet.
Stanley taking a bit of punishment here - Villar scoring with strikes.
Villar in side control here. He's dropped a big elbow there and Stanley looks hurt! Oh, he is hurt! Villar turns on the heat and pounds him out for a TKO victory! Good killer instinct there!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 1:57 of round 1, we have a winner by way of TKO (Strikes). Angelo Villar!
A very excited looking Angelo Villar made sure he remembered to thank all the fans both in the arena and on the internet. He said all the coolest people spend all day on MMA websites, which got a big reaction.

C
A

C
B

energy
A | B

hype
A | B

pop
A | B

mgr
A | B

FIGHT
RATING
100%

Co-main event

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Sam Shield (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Jason Grillz (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). These two fighters really are very evenly matched on the feet - it will be fascinating to see who can assert themselves in that aspect of the fight.

Shield
vs
Grillz

182 cm
26
165 lbs
5 - 4 - 0

173 cm
24
165 lbs
11 - 8 - 0

Good wrestling
World class MT
Insanely flexible

Good wrestler
World class boxer
Good gas tank

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the lightweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 5 - 4 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Sam Shield!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 11 - 8 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Jason Grillz!
The judges for this bout are Sosuke Kotani, Yukihiro Shimada and Ren Mimura.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Shield throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
A combination from Shield does no damage.
Shield throws a head kick that misses
and Grillz makes him pay by landing a nice hook to the body before moving out of range.
Grillz swinging wildly here.
Shield misses the shot to the body.
Grillz throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Shield slips a jab from Grillz.
Shield tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Grillz throws a hook but Shield avoids it easily.
Shield uses good head movement to avoid the hook from Grillz.
Shield lands a glancing blow to the side of Grillz's head.
Shield avoids the body shot from Grillz.
A solid body kick from Shield.
Grillz thuds his right hand into Shield's forehead from close range. That could be painful for both fighters.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Grillz lands a nice shot to the body.
Grillz throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Shield sees it coming and avoids it easily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A decent looking body kick lands there for Shield.
Grillz jabs at Shield's body.
No joy there for Shield, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
The fight stays on the outside here - Shield looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Shield fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.
Grillz's jab looks to have found its range, popping Shield under the eye.
Shield thows a body shot but no joy.

Shield clinches up with Grillz and pushes him back against the cage.
Grillz lands a body shot in the clinch.
Grillz is trying to push Shield away but Shield has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Grillz is trying to break the clinch but Shield has him pressed against the cage.
Shield missing with knees to the body.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Grillz throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Shield pushes off and fires off an elbow that misses, before clinching up again, against the cage.
Grillz is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Shield missing with knees to the body.
Grillz avoiding damage as Shield throws knees to the body.
Nice body punch from Grillz.
Grillz misses with a punch on the inside.
Grillz blocks the elbow strike.
Grillz managing to block the knees to the body from Shield.
Grillz scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Grillz blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.

Grillz pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Grillz misses with a straight right.
Grillz blocks a head kick by Shield.
Shield avoids the body shot from Grillz.
Grillz swings widly with a right hand
and Shield counters with a one-two to the body.
Grillz misses with a wild body shot.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Shield throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Shield tries to clinch up.
Shield feints and then cracks Grillz's leading leg with a nice low kick. He's obviously looking to slow Grillz down.
Grillz throws an ugly left hook that misses
and Shield counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
Shield misses with a body kick.
Shield fails with an attempt to clinch.
Grillz misses with a body shot.

Grillz tries to keep at a distance but Shield has taken the fight into the clinch.
Shield pushes off and fires off an elbow that misses, before clinching up again, against the cage.
Shield creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Grillz's defenses.
Grillz tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Shield's elbow.
Grillz scores with a hook to the body.
Grillz dodges an elbow strike from Shield.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Shield is looking to control Grillz's arms but Grillz gets an underhook and turns him. Now Shield has his back to the cage.
Grillz tries to throw a body punch but Shield avoids it by throwing Grillz back against the cage.
Grillz scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Grillz avoids a wild elbow strike from Shield.
Grillz lands a nice looking hook to the body, against the cage.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Shield lands a damaging elbow.
Grillz can't break the clinch.
Grillz blocks an elbow strike.
Shield stalling in the clinch but Grillz improves position.
Grillz misses with a hook to the ribs.
Grillz tries to break free but Shield pushes him back against the cage.
Shield prevents Grillz from breaking the clinch.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Shield prevents a body shot from Grillz.
Shield tries to land knees in the clinch but Grillz avoids the damage to the body.
Grillz managing to block the knees to the body from Shield.
Grillz tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Shield's elbow.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Sam Shield will probably get the nod.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action!

