PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Bernard Blake (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Rachid Elmerkaoui (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). 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.

Blake
vs
Elmerkaoui

190 cm
19
270 lbs
3 - 0 - 0

181 cm
21
245 lbs
6 - 1 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Solid boxing
Granite chin

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Solid 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 3 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Bernard Blake!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 6 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Rachid Elmerkaoui!
The judges for this bout are John Mangel, Skip Squint and Bruno Hogan.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Elmerkaoui misses with an uppercut. Blake saw that one coming.
Elmerkaoui misses the shot to the body.

Elmerkaoui drives through with a takedown into guard.
Blake pulls Elmerkaoui in close to prevent any damage.
Elmerkaoui stops Blake from standing up.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Elmerkaoui gets to his feet and steps away from his opponent.
Elmerkaoui throws an overhand right that lands on Blake's shoulder, as Blake tries to avoid the shot.
Blake misses with a double jab.
Elmerkaoui throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Blake sees it coming and avoids it easily.

Blake gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.
Elmerkaoui has a body lock and is looking for a takedown. Blake is bouncing around trying to prevent the takedown and somehow he has indeed managed to stay on his feet.
Blake prevents a takedown attempt there.
Blake lands a body punch.
Elmerkaoui looks gassed!
Blake is leaning against Elmerkaoui and scores with a nice uppercut to the body.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
A body shot lands from Blake.
Blake scores with an uppercut up the middle.
A short uppercut from Blake.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Blake cracks Elmerkaoui with a nice body shot.
Blake presses Elmerkaoui against the cage and delivers a mid-strength body shot.
Blake lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.
Blake lands a hook to the body. It's hard to tell if that hurt Elmerkaoui or not.
A short left from Blake.
A hook to the body from Blake.
Blake lands a body shot.
Blake lands a body shot in the clinch.
Blake lands a nice looking hook to the body, against the cage.
Blake scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Blake lands with a good tight uppercut to the head.
A right hook to the body lands for Blake.
Blake lands with a left to the head.
Blake slows down the pace here.
A short left from Blake.
Blake gets through Elmerkaoui's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Blake scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Blake scores with a nice hook to the head.
A short uppercut from Blake.
Nice body punch from Blake - that landed with a thud.
A body shot lands from Blake.
A body shot lands from Blake.
Nice body punch from Blake - that landed with a thud.
Blake presses Elmerkaoui against the cage and delivers a mid-strength body shot.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Blake lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Elmerkaoui backwards.
Blake lands a left hand.
A short left from Blake.

Elmerkaoui is rocked!
A right hook to the body lands for Blake.
Blake lands a nice shot to the body.
Elmerkaoui has a body lock and is looking for a takedown. Blake is bouncing around trying to prevent the takedown and somehow he has indeed managed to stay on his feet.
Bernard Blake has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Rachid Elmerkaoui.
Blake lands a right hand that snaps the head of Elmerkaoui backwards.
Blake is leaning against Elmerkaoui and scores with a nice uppercut to the body.
Blake scores with a shoulder strike.
Elmerkaoui is still on wobbly legs! Can Blake finish him?

