PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Buzzard Leonard (ranked 4437 p4p, 4485 weight class) and Rodney Shiesty (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Leonard
vs
Shiesty

182 cm
28
150
4 - 4 - 0

160 cm
23
150
1 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Solid boxing
Granite chin

BJJ Purple Belt
Brawler
Likes musicals

Northern Zombie

BANZAI COMBAT NUTRITION

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the featherweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 4 - 4 - 0, fighting out of New York, Buzzard Leonard!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Rodney Shiesty!
The judges for this bout are Bruno Lombardi, David Schapiro and Columbo Gatti.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Shiesty takes a shot right to the bread basket.
Leonard fails with a takedown attempt.
As Leonard backs off Shiesty throws a huge counter combo but Leonard manages to avoid it all.
Shiesty tries to shoot in for a takedown. He's got hold of a leg but Leonard swivels and escapes.
Leonard goes for a double leg but Shiesty avoids the attempt and the two fighters end up clinched against the cage as Shiesty continues to drive forward.
Leonard is looking to break free of the clinch but Shiesty has double underhooks.

Shiesty escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Leonard shoots in for a double leg but Shiesty sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Buzzard Leonard. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Leonard shoots in for a double leg but Shiesty sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.
Shiesty misses with a takedown attempt - Leonard sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Leonard fails to land the takedown.
Shiesty lets it all go there with a big combo counter but none of the punches connected.
Leonard dodges the punch combination from Shiesty.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Nice takedown defense from Shiesty. No joy for Leonard on that attempt.
Leonard misses with an attempted mid kick.
Shiesty is looking to clinch but Leonard is avoiding it.
Shiesty defends well against a solid takedown attempt from Leonard.
Leonard throws a leg kick

so Shiesty counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.
Shiesty throwing strikes but missing.
Shiesty landing some decent shots from guard.
Leonard knows he needs to get back to his feet asap. He's simply no match for Shiesty on the ground.
Leonard being controlled here, momentarily.
Leonard is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Shiesty is pushing down on Leonard's leg trying to pass to half guard. Leonard is fighting to maintain full guard but Shiesty has managed to sneak the leg through.
Leonard is holding on to half guard well.
Shiesty not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Leonard wants to improve his position but Shiesty is controlling well.
Leonard taking some punishment here, with Shiesty in his half guard.
Leonard has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Shiesty is working away from the top position though.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Leonard is going to have to think about doing something other than just controlling because Shiesty is managing to avoid having the position dictated to him.
Shiesty passes the half guard and he's now in mount! Big trouble for Leonard!

Shiesty gets to his feet and calls his opponent to stand. Here come the fireworks!

Leonard closes the distance and clinches.
Leonard prevents a takedown attempt there.
Shiesty tries to pull guard but Leonard won't allow it.
Shiesty prevents a takedown attempt there.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Leonard ties up his opponent against the cage and manages to drag the fight down to the ground. Leonard no doubt will be looking to work submissions from his guard.
Shiesty is just sitting in guard, looking to avoid any submissions.
Leonard tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Shiesty pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Leonard is keeping the position for now.
Leonard looking to control.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Shiesty showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
Leonard is trying to keep Shiesty in close.
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Rodney Shiesty dominated that round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Shiesty shoots for a double leg takedown but Leonard sprawls well. He's pushed Shiesty's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
Leonard feinted with a counter takedown.
Leonard misses with a low kick.
Leonard shoots and misses
and Shiesty counters with a straight right hand.
Shiesty swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.

Shiesty rushes Leonard and pushes him back against the cage in a clinch.

Leonard pulls guard effortlessly.
Leonard lands a beautiful sweep and he's now moved into his opponent's guard.

Leonard preventing the sweep.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Shiesty controls Leonard momentarily but Leonard frees himself.
Shiesty looking to sweep here. No luck so far.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Leonard throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Shiesty works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Shiesty working a defensive guard here.
Shiesty has his hands on Leonard's head, controlling the position.
Leonard won't allow Shiesty to sweep him here.
Leonard 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.
Leonard trying to control the position from guard on top but Shiesty is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Neither fighter has done anything of merit for a good minute or two here and the crowd are not happy about it.
Shiesty pulls Leonard in close to his closed guard and prevents Leonard from doing any damage or advancing position.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Leonard really does look like a pencil wearing a pair of gloves. Let's hope he has a gameplan to suit that ridiculous body shape.
Leonard doesn't manage to clinch there - Shiesty circles away.
Leonard stuffs the takedown.
Leonard half commits to a counter takedown before pushing away, out of range.
Leonard fails miserably with a takedown attempt.
Shiesty misses with a hook.
Leonard is looking to counter the offense by Shiesty and move into the clinch.

