PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Aljosa Medeiros (ranked 1345 p4p, 1980 weight class) and LaDaniel Strong (ranked 171 p4p, 233 weight class). Medeiros comes to the cage accompanied by Sidequest - Chime. 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.

Medeiros
vs
Strong

174 cm
26
160
9 - 10 - 1

179 cm
26
159
7 - 5 - 0

Good wrestling
World class boxer
Granite chin

Good wrestler
World class boxer
Fast

Knockaround Guys Fight Gear

Conviction
Conquer

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the lightweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 9 - 10 - 1, fighting out of Montreal, Aljosa Medeiros!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 7 - 5 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, LaDaniel Strong!
The judges for this bout are Wagner Zegers, Paulsen Ambrosius and Daniel Blasius.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Medeiros throws a sloppy body shot

and Strong moves into the clinch.
Strong lands a shoulder strike.
Strong blocks an uppercut.
Strong lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
Strong can't find room to land a body shot as Medeiros controls the action.
Strong softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.
Strong throws a punch but it's blocked by Medeiros.
Strong lands a hook that snaps the head of Medeiros backwards.
Nice body punch from Strong.
Strong misses with some punches.
Medeiros fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Medeiros blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Medeiros doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
A head punch on the inside from Medeiros fails to land.
Medeiros's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Medeiros is trying to maintain a safe position but Strong gets an underhook and turns Medeiros into the cage.
Medeiros has a couple of punches blocked by Strong.
Medeiros lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Medeiros is trying to push Strong away but Strong has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Medeiros misses with a punch on the inside.
Medeiros 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.
Strong is working Medeiros over against the cage.
Strong misses with a short punch on the inside.
Strong keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Medeiros's efforts to push away.
Medeiros misses with a punch to the body.
Strong has Medeiros pressed against the cage, preventing Medeiros from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Medeiros tries to work over Strong's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Medeiros is trying to stall.
Strong struggles to land a body shot inside as Medeiros controls his hands.
Medeiros content to slow the pace in the clinch.
Strong working aggressively here.
Strong throws a head punch that misses.
Strong lands a nice shot to the body.
Strong gets through Medeiros's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Strong lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A hook to the body from Strong.
Strong throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Strong blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Medeiros misses with a punch on the inside.
A short uppercut from Strong.
Medeiros is trying to break the clinch but Strong is controlling him.
Strong lands a nice uppercut.
Medeiros takes a shot to the head.
This has been an exciting period of action!

Medeiros's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Strong takes a shot to the nose. Hopefully that hasn't broken it.

It looks like LaDaniel Strong has been cut.
Medeiros swings for the body but Strong moves out of range.
Medeiros smiles there as he lands a nice right hand right on the button.
LaDaniel Strong is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Medeiros with a nice cross.
Medeiros blocks a jab.
Medeiros works the jab nicely.
Strong takes one on the chin but keeps coming.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Strong displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Medeiros throws out the jab.
And Strong responds with a good body kick, but Medeiros manages to step out the way in time.
Strong listening to his corner there, landing a nice uppercut.
Medeiros throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Strong swings away with a counter right hand but no contact made.
Strong defends well against a solid takedown attempt from Medeiros.
Boom, another hit is landed. "You're gunna get knocked out" taunts Medeiros, as that shot connected.
Strong lands a nice looking kick to the body. Medeiros takes a step back to recover.
Good shot there by Strong.
Strong slips under a jab.
Medeiros misses with an uppercut
and Strong counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Medeiros swings for the body but Strong moves out of range.
A big left from Strong misses.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Strong lands a jab to the head.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Strong's jab looks to have found its range, popping Medeiros under the eye.
Aljosa Medeiros seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Strong throws a sloppy head kick and Medeiros moves out of range easily.
Strong throws out a loose jab but Medeiros uses good head movement to avoid it.
Medeiros scores with the left hand. Strong knows he should have avoided that one.
Medeiros throws a jab but it's blocked by Strong.
Medeiros lands a jab to Strong's midsection.
Strong scores with a kick to the midsection.
Medeiros punishes Strong's body with a nice straight punch.

Medeiros darts in and lands a nice takedown into half guard.
The crowd applaud the fighters' efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Medeiros content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

LaDaniel Strong dominated that round.
The cut man is working on LaDaniel Strong's cut.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action!