Grillz jabs Shield to the body, keeping him at a distance.
Shield misses with a head kick.
Grillz on the wrong end of an overhand right that came out of nowhere.
Grillz ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Shield moves away.
A punch combination from Shield misses.
Shield looks for the body kick but Grillz saw that one coming.
Shield has his hands up protecting his head but a hook from Grillz finds it's way round the side to connect with Shield's head.
Shield throws a head kick but Grillz moves out of range.
Grillz throws the left hand but Shield avoids the punch easily.
Sam Shield is winning the standup battle so far.
Grillz lands with a cross.
Grillz misses with a body shot.
Shield displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Grillz throws out the jab.
Grillz throws a hook but Shield blocks it.

Shield closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.
The pace really dropping off here, momentarily.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Grillz breaks the clinch.
Grillz stuns Shield with a nice body shot, before stepping back out of range.
Shield misses with a body kick.
Grillz blocks a head kick by Shield.
Shield throws a head kick that misses.
Ohhhhh! A huge head kick from Shield! Grillz is out on his feet! Shield rushes in and throws more strikes. The ref is looking closely - Grillz is covering up but the punishment is just too much and the ref steps in to stop the fight! Grillz is staring into space, just thankful that the beatdown has ended. Brutal finish.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 1:36 of round 2, we have a winner by way of TKO (Strikes). Sam Shield!

C
A

C
B

energy
A | B

hype
A | B

pop
A | B

mgr
A | B

FIGHT
RATING
100%

Main event

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Tony Kazarian (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Michael Sanders (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Kazarian comes to the cage accompanied by Limp Bizkit - My Way. On his way into the cage it seems that Tony Kazarian has been attacked by a crazed fan! It looks like it might have been the just bleed guy! Luckily Tony Kazarian seems to be OK! I thought that lunatic was in prison!?

Kazarian
vs
Sanders

165 cm
29
140 lbs
13 - 2 - 0

171 cm
31
145 lbs
14 - 6 - 1

Good wrestling
Solid boxing
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
Decent boxing
Good gas tank

[GTI] Divine Clothing

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the bantamweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 13 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Tony Kazarian!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 14 - 6 - 1, fighting out of Tokyo, Michael Sanders!
The judges for this bout are Hirohito Nitta, Shigeki Fujiwara and Sosuke Kotani.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Kazarian gets a double leg takedown into Sanders's guard.
Kazarian throwing strikes from guard but Sanders blocks nicely.
Sanders utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.

Sanders working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Kazarian doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Kazarian manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
Kazarian wants to control from the top but Sanders keeps moving.
Kazarian has been looking to land a fair amount of strikes on the ground. He might be looking to soften his opponent up in order to work for a submission.
Kazarian stopping the sweep attempt from Sanders.
Kazarian throws a big elbow that misses.
Kazarian is working Sanders over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.

Sanders is looking for a triangle but Kazarian pushes his legs off easily.
Kazarian in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kazarian working from the guard for now, landing some ground and pound.
Sanders is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.
Both fighters really going for it on the ground here!
Kazarian wants to get back to full guard.
Kazarian makes his way to full guard. A much better position for Kazarian.
A real slowdown in the pace of the fight for a moment, as Kazarian holds on and takes a little breather.
Kazarian looking to hit a scissor sweep but Sanders is one step ahead there.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Sanders is working Kazarian over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.
Kazarian preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Sanders scores with a decent looking elbow strike.
Kazarian controls Sanders momentarily but Sanders frees himself.
Sanders throws an elbow that misses. Kazarian uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Sanders's guard. Nice move by Kazarian!
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Kazarian distracts Sanders with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.
Kazarian with a nice head shot there.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Sanders working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Kazarian.
Sanders tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Sanders manages to land a sweep and now he's in mount on top!
Sanders unloading with bombs!
Sanders scoring with some good ground and pound from mount here. Will he manage to finish Kazarian?
Kazarian tries to lock up and control but Sanders gives him a forearm to the face and pushes him away.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kazarian is in all sorts of trouble here.
Kazarian regains half guard.
Sanders sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Kazarian defending well though.
Sanders throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Sanders sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Kazarian defending well though.
Sanders missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
Kazarian blocking the ground and pound attempt from Sanders.
Nice strikes from Sanders there.
Sanders not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Sanders throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Sanders throwing shots but Kazarian is blocking nicely.
Kazarian keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Sanders lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Sanders thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
Kazarian keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.