Shiesty scores with a nice takedown into half guard. Let's see what he's got on the ground.
Leonard trying to hold on to Shiesty's head to control him but Shiesty postures up.
Shiesty seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Leonard does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Shiesty slows the pace down in half guard.
Shiesty not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Shiesty is figuring out what he wants to do next.
Shiesty wants to take a breather but Leonard is having none of it.
Leonard throws a strike from the bottom but Shiesty passes into side control!
Leonard taking punishment in the form of punches.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
There's not a lot going on here and the crowd are letting the fighters know they're not willing to tolerate a lack of action.
Shiesty tries to get to his feet but he's trapped momentarily.
Leonard tries to buck Shiesty off but Shiesty is having none of it.
Leonard tries to control the position but he's not in luck - Shiesty easily slips into full mount!
Leonard is in a horrible position here. Shiesty smacks him with another shot as he tries to escape the position.
Leonard can't escape the position.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Shiesty controlling from the full mount.
Shiesty with good strikes from the mount here!
And that is the end of the round. The fighters go back to their corners.

Rodney Shiesty showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action! Ladies and gentlemen, this is the final round!

Shiesty shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Leonard as he avoids it easily.
Leonard seemed to be looking to counter by closing the distance.

Leonard moves into range and clinches up with Shiesty.

Shiesty breaks the clinch.
Leonard fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.
Shiesty shoots in and drives through. Leonard sprawls well.
Buzzard Leonard is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Leonard smiles there as he lands a nice right hand right on the button.
Shiesty falls off balance throwing a combination
and Leonard counters with a stiff right hand.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Shiesty misses with an attempted mid kick.
Shiesty wants to clinch but Leonard slips to the side
letting Leonard counter with a right hand.

Shiesty bobs and weaves into range and then changes levels and scores with a nice takedown into side control.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Shiesty wants to lay and pray for a moment but Leonard keeps working.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Leonard tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Leonard controls the position for a moment.
Shiesty is looking to take a break and control but Leonard is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Leonard tries to buck Shiesty off but Shiesty is having none of it.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.
Sloppy strikes there by Shiesty.
Shiesty working the ground and pound but he's contacting the mat, not the fighter.
Shiesty taking a breather here.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Leonard is looking to reverse the position.
Shiesty is looking to take a break and control but Leonard is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Shiesty has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Shiesty wants to stand but Leonard has his arm trapped.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Leonard tries to clinch there but Shiesty circles away.
Shiesty is loading up here, looking for a big counter of his own.

Leonard decides to change it up a bit and drives through with a nice takedown into half guard.
Leonard will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
Shiesty gets back to full guard.

Leonard decides he's had enough of playing guard and decides to stand. Come on Shiesty, up you get!
Leonard goes for a double leg but Shiesty avoids the attempt and the two fighters end up clinched against the cage as Shiesty continues to drive forward.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Leonard blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Leonard controlling the action here for a moment.

Shiesty has picked Leonard up - he's going for a ride! Shiesty dumps his opponent to the mat with a thud and settles into half guard.

Leonard manages to escape and get back to his feet!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Shiesty avoids a low kick by using good footwork.
Shiesty gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily
and Leonard counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Buzzard Leonard has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Rodney Shiesty.
No luck with that takedown attempt from Leonard.
Leonard tries to clinch but Shiesty moves out of range.

Shiesty gets a double leg takedown into Leonard's guard.
Shiesty trying to control the position from guard on top but Leonard is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Buzzard Leonard has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Rodney Shiesty is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Rodney Shiesty has got the better of the ground game so far.
Shiesty sitting in guard, not really doing much.

And that's the end of the fight!
Buzzard Leonard showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Shiesty 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 Bruno Lombardi scores the fight 28:29
Judge David Schapiro scores the fight 28:29
Judge Columbo Gatti scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Rodney Shiesty!