PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Don Barnes (ranked 2224 p4p, 1227 weight class) and Alex Gutierrez (ranked 302 p4p, 177 weight class). On his way into the cage it seems that Don Barnes has been attacked by a crazed fan! It looks like it might have been the just bleed guy! Luckily Don Barnes seems to be OK! I thought that lunatic was in prison!?

Barnes
vs
Gutierrez

180 cm
23
176
11 - 7 - 0

191 cm
29
184
16 - 7 - 0

Good wrestling
Solid boxing
Cardio machine

BJJ Purple Belt
Decent boxing
Powerful

Voodoo Nutrition

HELLBENT

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the welterweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 11 - 7 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Don Barnes!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 16 - 7 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Alex Gutierrez!
The judges for this bout are Shigeki Sano, Yuuki Gou and Tatsuya Matsuyama.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Barnes stooping low to avoid any incoming strikes and then lunges in with an uppercut come cross that lands flush.
Gutierrez's coach down at Alpha Brasil was telling us pre-fight that they have been working on Gutierrez's balance. Obviously they view that as a key factor in the outcome of this fight.
Gutierrez ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Barnes moves away.
Barnes appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Some bone on bone action there as Gutierrez checks a low kick. Luckily it wasn't a particularly hard one.
Gutierrez pushes forward with a 1-2 combination that forces Barnes back to the cage. Gutierrez follows up with a solid lead hook to the liver.
Barnes has been talking about how he's improved his wrestling in the run up to the fight so let's see if that's enough to sway the balance.
Barnes jabs at Gutierrez's body.
Gutierrez scores with a jab to the jaw.
Gutierrez loads up on a big right hand but Barnes slips the punch.
Barnes fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Gutierrez looks to land a right hand but Barnes moved out of range.
Barnes feinted with a counter takedown.
Gutierrez thows a left - swing and a miss!
Barnes feinted with a counter takedown.
Gutierrez with poor footwork there. He got himself in a bit of a tangle, enabling Barnes to score with a decent uppercut.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Barnes steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Gutierrez.
Barnes ducks under a wild hook from Gutierrez.
Barnes tries to counter with a takedown but Gutierrez is quick to defend against it.
Barnes takes a shot right to the liver - Bas would have been proud of that punch.
A combination from Barnes does no damage.
Gutierrez throws a looping overhand right but Barnes ducks down to avoid it.
Barnes throws a two punch combo that lands nicely.
Barnes throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Gutierrez.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Gutierrez throws a body shot but no joy.
Gutierrez throws a poor cross that misses

and Barnes counters with a single leg into guard. Gutierrez didn't expect that.
Barnes postures up in Gutierrez's guard and throws a big left but Gutierrez blocks it.
Barnes wants to pass the guard but Gutierrez is keeping the position.
Gutierrez looking to hit a scissor sweep but Barnes is one step ahead there.
Gutierrez working a defensive guard here.
Barnes is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
Barnes postures up and lands some nice ground and pound.
Barnes scoring with punches to the head and body.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Barnes working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Barnes might be looking to lock onto one of his opponent's long limbs for a submission, whilst we're on the ground.

Gutierrez working for submissions but it's allowed Barnes to get to half guard.
Barnes working some ground and pound from close in. He's looking to maintain this position and strike for a while by the looks of things... although he'll probably advance to full mount in a minute now I've said that.
Barnes scoring with strikes to the body and head.
Barnes throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Barnes throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Barnes frees up his trapped foot and advances to mount.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Gutierrez avoids a series of strikes thrown by Barnes.
Barnes 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.
Gutierrez tries to lock up and control but Barnes gives him a forearm to the face and pushes him away.
BOOM! Barnes connects with a massive shot to the dome!
Gutierrez is squirming around, avoiding Barnes's attempts to control the action.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Barnes with a couple of short strikes.
Gutierrez tries to reverse the position but Barnes maintains control.
Barnes putting on the heat here with some good ground and pound!
Gutierrez has worked his way to half guard, taking advantage of Barnes's lack of action.
Barnes scoring with strikes to the body and head.
Barnes wants to free his trapped foot but Gutierrez is holding on for dear life with his legs.
Barnes working over Gutierrez with some ground and pound. Gutierrez looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
Barnes tries to pass the half guard into mount. Gutierrez knows what he's doing though and prevents the attempt.
Barnes with a momentary lay and pray from half guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Gutierrez wants to improve his position but Barnes is controlling well.
Barnes throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Gutierrez blocking the ground and pound attempt from Barnes.
The referee calls for the fighters to work.
Barnes works his way into full mount!
Barnes has his opponent pinned against the cage, landing some nasty ground and pound that is really making a bit of a mess out of Gutierrez's face.
The crowd growing excited in anticipation of a finish here! Right on cue, Barnes cracks his opponent with a massive right hand that draws loud cheers!
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
The crowd growing excited in anticipation of a finish here! Right on cue, Barnes cracks his opponent with a massive right hand that draws loud cheers!
Gutierrez is working to get back to half guard.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Don Barnes dominated that round.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare each other down, ready to get back to the action.

Barnes throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Gutierrez.
Barnes takes a swing at Gutierrez's ribcage but misses.
Barnes with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.
Don Barnes is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Barnes sizes up Gutierrez with a pawing jab and scores with a straight right down the middle.
Gutierrez with a body punch. A glancing blow.
Barnes fails to land with a series of punches.
Nice takedown defense from Gutierrez. No joy for Barnes on that attempt.
Boom, another hit is landed. "You're gunna get knocked out" taunts Gutierrez, as that shot connected.
Gutierrez swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Barnes blocks a jab.
Barnes drops down looking for a counter takedown but Gutierrez sprawls and moves away.
Gutierrez loads up on a big right hand but Barnes slips the punch.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
No joy there for Barnes, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Barnes throws a nice inside leg kick.

