PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Rock Romero (ranked 747 p4p, 1290 weight class) and Derrick Barnes (ranked 106 p4p, 183 weight class). Barnes has chosen We Want The Funk as his entrance music. 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.

Romero
vs
Barnes

186 cm
28
177
18 - 10 - 0

180 cm
32
178
26 - 20 - 0

Good wrestling
World class boxer
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
Excellent MT
Fast

Brooklyn Apothecary
Brooklyn Threads

Bondi MMA 🏝️

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 18 - 10 - 0, fighting out of Hilo, Rock Romero !
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 26 - 20 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Derrick Barnes !
The judges for this bout are Reed Andrews, Russell Pearce and Eddie Farnsworth.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Romero tries to move into range but Barnes moves to the side and lands with a nice right hand.
Barnes 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.
Romero pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Barnes misses with a leg kick.
Romero throws an overhand right that lands on Barnes 's shoulder, as Barnes tries to avoid the shot.
No joy there for Barnes , who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Barnes avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Barnes defending well as Romero loads up on a big left hand.
Barnes bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Romero swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Barnes swings away with a counter right hand but no contact made.
Barnes throws a low kick but Romero moves out of range easily.
Romero throwing a counter right hand but Barnes manages to avoid it.
Barnes throws a nice looking combination but Romero bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
A left and a right from Barnes both land. Nice combination.
Romero stuffs the takedown.
Romero throws a body shot but no joy.
Romero sizes up Barnes with a pawing jab and scores with a straight right down the middle.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Romero fails to land with a series of punches.
Barnes slips a straight right by Romero .
Romero pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Barnes misses the shot to the body.
Romero pushing out the jab but it's not landing.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Romero cracks Barnes with a hook to the jaw. Both fighters smile at eachother and high-five before getting back down to business.

Barnes is looking for a takedown here. He's shot in and has managed to get it, finishing up in Romero 's half guard.
Barnes missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
Barnes not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Barnes missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
Barnes tries to pass to full mount but Romero defends it.
Barnes throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Barnes works his way into side control.
Romero 's coaches at have been working on his defensive grappling in preparation for this fight so let's see if he can get out of this tricky position.
Barnes throwing shots but missing, from side control.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Romero defending against the ground and pound.
Barnes working the ground and pound but Romero is defending the strikes.
Barnes tries to move into full mount but can't pass Romero 's legs.
Barnes cracks Romero with a big elbow.
Barnes tries to land with some ground and pound but misses.
Barnes postures up a little and throws a couple of hammerfists but they don't connect properly.
This has been an exciting period of action!
The ground and pound from Barnes seems to be hitting the mat more than his opponent.
Romero takes a couple of big shots there - the referee warns him that he has to defend himself better.
Barnes throwing strikes but missing, from side control.
Barnes scores with punches from side control.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Barnes working the ground and pound but Romero is defending the strikes.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Romero avoids any damage from the ground and pound of Barnes .
Barnes throwing shots but missing, from side control.
Barnes tries to move into full mount but can't pass Romero 's legs.
Barnes in side control, throwing shots but Romero defends.
Romero dodges the ground and pound from Barnes .
Barnes in side control, throwing shots but Romero defends.
Barnes in side control lands a decent elbow.
Romero takes an elbow right on the bridge of the nose and winces in pain.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
Barnes wants to lay and pray for a moment but Romero keeps working.
Barnes working away diligently from side control. Landing strikes effectively there - that will score him some points on the judges scorecards.
Barnes tries to score with some ground and pound. Romero controls his posture well this time though and the shots don't do any damage.
Barnes looking to punish the body of his opponent here but Romero is avoiding damage well.

Barnes wants to work for a kimura but he's foiled early by Romero , who protects the arm well.
Romero takes an elbow right on the bridge of the nose and winces in pain.
Barnes cracks Romero with a big right hand but Romero just smiles back at him and invites him to have another go.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Derrick Barnes dominated that round.
That's the end of the interval. I'm sure that seemed a lot quicker than a minute for our two fighters! Back to the action.

A big right from Romero misses.
Derrick Barnes is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Barnes staying out of range there.
Barnes feints the counter takedown.
Romero throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Barnes ducks under a wild hook from Romero .
A jab lands there for Romero .
Nice shot by Barnes .
Romero throws a jab but it's blocked by Barnes .
Barnes moves out of range as Romero strikes.
Barnes connects nicely with a jab. Noted by the judges no doubt.
Barnes avoids a punch combination nicely.
Barnes displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Romero throws out the jab.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Romero scores with a jab.
Romero looks to land a left hand but Barnes moved out of range nicely.
Romero walks straight into an uppercut. Luckily it didn't land flush.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Romero throws a series of punches but Barnes avoids them all with ease.
Some wild striking there from Barnes .

