PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Jake Askren (ranked 2269 p4p, 2346 weight class) and Nasir Prince (ranked 125 p4p, 128 weight class). The crowd seem to be enjoying Prince's choice of entrance music: Nas- N.Y. State of Mind. Both fighters look pumped up here. Let's hope this is a good fight!

Askren
vs
Prince

170 cm
24
145
8 - 9 - 1

171 cm
24
145
8 - 5 - 1

Good wrestling
Solid boxing
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
Excellent MT
Good gas tank

Groove Gear

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 8 - 9 - 1, fighting out of London, Jake Askren!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 8 - 5 - 1, fighting out of Los Angeles, Nasir Prince!
The judges for this bout are Donald Grub, Sam Margolis and James Glass.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Prince lands a glancing blow to the side of Askren's head.
Prince throws a lazy right hand but Askren sees it coming a mile off and sidesteps it easily.
Askren throws a hook but Prince avoids it easily.
Askren throws a nice hook to the body that draws an oooh from the crowd.
Donk. Prince catches Askren right on the button with a cross.
Prince throws out a loose jab but Askren uses good head movement to avoid it.
Prince with poor footwork there. He got himself in a bit of a tangle, enabling Askren to score with a decent uppercut.
Askren uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Prince.
Prince looks to score with a jab to the body but Askren is just out of range.
Prince swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Askren walks into a jab.
Prince has his hands up protecting his head but a hook from Askren finds it's way round the side to connect with Prince's head.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Askren takes a jab on the nose there. A little bit of blood seems to be coming out. Hopefully that won't affect his breathing.
A clash of legs there as Askren blocks the low kick.
Askren works the jab nicely.
Askren ducks under a wild hook from Prince.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Prince ducks under a wild hook from Askren.
Prince takes a shot right to the bread basket.
Askren misses with a looping left.
Prince gets cracked there but stands up to it.
Prince thuds a mid kick into his opponent's body. That will wear on Askren if he has to take too many more of those.
A combination from Prince does no damage.
Askren takes a jab right on the nose. That must have hurt but he shrugs his shoulders and looks to return the favor.
Prince is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Askren.
Askren with a hook.
Prince with a nice cross.
Askren looks to land a combination but Prince avoids it well.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Askren throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
It seemed like Prince was going to counter with the hook but didn't fully commit to it.
That kick from Prince tenderised Askren's leg. Askren is trying to keep his angry face on.
Prince has been spending a lot of time sparring his boxing in the run up to the fight, trying to sharpen up those hands and look for a knockout.
Prince keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
And an attempted straight right on the counter from Prince! But no joy.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Askren jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Prince tries to score with a leg kick but it misses it's target.
Prince throws a push kick but Askren slaps the foot to one side.
Askren is looking to counter punch.
Prince staying out of range there.
Prince misses with a straight left.
Askren tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Prince was well out of range. Poor timing from Askren.
Askren connects nicely with a jab. Noted by the judges no doubt.
Prince thows a left - swing and a miss!
Prince will need to close the distance a bit before he attacks - that leg kick was thrown from too far away.
Prince swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Prince throws a right hand that misses
and Askren counters with a left to the body.
Askren slips a jab from Prince.
Askren looks to have improved his striking defense since last time we saw him fight.
A looping hook to the body misses from Prince. Askren does a little dance to reset his feet.
Prince misses with a straight left.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Askren moves to clinch but Prince breaks away
and Prince counters with a straight punch to the midsection.
Prince with a nice cross.
Askren slips a straight right by Prince.
Askren lands a nice shot to the body.
Askren throws a jab but it's blocked by Prince.
Askren takes one to the side of the head.
Prince throws a hook to the side of Askren's head but Askren sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.

Askren moves into range and clinches up with Prince.
Prince is working Askren over against the cage.
Prince tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Askren's elbow.
Prince prevents a body shot from Askren.
Prince wants to stall.
Prince tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.

Prince breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Askren uses good head movement to avoid the hook from Prince.

