PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Vel Sirra (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Cain Velasquez (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Sirra comes to the cage accompanied by Omen by Prodigy. The key to victory for Vel Sirra has got to be keeping the fight on the feet.

Sirra
vs
Velasquez

190 cm
21
250 lbs
8 - 6 - 0

188 cm
23
245 lbs
2 - 2 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Solid boxing
KO power

BJJ Purple Belt
Brawler
Granite chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 8 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Vel Sirra!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Cain Velasquez!
The judges for this bout are Edson Gomes, Mauricio Rocha and Leandro Rodrigues.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Sirra lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Velasquez circles away quickly and effectively.
Velasquez shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Sirra sprawls well. Sirra wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Velasquez gets slowly back to his feet.
A left and a right from Sirra both land. Nice combination.
A left and a right from Sirra both land. Nice combination.
Velasquez shoots in but no luck this time.
Velasquez takes a body punch that cleary hurt but he's trying not to show any weakness.

Sirra drives through and clinches with Velasquez against the cage.

Sirra gets double underhooks and manages to take the fight to the ground.
Velasquez looks gassed!

Sirra gets to his feet - Velasquez follows without any prompting.
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!
Velasquez closes the distance but Sirra moves to the side
and Sirra counters with a three punch combination, finished off with a leg kick. Nice work.

Sirra instigates a clinch.
Sirra working some nice short punches in the clinch.
The referee is keeping an eye on Sirra - much more stalling and he will separate the fighters.

Sirra lands a nice trip takedown into half guard.
Velasquez on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
Both fighters really going for it on the ground here!

Sirra is working for a kimura but Velasquez is defending it quite comfortably.

Sirra stands, ready to strike. The ref makes him back up and allows Velasquez to get to his feet.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Sirra works over Velasquez's head and body with a nice combination.

Sirra drops down and drives through with a powerful takedown into guard.
Sirra connects with a couple of short punches.
Sirra is working Velasquez over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.

Sirra gets to his feet. Velasquez looking to butt scoot but the ref puts an end to that. On your feet son!
Sirra lands three nice shots there - that looked like it hurt!
Sirra throws a two punch combo that lands nicely.
Wow, both these guys are really going for it!
Sirra connects with a looping left hand that seems like it dazed Velasquez momentarily.
A nice combination there by Sirra.
A left and a right from Sirra both land. Nice combination.
Sirra throws a quick head kick that skims the top of Velasquez's head.

Sirra feints and then dives in with a takedown. That was a long way out but the feint bought him enough time to close the distance and complete the takedown. Now we'll play guard for a bit and see who can get the better of that position.

Sirra gets to his feet and steps away from his opponent.
A head kick misses from Sirra.

Sirra drives through and clinches with Velasquez against the cage.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!

Velasquez has dropped down and is working for a takedown. Sirra is trying to keep an underhook but Velasquez manages to get the takedown into half guard.
Sirra is trying to stand up here but Velasquez is controlling him well.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Velasquez lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.

Sirra actively working from the bottom here.

Velasquez is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.
Velasquez throws a strike but Sirra avoids it easily and moves to full guard.

Sirra has his foot on Velasquez's thigh. He's trying to push off and get in position for a triangle, I think. Velasquez works his way back into a safe position though.

Velasquez drops back, looking for a kneebar! Sirra looks panicked! The fighters roll across the mat, one looking to finish, one looking to escape. Sirra looks to have wriggled free... Yes, he's got his leg free and he's dived into side control! Good work there from Sirra!
Velasquez throws an elbow to the body but it doesn't land.
Velasquez gets one leg under and gets the fight to half guard.
Velasquez on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Velasquez is looking for a sweep. Sirra is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.

Velasquez is defending against the submission attempts here by Sirra.
Sirra wants to stand but Velasquez has hold of a leg and an arm, so he's trapped for now.
Sirra prevents Velasquez from improving his position.
Sirra seems content to maintain position for now, rather than mounting any offense.