Sanders seems to be looking for submissions.
Sanders is pressing down on Kazarian's thigh, looking to free his foot. Kazarian is holding on for now.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Kazarian is not content to let Sanders control the position.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Michael Sanders dominated that round.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action!

Sanders checks a leg kick nicely.
Sanders takes one to the side of the head.

Kazarian shoots in and gets a takedown into Sanders's guard.
Sanders wants to sweep here but Kazarian controlling him for the moment.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Kazarian missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Sanders looking to hit a scissor sweep but Kazarian is one step ahead there.
Sanders trying to control the position.
Kazarian working some strikes from top position.

Sanders looking for submissions from the bottom here. Moving his hips around, possibly looking for an armbar.
Kazarian lands a couple of decent looking shots.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kazarian stopping the sweep attempt from Sanders.
Michael Sanders has got the better of the ground game so far.
Kazarian throwing strikes but missing.

Sanders escapes his hips to the side and looks to be working for an armbar. Kazarian gives him a little smile and shakes his head. No chance.

Sanders had isolated an arm as going for a kimura. Kazarian defends it easily.
Sanders wants to sweep here but Kazarian controlling him for the moment.
Kazarian pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Sanders is keeping the position for now.
Kazarian preventing the sweep.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Kazarian is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
Kazarian postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Kazarian with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.
Sanders is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.
Sanders misses with a head shot. Kazarian uses the momentum to regain guard.
Kazarian preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Kazarian looking to hit a scissor sweep but Sanders is one step ahead there.
Kazarian managing to control the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sanders missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Kazarian avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Sanders loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Sanders postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Kazarian manages to land a sweep and now he's in mount on top!
Sanders sneaks a leg under to get to half guard.
Kazarian slips a nice elbow through Sanders's hands, connecting with Sanders's forehead.
Kazarian working over Sanders with some ground and pound. Sanders looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
Sanders tries to get to full guard but Kazarian has control of the leg.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Sanders trying to control here.
Sanders gets full guard.
Sanders keeping moving, preventing Kazarian from controlling successfully.
Sanders not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
Sanders is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.
The fans in attendance giving it up for the two fighters, who have really let it all hang out in the last minute or so!
Kazarian trying to control here.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.

Sanders is looking for a kimura but Kazarian is holding onto that half guard position, so it's hard for Sanders to get the leverage.
Kazarian gets full guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that Tony Kazarian will probably get the nod.
That's time! Back to the action!