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Nice body punch from Blake.
Elmerkaoui seems to have recovered his senses.
Blake working some nice short punches in the clinch.
The two fighters are working to gain dominance in the clinch.
Blake stays in close to his opponent and throws a right hand to the body.
Blake works on Elmerkaoui's body with a couple of short punches.
A right hand to the body from Blake.
A hook to the body from Blake.
A short body shot lands from Blake as the two fighters clinch.
Blake lands with a short punch from the clinch.
Blake is pushing Elmerkaoui up against the cage, for a bit of lean and pray action. Action being used the in the loosest possible sense of the word.
Blake lands a hook that snaps the head of Elmerkaoui backwards.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Blake throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Blake lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Blake lands a nice shot to the body.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Bernard Blake dominated that round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Blake closes the distance and clinches.
Blake stalling the fight.
Elmerkaoui is trying to drag Blake to the mat but Blake just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.
Elmerkaoui wants a takedown but no success here.
Blake taking a breather.
Blake lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Elmerkaoui backwards.
Blake is working Elmerkaoui over against the cage.
Blake is working Elmerkaoui over against the cage.
Blake lands a left hand that snaps the head of Elmerkaoui backwards.
A short body shot lands from Blake as the two fighters clinch.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Blake lands a body punch.
Blake pressing his opponent against the cage.
Nice body punch from Blake - that landed with a thud.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A right handed body shot lands from Blake.
Nice body punch from Blake - that landed with a thud.
Bernard Blake has scored more points in the clinch so far.
A short body shot lands from Blake as the two fighters clinch.
Blake stalling here - the referee won't stand for too much of that.
An uppercut to the body lands inside from Blake.
Blake lands an uppercut.
Still in the clinch, Blake scores with a nice short uppercut.
Blake lands a right hand that snaps the head of Elmerkaoui backwards.
Blake presses Elmerkaoui against the cage and delivers a mid-strength body shot.
Blake lands a left hand.
A right hand to the body from Blake.
Blake lands a body punch in the clinch.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Blake makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
Still in the clinch, Blake scores with a nice short uppercut.
Elmerkaoui wants a takedown but no success here.
Bernard Blake has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Rachid Elmerkaoui.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Blake lands a nice shot to the body.
Blake pushes Elmerkaoui back against the cage and unloads with a body punch.
Blake lands a body punch in the clinch.
Blake lands a body punch.
Blake is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Elmerkaoui can do to turn this around?
A quick uppercut on the inside from Blake.
Blake lands a hook to the body. It's hard to tell if that hurt Elmerkaoui or not.
Blake presses Elmerkaoui against the cage and delivers a mid-strength body shot.
Blake scores with a nice hook to the head.
Nice body punch from Blake - that landed with a thud.
Blake lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
Blake is stalling here. The referee will be looking to step in if he doesn't pick up the pace.
A body shot lands from Blake.
Blake lands with a left to the head.
Blake presses Elmerkaoui against the cage and delivers a mid-strength body shot.
Blake slowing the pace effectively.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
A right hook to the body lands for Blake.
A right handed body shot lands from Blake.
Blake displaying some good clinch control by pressing Elmerkaoui up against the cage.
Blake lands a right hand that snaps the head of Elmerkaoui backwards.
Blake lands a shot to the body.
Blake lands a right hand that snaps the head of Elmerkaoui backwards.
A nice right hand lands inside from Blake.
Blake cracks Elmerkaoui with a nice body shot.
A right handed body shot lands from Blake.
Blake stalling in the clinch.
Blake pushes Elmerkaoui back against the cage and unloads with a body punch.
A right hand to the body from Blake.
Blake lands a right hand that snaps the head of Elmerkaoui backwards.
Elmerkaoui is working for takedown but Blake is calmly controlling the position for now.
Blake gets through Elmerkaoui's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A hook to the body from Blake.
Blake pushes Elmerkaoui back against the cage and unloads with a body punch.
Blake is struggling to control the position.
Blake gets a warning from the ref for wasting time.
Blake lands a body punch - he's looking to wear down Elmerkaoui.
Blake lands a body punch in the clinch.
Blake scores with a shot to the side of Elmerkaoui's head.
Blake working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
Blake lands a body shot in the clinch.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Blake works for underhooks and lands a body shot in the process.
Blake lands a body punch.
Still in the clinch, Blake scores with a nice short uppercut.
Blake digs a right hand into Elmerkaoui's ribs. Those have got to be taking their toll on Elmerkaoui's gas tank.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Bernard Blake dominated that second 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. This is the final round!

A right-left combo lands from Blake.
Elmerkaoui misses the jab.

