PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Rickson Caceres (ranked 2161 p4p, 2723 weight class) and Rogerio Yamamoto (ranked 231 p4p, 280 weight class). Rogerio Yamamoto has the better chin. Will he look to stand and bang today?

Caceres
vs
Yamamoto

180 cm
26
157
7 - 4 - 0

172 cm
20
150
2 - 1 - 0

Good takedowns
Basic striking
Experienced

BJJ Blue Belt
Great elbows
Powerful

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 2 rounds, in the featherweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 7 - 4 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Rickson Caceres!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Rogerio Yamamoto!
The judges for this bout are Igor Prikhodko, Aleksandr Martynov and Illya Tyunina.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Caceres has closed the distance and engaged Yamamoto in a clinch.
Caceres is trying to pull guard but Yamamoto turns him against the ropes and we stay in the clinch.
Caceres takes an elbow to the forehead.
Caceres is trying to pull guard but Yamamoto has him pressed against the ropes.
Caceres being controlled against the ropes.
Yamamoto tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
Caceres is trying to work for a single leg takedown but Yamamoto pulls him back up using the underhooks.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Rickson Caceres. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Yamamoto lands a nice elbow.

It looks like Rickson Caceres has been cut.
Caceres jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Yamamoto walks away with a smile on his face. Caceres gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.

Yamamoto closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the ropes.
Yamamoto lands a nice elbow from the clinch.
Caceres is trying to pull guard but being pressed up against the ropes enables Yamamoto to keep the fight standing.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Caceres is trying to pull guard but Yamamoto turns him against the ropes and we stay in the clinch.
Yamamoto comes over the top with an elbow. That landed flush.
Caceres is trying to work for a single leg takedown but Yamamoto pulls him back up using the underhooks.
Caceres takes an elbow to the forehead.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Caceres takes an elbow to the temple.
Yamamoto tries a body shot but Caceres blocks it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Caceres jumps guard but Yamamoto turns him against the ropes and keeps the fight standing.
Caceres jumps guard but Yamamoto stands there with Caceres around his waist. Caceres gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
Caceres tries to pull guard but Yamamoto forces him back to his feet, against the ropes.
Yamamoto trying to control the position but instead, Caceres has worked for underhooks and has pushed Yamamoto into the ropes.
Caceres takes an elbow to the forehead.
Yamamoto lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
Caceres jumps guard but Yamamoto turns him against the ropes and keeps the fight standing.
Caceres on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
Yamamoto lands a damaging elbow.

Caceres is rocked!
Caceres fails to pull the fight into his guard.
Oh Caceres is still all over the place! His legs are completely gone! Will he be able to recover?!!
Yamamoto stalling against the ropes.
Caceres seems to have got his legs back now.
Yamamoto creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Caceres's defenses.
Yamamoto lands a nice elbow.
Yamamoto lands a nice elbow.

Rickson Caceres's cut is getting worse.
We've been hearing reports that Caceres has been drilling takedowns in recent sessions so let's see if that has an impact on the result of this fight.
Yamamoto tries to stall but Caceres uses the opportunity to gain a better position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Caceres jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Yamamoto walks away with a smile on his face. Caceres gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.

Caceres gets a takedown into half guard.
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!
Yamamoto is trying to stand back up but Caceres is controlling him
Caceres works his way into side control.
Yamamoto is trying to get back to his feet.
Yamamoto felt the need to train up his defensive grappling in the buildup to the fight. Presumably he was expecting to be in a difficult position like this, so let's see if he can get out of it.
Caceres wants to control but Yamamoto is keeping him busy.
Yamamoto really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Caceres. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
You can see the frustration on Yamamoto's face as Caceres controls the position.

Caceres thinks about going for a far side armbar but bails out and retains the dominant position instead.

Caceres tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Yamamoto wants to escape from the position here - easier said than done!

Caceres tries for a kimura but Yamamoto is defending well.
Caceres prevents Yamamoto from escaping the position.

Caceres tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.

The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
Caceres is looking for a kimura. He might have it! No, Yamamoto has escaped the position, nice work there.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Yamamoto is trying to get back to his feet.

Caceres is looking to finish here, going for an Americana. Yamamoto knows the correct defense though, so he's OK.
Caceres wants to lay and pray for a moment but Yamamoto keeps working.
The fighters are trapped in the ropes so we're going to have a reposition here. The ref calls for a break and repositions the fighters in the center of the ring.
Caceres prevents Yamamoto from escaping the position.
Caceres is putting a hurting on Yamamoto here, landing some big shots from side control.

Caceres working hard here to secure a kimura but he's not really in the right position for it.

Caceres has worked his way into a potential kimura here. Yamamoto is trying to get out of the position but his squirming has just got him deeper into trouble. Caceres yanks on the arm and Yamamoto is forced to tap due to a very painful looking submission! Nice work by Caceres.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 4:57 of round 1, we have a winner by way of Submission (Kimura). Rickson Caceres!
Rickson Caceres 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.