Kazarian shoots in for a takedown and gets it. Let's see what he's got on the mat.
Sanders keeping moving, preventing Kazarian from controlling successfully.
Kazarian is looking to work some ground and pound but Sanders has wrist control.
Sanders is trying to control the position but Kazarian postures up.
Kazarian missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Sanders looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Kazarian is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
Kazarian is in close to Sanders's body, working some short punches and elbows.
Sanders tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Kazarian distracts Sanders with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.
Sanders is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Sanders wants to sweep but no luck.
Sanders keeping moving, preventing Kazarian from controlling successfully.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Sanders is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kazarian lands a couple of digs.
Sanders wants to sweep here but Kazarian controlling him for the moment.
Kazarian loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Sanders keeping moving, preventing Kazarian from controlling successfully.
Kazarian postures up and scores with a shot to the body and a follow up elbow to the head.
Kazarian lands a nice shot whilst sitting in his opponent's guard.
Sanders wants to sweep here but Kazarian controlling him for the moment.
Kazarian lands a couple of decent looking shots.
Sanders avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Sanders tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Kazarian in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
Kazarian won't allow Sanders to sweep him here.
Sanders keeping moving, preventing Kazarian from controlling successfully.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Sanders working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Kazarian doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Kazarian manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
Sanders takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Kazarian throws a strike but Sanders rolls with it and manages to sweep. Now he's in guard on top.
Kazarian working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Sanders.
Sanders throws a strike but Kazarian rolls with it and manages to sweep. Now he's in guard on top.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Kazarian throws a big right hand that misses.
Sanders has momentary wrist control but Kazarian slips an elbow through the middle.
Sanders looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Sanders is persisting with the attempt to improve his position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Kazarian keeps in close for a moment and lands a decent shot to the side of Sanders's head.
Sanders manages to sweep nicely, so he's now on top. Kazarian manages to get himself to full guard.
Sanders preventing the sweep.
Sanders trying to control but Kazarian is working from the bottom.
Kazarian seems keen to control rather than go for a submission, at least for now.
Sanders preventing the sweep.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Sanders accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
Sanders throwing strikes but missing.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Sanders advances position into side control!
Sanders throws an elbow but Kazarian slips to the side and avoids it well.
Sanders working the ground and pound but he's contacting the mat, not the fighter.
Kazarian tries to buck Sanders off but Sanders is having none of it.

Sanders goes for an armbar here - this could be all over! But no, Kazarian has escaped beautifully and is now on top in side control! Oh, that's unlucky for Sanders but great work by Kazarian.
Sanders is looking for a sweep.
Kazarian wants to lay and pray for a moment but Sanders keeps working.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Sanders tries to improve position but can't.
Kazarian lands a knee to the body and follows it up with some ground and pound to the head. That will wear Sanders down.
Kazarian lands a knee to the body and follows it up with some ground and pound to the head. That will wear Sanders down.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Tony Kazarian clearly takes that round.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Kazarian looks for a takedown. He's got it. We're now in half guard.
Kazarian is looking to take a break and control but Sanders is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Sanders is looking to improve his position.
Kazarian lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.
Kazarian prevents Sanders from improving his position.
Kazarian wants to pass to mount but Sanders is defending the position.
Sanders wants to get back to full guard.
Nice strikes from Kazarian there.
Kazarian working the head and body with strikes.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Kazarian scoring with strikes to the body and head.
Kazarian scoring with strikes to the body and head.
Sanders taking some punishment here, with Kazarian in his half guard.

Sanders is rocked!
Kazarian lands with a punch from half guard.
Sanders is still in real trouble! Can Kazarian finish him?

Kazarian wants to work for an arm triangle but Sanders is really keeping half guard well and defending the submission attempt.
Sanders is looking for a sweep. Kazarian is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Kazarian is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Kazarian connects with a nice short shot to Sanders's temple.
Kazarian is controlling the pace.
It's got to the stage where if one of these guys blows hard enough, the other might fall over.
Nice strikes from Kazarian there.
The referee walks around the fighters to get a better view of the action. Kazarian lands a nice short elbow.
Sanders is trying to defend against the ground and pound but Kazarian scores with a couple of nice shots.
Sanders tries to get to full guard but Kazarian has control of the leg.
Kazarian scoring with strikes to the body and head.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Kazarian scores with a couple of good hammerfists.
Sanders wants to get back to full guard.

Kazarian is working for a kimura but Sanders is defending it quite comfortably.
Sanders wants to improve his position but Kazarian is controlling well.
Kazarian working Sanders over with strikes.
Kazarian landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
Kazarian is nestled in close to Sanders, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
Kazarian looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Sanders with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Sanders makes his way to full guard. A much better position for Sanders.
Kazarian arches his back and unloads with a massive left and a right! Sanders's eyes roll back into his head, he's out cold! The ref dives in to stop the fight - wow, they were hard shots!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 2:58 of round 4, we have a winner by way of KO (Strikes). Tony Kazarian!
Tony Kazarian retains his bantamweight title!
A very excited looking Tony Kazarian made sure he remembered to thank all the fans both in the arena and on the internet. He said all the coolest people spend all day on MMA websites, which got a big reaction.