Blake moves into the clinch.
Blake gets double underhooks to prevent a takedown attempt from Elmerkaoui.
Blake lands a body punch.
Blake lands a body punch.
A short left from Blake.
Blake lands a body shot.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
A short body shot lands from Blake as the two fighters clinch.
Blake digs a right hand underneath Elmerkaoui's ribcage. Elmerkaoui let out a lung full of air as it connected.
A body shot lands from Blake.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Blake digs a right hand underneath Elmerkaoui's ribcage. Elmerkaoui let out a lung full of air as it connected.
An uppercut to the body lands inside from Blake.
Blake scores with a shoulder strike.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Blake slows down the pace here.
Blake lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
A right hook to the body lands for Blake.
Blake digs a right hand into Elmerkaoui's ribs. Those have got to be taking their toll on Elmerkaoui's gas tank.
A short body shot lands from Blake as the two fighters clinch.
Blake lands a shoulder strike that jolts his opponent's head backwards.
Blake lands a hook to the body. It's hard to tell if that hurt Elmerkaoui or not.
Blake scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Blake scores with a shot to the side of Elmerkaoui's head.
Blake lands a nice shot to the body.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Blake gets through Elmerkaoui's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Blake lands a hook to the body. It's hard to tell if that hurt Elmerkaoui or not.
Blake presses Elmerkaoui against the cage and delivers a mid-strength body shot.
Blake prevents the takedown attempt.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Blake is working Elmerkaoui over against the cage.
Blake works for underhooks and lands a body shot in the process.
Blake gets through Elmerkaoui's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Blake cracks Elmerkaoui with a nice body shot.
Blake effectively controlling the action here.
Blake lands a body shot in the clinch.
Blake is working Elmerkaoui over against the cage.
Blake lands an uppercut.
Good body shot from Blake.
Blake lands a body shot.
Blake lands a hook that snaps the head of Elmerkaoui backwards.
Blake lands a hook to the body. It's hard to tell if that hurt Elmerkaoui or not.
Blake throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Blake digs a right hand underneath Elmerkaoui's ribcage. Elmerkaoui let out a lung full of air as it connected.
A left hand lands to the body for Blake.
Blake is working Elmerkaoui over against the cage.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Blake stays in close to his opponent and throws a right hand to the body.
The pace slowing considerably in the clinch, as Blake takes a break from that fighting nonsense to think about the finer things in life.
Blake stays in close to his opponent and throws a right hand to the body.
Blake is working Elmerkaoui over against the cage.
Blake lands a nice looking hook to the body, against the cage.
Blake scores with a shot to the side of Elmerkaoui's head.
Blake lands with a right to the head.
Blake working some nice short punches in the clinch.
Blake pushes Elmerkaoui back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
A short uppercut from Blake.
Blake lands a body punch - he's looking to wear down Elmerkaoui.
Blake throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Blake lands punches inside but they're not really causing much damage.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Blake lands with a left to the head.
Blake works for underhooks and lands a body shot in the process.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Blake throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Blake slowing the pace effectively.
Blake lands a body shot.
Stalling in the clinch from Blake.
Blake lands a nice uppercut.
Nice body punch from Blake - that landed with a thud.
Blake lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.
Blake pushes Elmerkaoui back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Blake works for underhooks and lands a body shot in the process.
Good body shot from Blake.
Blake stops a takedown attempt from Elmerkaoui.
Bernard Blake has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Rachid Elmerkaoui.
Blake avoiding damage.
Blake stays in close to his opponent and throws a right hand to the body.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
A short right from Blake.
Rachid Elmerkaoui has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
A right hook to the body lands for Blake.
Blake lands a body punch.

And that's the end of the fight!
Bernard Blake showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Blake, winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. 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 John Mangel scores the fight 30:24
Judge Skip Squint scores the fight 30:24
Judge Bruno Hogan scores the fight 30:24

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Bernard Blake!