PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Bernhard River (ranked 297 p4p, 433 weight class) and Tommy Reed (ranked 15 p4p, 25 weight class). River kept the crowd waiting but all that was forgotten when his ring entrance music started. The incomparable musical genius that is Metallica: Enter Sandman. Reed is bouncing up and down as he enters the arena, backed by Tupac ft 50 Cent - Get Up Remix. Bernhard River had a look across the cage there at his opponent. He definitely means business

River
vs
Reed

170 cm
29
135
16 - 8 - 0

168 cm
32
144
18 - 9 - 0

Great wrestler
World class boxer
Insanely flexible

Olympic wrestler
Excellent MT
Good gas tank

Brooklyn Threads
Brooklyn Apothecary

Brooklyn Apothecary
Conviction

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 16 - 8 - 0, fighting out of New York, Bernhard River!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 18 - 9 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Tommy Reed!
The judges for this bout are Dillan Fox, Steve Smith and Elvis Blanc.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
River goes for a spinning back kick but it misses.
Reed pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Reed stumbles momentarily as he takes a strong leg kick from River.
Reed blocks the body kick.
River throws a low kick but it's checked well by Reed.

River closes the distance and looks for a trip takedown... aaaand he's got it - River lands in his opponent's guard.

Reed pushes River off for just long enough to get back to his feet. Very athletic spring there.
Reed misses with a looping right.
Reed blocks the body kick.
Reed appears to be waiting to throw a counter punch to the body.
Reed takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
River lands with a cross.
River throws a shot from downtown. Reed moves away and avoids it.
River throws a body shot but no joy.
River throws a low kick, looking for Reed's leg but Reed calmly moves out of range.
River tries a head kick but it misses.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Reed ducks down and throws a hook to the body but River moves away.
Reed throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
River misses with a hook
and Reed counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Reed throws an ugly left hook that misses
and River counters with a nice body shot.
River uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Reed.
Reed stuffs the takedown.
River tries to clinch there but Reed circles away.
River lands an overhand left. A wild punch that just about connected.
River waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Reed.
Reed throws a counter combo.
River's jab looks to have found its range, popping Reed under the eye.
Reed on the wrong end of a vicious looking body shot.
Reed throws an ugly left hook that misses
enabling River to counter with a crisp jab.
Reed tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but River was well out of range. Poor timing from Reed.
Reed dodges the punch combination from River.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
River connects with a lovely jab that went straight through the gap between Reed's hands.
Reed avoids a kick to the body.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Reed lunges in with an uppercut that skims his opponent's chin.
Reed misses with a looping right.
Reed dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
River lands with a right hand.
River lands with an overhand left.
River throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Bernhard River seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Reed throws a right and a left that both miss.
River does a little shimmy and throws a leg kick. The leg kick missed by a considerable margin though, making him look a little bit silly for doing the shimmy.
Reed is loading up here, looking for a big counter of his own.
River is really peppering his opponent's head with punches.
Reed misses with a hook.
River lands a nice leg kick that just misses Reed's sensitive parts.
Reed jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Reed moves his head to the side to avoid a jab but walks straight into a cross.
Good leg kick by River.
Reed throws a jab when River was well out of range.
River ducks under a wild hook from Reed.
Reed misses with a straight left.
River scores with a jab.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
River displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Reed throws out the jab.

River shoots in with a lovely double leg takedown. Reed manages to land in full guard to minimise the damage.

Reed is throwing his legs up, looking for submissions. River is aware though and is defending well.
River trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Reed is pulling down on River's head. It's preventing any offense from River, at least for the moment.
River looking to pass the guard.
River trying to control the position from guard on top but Reed is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

Reed working for a triangle but River defends it easily.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
River trying to control but Reed is working from the bottom.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
River slows down the pace of the fight for a moment. He'll need to remain active if he doesn't want to see the fight stood back up.
River won't allow Reed to sweep him here.
Reed controlling the position.
Reed wants to hit a sweep here but River passes into full mount! Oh no, disaster for Reed there!
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Bernhard River dominated that round.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

River throws a body punch but Reed moves out of range.
A lazy left from River finds it's target.
Reed lands a jab to River's midsection.
A looping hook to the body misses from River. Reed does a little dance to reset his feet.
We are yet to see a takedown attempt from Reed in the fight. On paper you would think he is the more dominant ground fighter so let's see if these unusual tactics pay off.
River scores with a nice strike.
A slow jab from Reed misses its intended target.
River getting the better of the striking in that exchange.
Reed avoids the body shot from River.
River is looking to land body kicks.
Reed looked like he wanted to counter with a punch but didn't throw it.
River throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Reed's waist but Reed gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing River off to one side.
River avoids a punch combination nicely.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Reed scores with a jab.
River needs to keep his hands up - Reed had a free shot at his head there.
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!
Reed dodges the punch combination from River.
Reed looked like he wanted to counter with a punch but didn't throw it.
A shot to the liver by Reed. Beautiful body shot.