Sirra is trying for a guillotine from the top but the pressure isn't in the right place so Velasquez is just riding it out for now. Sirra eventually gives up the hold.
Velasquez misses with some strikes from the bottom.

That's four 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.
Sirra working the head and body with strikes.

Sirra is trying to work for a kimura. This could be trouble! No, Velasquez has managed to free his arm - good work.

Velasquez is looking to sinch up a guillotine here but Sirra pulls his head out easily.
Velasquez tries to roll over but Sirra keeps him under control.
Velasquez is trying to defend against the ground and pound but Sirra scores with a couple of nice shots.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!

Sirra stands up from half guard.
Sirra is working the combinations to good effect here.
Sirra throws a right high kick that is partially blocked by Velasquez.
Sirra's corner calls for a 1,2 combination and Sirra duly obliges.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Vel Sirra 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.

Sirra closes the distance and clinches.

Sirra escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Sirra fails to land with a series of punches.

Velasquez shoots in for a takedown! He's got it and he's managed to land in full mount! That's better than Velasquez was expecting from the takedown attempt, I'm sure!
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

Velasquez goes for an armbar but he's fallen flat on his backside there and now Sirra is on top in guard.

Sirra stands up from guard. Let's bang!

Sirra closes the distance and clinches.

Velasquez gets a nice trip takedown into half guard.
Velasquez is trying to advance to mount but he's lost his balance and Sirra reverses the position - he's now on top in Velasquez's guard.

Sirra gets to his feet - Velasquez follows without any prompting.

Sirra has closed the distance and engaged Velasquez in a clinch.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Velasquez tries to score a body lock takedown but Sirra shows good agility there to stay on his feet.
Sirra softening up his opponent with strikes, against the cage.

Sirra manages to break the clinch.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Sirra closes the distance and clinches.
Velasquez takes a shot to the head.

Sirra turns his back and goes for a hip toss. It's a bit messy but it gets the job done and Sirra manages to end up in side control.

Sirra decides to stand back up. Sirra steps back and let's Velasquez get back to his feet.
Velasquez shoots in but doesn't get the takedown

and Sirra counters with a nice double leg into side control. Velasquez won't be happy with that.
Vel Sirra overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.

Sirra is looking to finish here, going for an Americana. Velasquez knows the correct defense though, so he's OK.
Velasquez is trying to get back to half guard. He's pushing on Sirra's leg. He's managed it. Nice work.
Sirra works his way into full mount!
Velasquez is working to get back to half guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Sirra gets to his feet and calls his opponent to stand. Here come the fireworks!
Sirra is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Velasquez can do to turn this around?
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.

Sirra closes the distance, clinches up and gets a nice trip takedown into side control. Very smooth.
Velasquez taking a bit of punishment here - Sirra scoring with strikes.

Sirra stands up and we're back to a striking position.
Sirra fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Sirra lands a two punch combo.
Sirra lands a nice looking kick to the body. Velasquez takes a step back to recover.
Velasquez misses with a takedown
and Sirra counters with a three punch combo that has Velasquez backing up. Velasquez nods at Sirra to acknowledge the strikes.
Vel Sirra has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Cain Velasquez.
Velasquez gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily
and Sirra connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.

Velasquez gets caught on his heels momentarily as he allows Sirra to score an easy takedown into full guard.

Velasquez has a loose triangle. He'll be looking to tighten that up but Sirra can see exactly what he's planning and manages to posture up and free himself.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sirra forces his way into half guard.

Sirra stands, ready to strike. The ref makes him back up and allows Velasquez to get to his feet.

Velasquez drives through with a takedown into guard.

Velasquez postures up as if he's going to throw some strikes but drops back for an ankle! Sirra is in big trouble! He looks ready to tap! But no, he's escaped and dives on top of Velasquez, into his guard.
Sirra throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Velasquez tries to land a sweep but no joy.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Sirra gets to his feet and steps away from his opponent.
Velasquez fails with an attempt to clinch.
Like a baseball bat into the meat of his leg there - nice leg kick by Sirra.