That's one minute gone in the round.
Romero throws an overhand right that lands on Barnes 's shoulder, as Barnes tries to avoid the shot.
Romero throws a shot from downtown. Barnes moves away and avoids it.
Romero cracks Barnes with a hook to the jaw. Both fighters smile at eachother and high-five before getting back down to business.
A good leg kick by Barnes .
Barnes ducks under a wild hook from Romero .
Barnes blocks a jab.
Romero scores with a nice strike.
Barnes takes a swing at Romero 's ribcage but misses.
Barnes dodges the punch combination from Romero .
Barnes staying out of range there.
Romero swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Barnes throws the left hand but Romero avoids the punch easily.
A telegraphed right hand from Romero misses the target.
Romero throws a nice looking combination but Barnes bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
Romero blocks a leg kick.
Barnes thuds his right hand into Romero 's forehead from close range. That could be painful for both fighters.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Romero pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Barnes throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Rock Romero is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Romero swinging wildly here.
Barnes throws a looping overhand right but Romero ducks down to avoid it.
Barnes lands a beauty of a right hand that gets the crowd cheering.
Barnes misses with a body shot.
Barnes moves away from the strike by Romero .
As Romero backs off Barnes throws a huge counter combo but Romero manages to avoid it all.
Romero misses the shot to the body.
Barnes drops down looking to force a counter takedown but Romero defends it well.
Romero misses the shot to the body.
Barnes shuffles to his left behind two crisp jabs. Romero eats them both and turns towards Barnes to reposition himself and eats a stinging right hand-left hook combo.
Romero is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Barnes .
Rock Romero is winning the standup battle so far.
Nice straight punches there by Romero . You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Romero .
Barnes ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Romero misses with a straight left.
Romero takes a step towards his opponent and connects with a left hand, before circling away.
Good work by Romero as he checks the leg kick.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
A nice inside leg kick there by Barnes . That's going to slow Romero down.
Romero swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Barnes throws a low kick but Romero moves out of range easily.
Romero throws a shot from downtown. Barnes moves away and avoids it.
Romero misses with a looping left.
Romero rushes in with a sloppy looking punch

and Barnes decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Romero 's guard.
Barnes lands a couple of elbows.
Barnes sitting in guard, not really doing much.
Barnes postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Romero keeping full guard, as Barnes tries to pass.
Barnes missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Derrick Barnes has got the better of the ground game so far.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Barnes loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Barnes throwing strikes from guard but Romero blocks nicely.
Barnes wants to pass the guard but Romero is keeping the position.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Barnes accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
Barnes postures up in Romero 's guard and throws a big left but Romero blocks it.
Barnes tries to free his leg and advance position but Romero is retaining full guard.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up.
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 Rock Romero will probably get the nod.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! So, we enter the final round. Let's see if either fighter can bring us a finish, or whether we're going to the judges scorecards.

Barnes connects with a jab.
Romero throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Barnes sees it coming and avoids it easily.
Barnes lands a body shot.
Romero fakes a head shot and lands one to the body.
A clash of legs there as Romero blocks the low kick.
Romero misses with a looping right.
Barnes tries to bum rush Romero with a series of wild strikes but Romero uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Barnes walks straight into an uppercut. Luckily it didn't land flush.
Romero takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.
Barnes jabs at Romero 's body.
Romero waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Barnes .
A swing and a miss from Romero .
Barnes swings away with a counter right hand but no contact made.
Barnes finds nothing but air with that leg kick attempt.
Barnes doesn't manage to clinch there - Romero circles away.
Barnes blocks a jab.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Romero slips a jab from Barnes .
Barnes misses with a low kick as Romero jumps back.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A big left from Romero misses.
Romero misses with an uppercut. Barnes saw that one coming.
Romero takes a step towards his opponent and connects with a left hand, before circling away.
Barnes ducks under a wild hook from Romero .
Barnes scores with a leg kick.
Romero jabbing away but nothing is landing.
Romero takes a swing at Barnes 's ribcage but misses.
Barnes tries a counter takedown but it's more of a dummy move, and he uses it to push himself away.
Romero misses with a hook. Barnes ducked under it nicely.
Romero is really head hunting here, hardly looking to strike to the body at all.
Barnes displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Romero throws out the jab.
Barnes is definitely looking for the counter takedowns here.
Romero shuffles to his left behind two crisp jabs. Barnes eats them both and turns towards Romero to reposition himself and eats a stinging right hand-left hook combo.
Barnes throws a head kick that connects with a bit of head and a bit of hand.
Romero stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Romero wants it to stay on the feet.
Nice uppercut lands for Romero . That snapped Barnes 's head back.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!

Barnes throws the overhand right but ducks down into a quick takedown attempt. Romero was covering up waiting for the punch and Barnes finishes the takedown easily into guard.
Barnes working some strikes from top position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Barnes connects with a couple of short punches.
Barnes scoring with punches to the head and body.
Barnes passes easily into side control. Nice work.
Barnes throws a knee to the body but it doesn't do much damage.
Barnes throwing ground and pound but whilst doing so, he forgets to control position and Romero works his way back to half guard. Good composure under pressure.
Barnes wants to lay and pray for a moment but Romero keeps working.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Barnes drops an elbow to the side of Romero 's head.
Romero is looking for a sweep. Barnes is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Romero is looking to control Barnes 's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Romero avoid being mounted?
Barnes with the ground and pound but Romero uses the opportunity to regain guard.
Barnes trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Barnes throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Romero works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Barnes in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Barnes wants to control from the top but Romero keeps moving.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
My god... these two guys really need to pick up the pace or everyone will leave to go get a beer.
Romero preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Barnes is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
Barnes with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.
Barnes throwing strikes from guard but Romero blocks nicely.
Barnes is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
Barnes pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Romero is keeping the position for now.
Barnes has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.
Barnes loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
The referee is asking the fighters to pick up the pace.

And that's the end of the fight!
Derrick Barnes comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Barnes 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 Reed Andrews scores the fight 28:29
Judge Russell Pearce scores the fight 28:29
Judge Eddie Farnsworth scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Derrick Barnes !
A relieved looking Derrick Barnes thanked the fans for their support and gave the usual line about them being amazing. They seemed to believe that he actually meant it.