PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Ernie Whit (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Gabriel Dos Santos (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). The crowd seem to be enjoying Dos Santos's choice of entrance music: "This Is War" by Il Nino. Gabriel Dos Santos told me before the fight that he's been watching a lot of DVDs so let's see if that helps him in this one! I can't wait to find out!

Whit
vs
Dos Santos

160 cm
25
159 lbs
6 - 3 - 0

176 cm
21
157 lbs
7 - 4 - 0

Good wrestling
Solid boxing
Granite chin

Powerful takedowns
Decent boxing
Powerful

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 6 - 3 - 0, fighting out of New York, Ernie Whit!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 7 - 4 - 0, fighting out of New York, Gabriel Dos Santos!
The judges for this bout are John Kavanagh, Chad Campbell and Anthony Taglia.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Dos Santos tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Whit paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Dos Santos throws a head kick that misses.
Dos Santos is looking to clinch.
Dos Santos wants to clinch up but Whit keeps it at a distance.
Whit swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Whit waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Dos Santos.
Whit uses good footwork to get in and out, landing a nice hook.
Dos Santos tries to clinch but Whit is having none of it.
Whit misses with a straight left.
Ernie Whit seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Dos Santos avoids a punch combination nicely.
Whit looks frustrated there after his takedown attempt is stuffed easily.

Whit instigates a clinch.
Whit has hold of a leg and is looking for a trip takedown. Dos Santos avoids it nicely though and we remain in the clinch.

Dos Santos has hold of one of Whit's legs. Whit is fighting the takedown attempt but Dos Santos gets the trip and lands the takedown into guard.
Dos Santos 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.
Whit might be looking to lock onto one of his opponent's long limbs for a submission, whilst we're on the ground.
Dos Santos stops Whit from standing up.
Dos Santos stays in close to Whit's body and controls the position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Whit is avoiding any damage by keeping wrist control.
Dos Santos postures up in Whit's guard and throws a big left but Whit blocks it.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

Dos Santos thinks about going for a leg but decides against it, in order to maintain the position.
Dos Santos with a flurry of punches that miss.
Dos Santos postures up in Whit's guard and throws a big left but Whit blocks it.
Whit is trying to control the position but Dos Santos postures up.

That's two 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.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Whit fails miserably with a takedown attempt.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Ernie Whit. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Dos Santos tries to clinch there but Whit circles away.
Gabriel Dos Santos is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.

Dos Santos closes the distance and clinches.
Whit tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.

Whit has picked Dos Santos up - he's going for a ride! Whit dumps his opponent to the mat with a thud and settles into half guard.
Whit not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.

Dos Santos pushes Whit off and gets back to his feet.
Dos Santos closes the distance but Whit moves to the side
and Dos Santos takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
Whit misses with a series of wild punches.
Whit throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Dos Santos.
Dos Santos wants to clinch.
Whit shoots in looking for a takedown. Dos Santos tries to sprawl out of it but Whit keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Dos Santos manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Dos Santos darts in and clinches Whit up against the cage.
Whit swings wildly with an uppercut but Dos Santos uses good head movement to avoid it.
Whit goes for a takedown attempt but Dos Santos pushes him away and we're back to fighting at a distance.
Dos Santos wants to clinch up but Whit keeps it at a distance.
Dos Santos tries to clinch but Whit moves out of range.
Dos Santos uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Whit.
Dos Santos moves in looking to clinch but Whit pushes him off.
Whit thows a left - swing and a miss!
Whit fails to land with a series of punches.
Dos Santos tries to close the distance and clinch but Whit swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.