Sirra shoots in looking for a single leg takedown. Velasquez is trying to defend but Sirra finishes it well and ends up in half guard. Let's see if he can advance position further.

Velasquez looking for submissions off his back.

Sirra decides to stand up and try his luck on the feet.
Velasquez darts in trying to clinch

and Sirra counters into the clinch. Nicely done.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Sirra comes over the top with an elbow. That landed flush.
Velasquez tries for a takedown. No joy.
Sirra working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Sirra.
Velasquez changes levels and goes for a takedown here. Sirra fights it off and pushes away nicely.

Sirra shoots in for a takedown and gets it.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Vel Sirra dominated that second round.
That's time! Back to the action! This is the final round!

Velasquez misses with a takedown attempt

and Sirra counters with a takedown into full mount! That could mean trouble for Velasquez!

Sirra is in full mount, looking to secure a guillotine but Velasquez is surviving well by controlling Sirra's body position as best he can.
Velasquez throwing hammer fists to the chest of Sirra. What's that going to do exactly?
Velasquez is in all sorts of trouble here.

Sirra is standing up, even though he is in mount.

Sirra shoots in and gets a takedown into half guard. Sirra showed some decent athleticism there.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

Sirra stands, ready to strike. The ref makes him back up and allows Velasquez to get to his feet.
Velasquez with a lazy takedown attempt
and Sirra counters with a series of strikes. Velasquez will be more careful next time no doubt.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Sirra gets in close and instigates a clinch.

Sirra manages to break the clinch.
Sirra scores with a jab to the head.
Velasquez takes a punch to the jaw and another one to the bread basket.

Sirra decides to change it up a bit and drives through with a nice takedown into half guard.

Velasquez looking to work for a kimura from the bottom.

Sirra looking for a kimura but he'll have to free his other leg if he wants to finish that. Perhaps he's just using it as a distraction technique.

Velasquez is defending against the submission attempts here by Sirra.
Velasquez tries to strike from the bottom but it doesn't land.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Sirra decides he's had enough of the ground and stands up.

Sirra fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with Velasquez, pushing him back against the cage.
Sirra scores with a nice hook to the head.
Sirra lands with a light punch inside.

Sirra lands a takedown into guard.

Velasquez working away from the bottom but not quite defensive enough there because Sirra has passed into half guard!
Velasquez wants to improve his position but Sirra is controlling well.

Sirra is trying for a guillotine from the top but the pressure isn't in the right place so Velasquez is just riding it out for now. Sirra eventually gives up the hold.

Sirra decides he's had enough of the ground and stands up.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Velasquez has his takedown stuffed

and Sirra counters by moving into the clinch. Good anticipation by Sirra.
Vel Sirra has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Cain Velasquez.
Sirra lands a left hand.

Sirra gets a nice trip takedown into half guard.
Sirra tries to stand but his arm is trapped.

Velasquez is defending against the submission attempts here by Sirra.
Sirra prevents Velasquez from improving his position.
Velasquez is persisting with the attempt to improve his position.

Sirra is sneakily working for an arm triangle but Velasquez sees it coming and defends easily.
Cain Velasquez has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Sirra scoring with strikes to the body and head.

Sirra is trying a forearm choke… I don't think that's going to do much at this level of the game.
Velasquez trying to control but Sirra postures up.
Velasquez throws a strike from the bottom that misses.
Sirra blocks the strikes from Velasquez.
Velasquez pushes Sirra off looking to stand but Sirra dives back in and keeps control.

Velasquez looking for submissions from an awkward position here.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.

Sirra gets to his feet - back to striking we go!
Sirra lands with a kick to the temple. Velasquez shrugs as if to say "is that all you've got?"

And that's the end of the fight!
Vel Sirra showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Sirra has outscored his opponent in every aspect of the fight today. Only a scarily incompetent judge or two will keep him from a well deserved win... 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 Edson Gomes scores the fight 30:26
Judge Mauricio Rocha scores the fight 30:26
Judge Leandro Rodrigues scores the fight 30:26

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Vel Sirra!