That's one minute gone in the round.
River avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Reed throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent River stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
River slips a straight right by Reed.
Reed cracks River with a right hand to the side of the head.
Nice defenses there by River.
No joy there for River, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
River scores with a shot to the body.
River misses with an attempted mid kick.
Reed takes a shot to the body in his stride.
Reed lands a body shot.
Reed on the wrong end of a nice jab.
River connects with a hook to the side of his opponent's head.
River tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
River throws an off balance right hand
and Reed counters with a nice body shot.
River has his head slapped from side to side by a 3 punch combination. That must have hurt him.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
River takes a jab on the nose there. A little bit of blood seems to be coming out. Hopefully that won't affect his breathing.
River moves out of range as Reed strikes.
Good standup being displayed there by River as he connects with a hook.
River throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Reed stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
River jabs at Reed's body.
Reed fails to land with a series of punches.
River is looking to counter punch.
River moves out of range as Reed strikes.
River thumps Reed with a low kick.
Reed misses with a looping left.
Reed jabs at River's body.
A big right from River misses.
River lands an overhand right.
Reed tries to check a leg kick but that clearly hurt him.
River avoids the body shot from Reed.
River lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.
Reed clobbers River with an overhand right that has the crowd gasping. That made a horrendous noise.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Reed rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but River moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
Reed throws a couple of head shots and lands with the final one - a decent hook, which struck River on the side of the head.
River throws a right and a left that Reed avoids nicely.
Nice jab there from Reed.
The fighters circling - Reed throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Reed keeps the fight standing with a nice sprawl.
Reed throws a series of punches but River moves out of range.
A swing and a miss from Reed.
Reed fakes high and swings low for a body shot but River manages to avoid it.
River takes a jab right on the kisser.
River throws a series of punches but Reed avoids them all with ease.
Reed misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.

River instigates a clinch.
Reed is trying to break the clinch but River has him pressed against the cage.
Reed is trying to break the clinch but River is controlling him.
Reed is leaning against River and scores with a nice uppercut to the body.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Reed fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
River goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
River lands with a short shot to the head.
River doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
River digs a right hand into Reed's ribs. Those have got to be taking their toll on Reed's gas tank.
River jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Reed walks away with a smile on his face. River gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Bernhard River. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Reed throws a left and a right that both miss
and River counters nicely by changing levels and landing a hook to the body.
River throws a jab to the body, straight down the pipe. Boom. That sent Reed stumbling backwards but he manages to regain his composure quickly.
River misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Reed misses with a straight right.
Reed on the wrong end of a nice low kick. He's acting like it's no big deal but he doesn't want to take many more of those.
River with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Reed throws a lazy uppercut
and River counters with a two punch combo.
River lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.

River has taken the fight to the clinch.
Reed misses with a hook from the clinch.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that Bernhard River will probably get the nod.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business. Let's hear some noise people - this is the final round!

River takes the fight into the clinch.
River tries to pull guard but Reed forces him back to his feet, against the cage.
River tries to work over Reed's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
River tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
Reed swings away with an uppercut that misses.

Reed pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Reed's leg has a nasty welt from taking a succession of leg kicks. That must be slowing him down.
Reed tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but River was well out of range. Poor timing from Reed.
River throws a big shot that misses.
Reed is looking for the big counter here.
Nice jab there from River.
Reed throws a lazy uppercut

and River counters by moving into the clinch. Good anticipation by River.
River blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
River blocking some punches.
Reed swings wildly with an uppercut but River uses good head movement to avoid it.
River digs a right hand into Reed's ribs. Those have got to be taking their toll on Reed's gas tank.
Reed fails to land with a short punch on the inside.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Reed misses with the head strike.

River gets double underhooks and manages to take the fight to the ground.
Bernhard River overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Reed trying to keep a closed guard but River is proving a slippery customer.
River is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
River wants to pass the guard but Reed is keeping the position.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
River trying to control the position from guard on top but Reed is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Reed utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Reed managing to control the position.
River controlling from the top position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Reed looking to hit a scissor sweep but River is one step ahead there.
Reed lands a beautiful sweep and he's now moved into his opponent's guard.

Reed trying to control the position from guard on top but River is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
River working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Reed.
Reed passes River's right leg, so he's now in half guard.

River looking to work for a kimura from the bottom.
Reed takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Reed performing his best blanket impression for a moment.
Reed thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed River's head.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are hurling abuse towards the fighters... You can hardly blame them though because there isn't a lot going on in the fight.
River tries to roll over but Reed keeps him under control.
Reed is trying to control. River wants to improve his position but can't escape this time.
Reed not doing much here.

River looking for submissions from an awkward position here.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Tommy Reed has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Reed throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Reed fakes high and swings low for a body shot but River manages to avoid it.

Reed gets caught flat footed, as River shoots in with a quick takedown into guard.

Reed has a loose triangle. He'll be looking to tighten that up but River can see exactly what he's planning and manages to posture up and free himself.
River throwing strikes but missing.

And that's the end of the fight!
That was a close round. You could make an argument for either fighter but I would give it to Bernhard River.
Well River 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 Dillan Fox scores the fight 30:27
Judge Steve Smith scores the fight 30:27
Judge Elvis Blanc scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Bernhard River!
A victorious Bernhard River thanked his army of followers in his post fight interview, telling people to make sure they follow him on Twitter.