Askren moves into range and clinches up with Prince.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Prince blocks an uppercut.
Prince working hard to break the clinch.
Prince misses with a short punch on the inside.
Askren lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Prince backwards.
A head punch on the inside from Askren fails to land.
Askren lands a nice uppercut.
Prince pushes off and fires off an elbow that misses, before clinching up again, against the cage.
Askren throws a head punch that misses.
Prince manages to get underhooks and slows down the pace for a moment.
Askren misses with a body punch.
Askren misses with a body punch.
Prince misses with a hook from the clinch.
Askren lands an uppercut.
Askren lands with a short shot to the head.
Askren working aggressively here.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Askren misses with a hook to the ribs.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

A close round but Nasir Prince will probably get the nod.
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.

Askren ducks under a wild hook from Prince.
Askren is looking to counter with a shot to the body.
Prince avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Prince scores with a decent looking hook.
Nasir Prince seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Nice defenses there by Askren.
A slow jab from Prince misses its intended target.
Askren avoids the body shot from Prince.
Askren misses with a telegraphed body shot
and Prince connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Prince showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Askren.
Prince feints a straight left to the body, then turns around with a flashy move and hits Askrens jaw with a dramatic spinning back fist!
Jake Askren seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Askren misses with a body punch
and Prince counters with a straight right hand.
A nice inside leg kick there by Prince. That's going to slow Askren down.
Askren slips a jab from Prince.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Askren ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Prince moves away.
Prince swings away with a counter right hand but no contact made.
Askren tries to clinch
and Prince makes him pay by landing a nice hook to the body before moving out of range.
Prince throws a quick head kick that skims the top of Askren's head.
A left lands for Askren.
A jab from Askren does it's job there.
Askren tries to clinch but Prince moves out of range.
Askren takes a body punch that cleary hurt but he's trying not to show any weakness.
Askren moves out of range of the body kick from Prince.
Askren was looking to counter that last move with a shot to the body but he didn't commit.
Prince jabs Askren right on the nose. Askren blinks but takes it well.
Askren's jab looks to have found its range, popping Prince under the eye.
Askren throws a nice hook to the body that draws an oooh from the crowd.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Prince misses with a straight left.
Prince misses with an uppercut
and Askren counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Prince goes for a high kick. It partially lands.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Prince misses with a hook
and Askren connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.

Askren gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.
Come on Prince - let's have some action - none of this stalling nonsense.

Prince breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.

Askren gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.
Askren has Prince pressed against the cage, preventing Prince from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Askren lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Askren dictating the pace here, as the fighters clinch against the cage.
Askren tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Prince's elbow.
Prince has a couple of punches blocked by Askren.
Prince softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Askren lands a right hand.
Askren is looking to control Prince's arms but Prince gets an underhook and turns him. Now Askren has his back to the cage.
Prince misses with a punch on the inside.
Askren has not gone for a single takedown so far in this fight, which seems like a very strange tactic when you consider that he has the superior wrestling and BJJ.
Prince lands with a light punch inside.
Prince lands a hook to the body. It's hard to tell if that hurt Askren or not.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Prince working some nice short punches in the clinch.
A battle for position here, against the cage.
Prince lands with a light punch inside.
Askren misses with the head strike.
Askren pressing his opponent against the cage.
Prince swings wildly with an uppercut but Askren uses good head movement to avoid it.
Askren stalls.

Prince escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Askren takes a thudding leg kick, right into the meat of the thigh.
Prince scores with a hook to the body. Askren takes a step back and tries to catch his breath.
Prince throws a right hand that misses
and Askren counters with a stiff right hand.
Prince staying out of range there.
Prince throws a series of punches but Askren avoids them all with ease.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Prince misses with an uppercut. Askren saw that one coming.
Askren staying out of range there.
Askren misses with a body shot.
Prince misses with the combination.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Prince pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Some bone on bone action there as Askren checks a low kick. Luckily it wasn't a particularly hard one.
Prince walks straight into an uppercut. Luckily it didn't land flush.
Prince throws a series of punches but Askren avoids them all with ease.
Prince misses with an uppercut. Askren saw that one coming.
A jab from Askren finds it's way through Prince's defenses.
Askren fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Prince manages to avoid it.
Askren sizes up Prince with a pawing jab and scores with a straight right down the middle.
Askren bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Nasir Prince showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. And we move into the final round!