Barnes looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into side control! Oh, that's bad for Gutierrez!
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Gutierrez is looking for a sweep.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Gutierrez stops Barnes from passing to mount.
Barnes is looking to take a break and control but Gutierrez is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Gutierrez on the wrong end of some ground and pound.
Gutierrez seems a little lost for a moment, as Barnes dominates the positioning.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Gutierrez tries to bench press Barnes off him but Barnes keeps the position.
Barnes moving around in side mount but really he's just happy to control for now.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are getting on the fighters' backs, as the pace has dropped off in the last minute or so.
Barnes misses with the ground and pound.
Barnes tries to score with some ground and pound. Gutierrez controls his posture well this time though and the shots don't do any damage.
Gutierrez trying to remain calm as Barnes controls from the top position.
Barnes landing a few strikes.
Barnes working the ground and pound.
Gutierrez is sneaking out the side here. He's bucked Barnes off and has taken his back!
Gutierrez struggling to keep hold of the position.

Gutierrez seems to be going for a rear naked choke. He has an arm under Barnes's chin but Barnes turns very nicely into Gutierrez's guard. Good BJJ skills being displayed there by Barnes.
Gutierrez wants to sweep but no luck.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Barnes stands up over Gutierrez, holding his feet. He dives back in and lands a decent shot to the head.
Barnes is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
Barnes looking to sit in guard and control but Gutierrez gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.

Barnes not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
Barnes bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Gutierrez's guard.

Barnes wants to control from the top but Gutierrez keeps moving.
Barnes is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Gutierrez can do to turn this around?
Barnes throws a big elbow that misses.
Barnes is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.
Barnes is in close to Gutierrez's body, working some short punches and elbows.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Barnes trying to control the position from guard on top but Gutierrez is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Barnes is going to have to think about doing something other than just controlling because Gutierrez is managing to avoid having the position dictated to him.
Barnes in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
Barnes trying to control but Gutierrez is working from the bottom.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Gutierrez looking for a sweep. Not yet Gutierrez, not yet.
Barnes trying to control but Gutierrez is working from the bottom.
Barnes seems content to control from guard here. He's going to have to remain active though if he doesn't want to get stood back up.
Barnes seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Gutierrez for as long as he can get away with.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Don Barnes dominated that second round.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare each other down, ready to get back to the action. This is the final round!

Barnes throws a quick inside leg kick.
Barnes slips a jab from Gutierrez.
Barnes appears to be looking for a counter takedown.
Barnes keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Gutierrez.
Barnes cracks Gutierrez with a right hand to the side of the head.
Gutierrez misses with a body shot.
Barnes misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Gutierrez lunges in with an uppercut that skims his opponent's chin.
Gutierrez swings widly with a right hand

and Barnes counters with a nice double leg into half guard.
Barnes winds up and cracks Gutierrez with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
Barnes sitting and controlling from the half guard.
Gutierrez is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
Barnes is just sitting in half guard, waiting for something to happen.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Barnes thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Gutierrez's head.
Barnes is keen to just control but Gutierrez is a slippery customer.
Gutierrez wants to get back to full guard.
Barnes looks to score some points with some ground and pound.
Barnes lands with an elbow from half guard - that looked like it hurt.
Barnes seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Gutierrez does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.
Don Barnes overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Barnes thows a huge punch but Gutierrez dodges it nicely.
Barnes is trying to control the action in half guard but Gutierrez is working away on the bottom, looking perhaps to get back to full guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Barnes works his foot free and advances to mount.
Barnes postures up and cracks his opponent a couple of times before moving back into close ground control. Gutierrez looks a forlorn figure.
Barnes looking to ground and pound but Gutierrez is blocking nicely.
Barnes breaks from Gutierrez's wrist control and lands an elbow.
Barnes lands a couple of good shots and Gutierrez has given up his back, trying to escape the position!
Barnes punishes Gutierrez with strikes from the back mount.
Barnes is working the ground and pound. Can Gutierrez escape?
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Barnes scores with strikes from the back.
Barnes controlling the position well here. Gutierrez rolled but Barnes kept the hooks locked in and stayed in the dominant position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Barnes lands with a hammerfist to the side of Gutierrez's head.

Gutierrez fending off the submission attempt from Barnes.
Gutierrez just trying to survive but Barnes is wriggling into a better position, looking to finish.
Alex Gutierrez has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Gutierrez prevents Barnes from getting a body triangle.
Barnes is punishing Gutierrez with strikes - can he finish him?!
Gutierrez is being controlled on the ground here - he must escape this position otherwise surely the end is near.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Barnes looking to hold on to the position here but Gutierrez rolls and ends up regaining guard.
Barnes is in close to Gutierrez's body, working some short punches and elbows.
Barnes controls from within his opponent's guard.
Gutierrez keeping full guard, as Barnes tries to pass.
Gutierrez preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.

Gutierrez is throwing his legs up, looking for submissions. Barnes is aware though and is defending well.

Gutierrez is active off his back here, looking for submissions.
Barnes seems content to control from guard here. He's going to have to remain active though if he doesn't want to get stood back up.

And that's the end of the fight!
Don Barnes showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Barnes has outscored his opponent in every aspect of the fight today. Only a scarily incompetent judge or two will keep him from a well deserved win... Over to the ring announcer for the scorecards.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 3 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Shigeki Sano scores the fight 30:27
Judge Yuuki Gou scores the fight 30:27
Judge Tatsuya Matsuyama scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Don Barnes!
Don Barnes decided to go for the less than humble approach in his post fight interview, telling everyone how he is going to conquer the world. The crowd seemed to like it when really that sort of approach could have gone either way.