Strong lands with an overhand left.
Strong uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Medeiros.
Strong lands with a cross.
Medeiros just misses with a punch to the body.
Medeiros cracks a nice hook into Strong's ribs.
Jab by Strong.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Medeiros misses with a wild body shot.
Strong uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Medeiros.
Strong staying out of range there.
Medeiros misses the body punch
and Strong counters with a kick to the head that grazes his opponent. Medeiros is lucky that one didn't land flush.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Medeiros dives in and scores a takedown into Strong's guard.
Medeiros works a leg free and moves into half guard.
Strong is refusing to be controlled, as Medeiros sits in half guard.
Strong regains full guard, whilst avoiding punches from Medeiros.
Strong preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Medeiros wants to control from the top but Strong keeps moving.
Strong is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Medeiros is looking to work some ground and pound but Strong has wrist control.
Medeiros works over Strong with some ground and pound from guard.
Medeiros wants to pass the guard but Strong is keeping the position.
Strong keeping moving, preventing Medeiros from controlling successfully.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Medeiros sneaks a leg through and gets to half guard. That was like a knife through butter how easily he passed Strong's guard.
Medeiros 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.
Strong wants to get back to his feet.
Strong is not content to let Medeiros control the position.
Medeiros throwing shots but Strong is blocking nicely.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Medeiros wants to control but Strong is keeping him busy.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.
Medeiros shoots in and drives through. Strong sprawls well.
Medeiros misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Strong.
Medeiros ducks right into an uppercut from Strong.
Strong steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Medeiros.
Medeiros changes levels and scores with a jab to the body.
Medeiros scores with a hook to the body. Strong takes a step back and tries to catch his breath.
Strong leaves Medeiros with his face pressed against the mat as he sprawls beautifully, defending against a solid takedown attempt.
Strong walks into a left hand.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Medeiros misses with a hook.
Medeiros on the wrong end of a vicious looking body shot.
Medeiros slips under a jab from Strong.
A swing and a miss from Strong.
Medeiros walks forward, straight into a front kick from Strong.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Medeiros pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Medeiros throws a body shot but no joy.
Medeiros with a lazy takedown attempt
and Strong counters with a lovely straight right hand!
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Aljosa Medeiros. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Medeiros loads up on a big right hand but Strong slips the punch.
Medeiros misses with a takedown attempt
and Strong counters with a straight right hand.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

A close second round but LaDaniel Strong will probably get the nod - 10:9.
The cut man is working on LaDaniel Strong's cut.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, 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.

A swing and a miss from Medeiros.
Strong wants to counter the offense by Medeiros and move into the clinch position.
Medeiros moving in and out of range nicely, whilst landing the scoring shot.
Strong lands a nice looking kick to the body. Medeiros takes a step back to recover.
Strong throws a shot to the body.
Medeiros shoots in but Strong avoids the takedown attempt easily.
Medeiros swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Strong scores with a punch to the gut of his opponent.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Strong jabs Medeiros to the body, keeping him at a distance.
Strong throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Medeiros throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Strong misses with a hook. Medeiros ducked under it nicely.
It looked like Medeiros wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.
Medeiros takes a body punch that cleary hurt but he's trying not to show any weakness.
Strong connects with a body shot.
Nice body kick there by Strong.
Strong pivots as if he's going to throw a leg kick but stops half way.
Medeiros tries for a takedown but Strong circles away easily
and Strong counters with a straight punch to the midsection.
Strong fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
Strong looks to score with a jab to the body but Medeiros is just out of range.
Medeiros swung with a counter right hand that didn't connect.
Strong looks to land a combination but Medeiros avoids it well.
Boom, another hit is landed. "You're gunna get knocked out" taunts Strong, as that shot connected.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The fighters circling - Strong throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
It looked like Medeiros wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.
Medeiros throws a body shot but no joy.
Strong throws an overhand right that lands on Medeiros's shoulder, as Medeiros tries to avoid the shot.
It looked like Medeiros was trying to counter with a body shot coming off that last attack from Strong.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Medeiros uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Strong.
Strong throws a nice hook to the body that draws an oooh from the crowd.
Medeiros misses with a shot to the body
and Strong makes him pay by landing a nice hook to the body before moving out of range.

Medeiros shoots in looking for a single leg takedown. Strong is trying to defend but Medeiros finishes it well and ends up in half guard. Let's see if he can advance position further.
Medeiros not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Medeiros thows a huge punch but Strong dodges it nicely.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Medeiros is trying to control. Strong wants to improve his position but can't escape this time.
Medeiros seems content to maintain position for now, rather than mounting any offense.
Medeiros thows a huge punch but Strong dodges it nicely.
Medeiros missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
Strong is trying to stand.
The referee claps his hands together and tells the fighters to work.
Aljosa Medeiros overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Strong keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Strong is not content to let Medeiros control the position.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Medeiros fails with a takedown attempt from distance.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Aljosa Medeiros. That's going to take a lot out of him.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
Medeiros slips under a jab.
Medeiros lands with a shot to the body.

Medeiros drives through with a takedown into guard.
Medeiros throwing strikes but missing.
Strong keeping full guard, as Medeiros tries to pass.

Strong manages to wriggle out and sneak his way back up to his feet, so the fighters are now clinched up against the cage.
Medeiros's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Strong doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Aljosa Medeiros has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Medeiros misses with the head strike.
Strong lands a shoulder strike.

And that's the end of the fight!
LaDaniel Strong comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Strong winning every round here. Surely the decision will go his way and he'll pick up a well deserved decision victory. 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 Wagner Zegers scores the fight 27:30
Judge Paulsen Ambrosius scores the fight 27:30
Judge Daniel Blasius scores the fight 27:30

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