Prince ducks under a wild hook from Askren.
Prince thows a left - swing and a miss!
Prince tries to bum rush Askren with a series of wild strikes but Askren uses good footwork to avoid the assault.

Prince tries to keep at a distance but Askren has taken the fight into the clinch.
Askren swings wildly with an uppercut but Prince uses good head movement to avoid it.
Askren lands a left hand that snaps the head of Prince backwards.
Askren misses with the head strike.
Prince lands with a light punch inside.
Prince lands a right hand.
Prince lands an uppercut.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Prince has a couple of punches blocked by Askren.
Askren misses with a hook to the ribs.
Prince's corner are urging him to control the action in the clinch for a moment, rather than mount any serious offense. I'm sure the crowd appreciate those instructions... not.
Askren struggles to land a body shot inside as Prince controls his hands.
Prince scores with a nice hook to the head.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Askren tries a body shot but Prince blocks it.
Askren has a couple of punches blocked by Prince.
Askren struggles to land a body shot inside as Prince controls his hands.
Prince creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Askren.
Askren lands a body shot in the clinch.
Askren lands with a left to the head.
Askren blocks a body shot from Prince.
Askren lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
Prince with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Askren avoiding damage.
Askren blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Still in the clinch, Askren scores with a nice short uppercut.
Askren lands an uppercut.
Prince misses with a punch on the inside.
Askren is trying to maintain a safe position but Prince gets an underhook and turns Askren into the cage.
Prince misses with the head strike.
A shot in the inside from Askren.
Askren throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
The pace slowing considerably in the clinch, as Prince takes a break from that fighting nonsense to think about the finer things in life.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A hook to the body from Askren.
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!
Prince tries to throw a body punch but Askren avoids it by throwing Prince back against the cage.
Askren scores with a hook to the body.
Askren swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Prince misses with the head strike.
A right hand to the body from Askren.
A nice left hand lands by Askren.
Askren lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Prince backwards.
Prince lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
Prince misses with the head strike.
Prince tries to work over Askren's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Prince misses with a punch on the inside.
Askren pushes Prince back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Askren tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Askren misses with a punch to the body.
Prince blocking some punches.
Prince scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Prince is working hard here but doesn't seem to be able to control effectively, up against the cage.
Prince fails to land with a short punch on the inside.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Prince's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Nice body punch from Prince - that landed with a thud.
Prince misses with some punches.
Askren tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Prince's elbow.
Askren swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Prince is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Askren is keeping busy.
A right hand to the body from Prince.
The two fighters are working to gain dominance in the clinch.
Prince throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Askren blocks it with crossed arms.
Prince throws a head punch that misses.
A nice right hand lands inside from Askren.
Prince lands a knee to the head there! That was nasty!
A nice left hand lands by Prince.
Prince throws a knee to the head but misses.
Prince takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Prince blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Prince lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Askren backwards.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Askren.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Askren stalling.
Askren fails to land with a short punch on the inside.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Prince working aggressively here.
Prince lands with a right to the head.
A head punch on the inside from Askren fails to land.
A right handed body shot lands from Prince.
Askren lands a hook that snaps the head of Prince backwards.
Askren lands with a short punch from the clinch.
Askren tries to throw a body punch but Prince avoids it by throwing Askren back against the cage.
Askren lands with a good tight uppercut to the head.
Askren tries to throw a body punch but Prince avoids it by throwing Askren back against the cage.
Prince lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Askren backwards.
Jake Askren has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Jake Askren has scored more points in the clinch so far.
Askren misses with some punches.
Askren pressing his opponent against the cage.
Prince misses with a short punch on the inside.
Askren lands with a right to the head.
Prince lands with a good tight uppercut to the head.
A short left from Prince.
A short uppercut from Prince.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
A right handed body shot lands from Prince.

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 Jake Askren.
I think Prince has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. 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 Donald Grub scores the fight 29:28
Judge Sam Margolis scores the fight 29:28
Judge James Glass scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by split decision... Jake Askren!
After winning the bout, Jake Askren thanked all his fans and promised he'd do even better in his next fight. The crowd seemed to love his humility.