Whit scores a takedown into full mount!
Dos Santos wants to control but Whit is having none of it.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Whit looking to control and managing it successfully.
Whit punching from mount but Dos Santos doing a good job of avoiding damage.
Whit content just to control the position here.
Whit is in the full mount, landing strikes.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Ernie Whit will probably get the nod.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Dos Santos uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Whit.
Dos Santos slips a jab from Whit.
Whit waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Dos Santos.
Ernie Whit is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Dos Santos tries to clinch but Whit moves out of range.
Dos Santos tries to clinch

and Whit counters by moving into the clinch.
Dos Santos blocks a punch to the side of the head.
A looping hook to the body misses from Whit. Dos Santos does a little dance to reset his feet.
The fight stays on the outside here - Dos Santos looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Dos Santos closes the distance looking to clinch
and Whit counters with a straight right hand.
Whit keeps the fight on the outside.
Dos Santos wants to clinch up but Whit keeps it at a distance.
Whit wants to clinch.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Dos Santos staying out of range there.
Whit scores with a crisp jab that stopped Dos Santos in his tracks.

Whit has closed the distance and engaged Dos Santos in a clinch.
Dos Santos is trying to drag Whit to the mat but Whit just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Whit.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Whit throws a head punch that misses.
Whit tries for a takedown but Dos Santos manages to get underhooks.
Whit letting Dos Santos take a breather here.
Stalling in the clinch from Whit.
Good anti-grappling being displayed by Whit as Dos Santos tries to tie him up.

Dos Santos breaks from the clinch.
Whit looks to land a right hand but Dos Santos moved out of range.
Whit tries to close the distance and clinch but Dos Santos swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Whit misses with a few strikes there.
Dos Santos thuds a left hand into Whit's body.
Nice uppercut there from Dos Santos.

Dos Santos clinches up against the cage.
Dos Santos wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Dos Santos using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Whit has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Whit drops down for a takedown but doesn't get it.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Dos Santos.
Dos Santos blocks a body shot from Whit.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A looping hook to the body misses from Whit. Dos Santos does a little dance to reset his feet.
Dos Santos fails with an attempt to clinch.
Dos Santos is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Whit wants to clinch

and Dos Santos counters by clinching up.
Whit tries to throw a body punch but Dos Santos avoids it by throwing Whit back against the cage.
Dos Santos throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Whit blocks it with crossed arms.
Dos Santos tries to break free but Whit pushes him back against the cage.
Whit avoids the elbow strike from Dos Santos, against the cage.
Whit has Dos Santos pressed up against the cage and is working for takedown. Dos Santos manages to improve position though and keeps the fight standing.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Ernie Whit. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Whit misses with a hook from the clinch.
A nice glancing elbow lands by Dos Santos.
Dos Santos misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Whit.
Whit tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
A nice glancing elbow lands by Dos Santos.
Dos Santos tries to stall but Whit uses the opportunity to gain a better position.
Whit is leaning against Dos Santos and scores with a nice uppercut to the body.
Dos Santos is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Whit is defending well for now.
Whit looking for a takedown.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

Whit has picked Dos Santos up - he's going for a ride! Whit dumps his opponent to the mat with a thud and settles into half guard.
Whit looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Dos Santos with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Whit thows a huge punch but Dos Santos dodges it nicely.
Dos Santos is looking to improve his position.
Whit is trying to control the action in half guard but Dos Santos is working away on the bottom, looking perhaps to get back to full guard.
Whit takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Whit thows a big elbow that misses, also allowing Dos Santos to regain full guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Whit trying to control the position from guard on top but Dos Santos is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Whit throwing strikes from guard but Dos Santos blocks nicely.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are showing their displeasure at the lack of action as loud boos ring out around the arena.

Dos Santos has butterfly guard. He's looking to stand up here. He pushes Whit off him and springs to his feet nicely. The crowd applauds.

Dos Santos darts in and clinches Whit up against the cage.
Dos Santos blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Whit misses with a hook from the clinch.
Whit goes for a takedown attempt but Dos Santos pushes him away and we're back to fighting at a distance.
Dos Santos showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Whit.
Dos Santos blocks a jab.
Dos Santos avoids a punch combination nicely.
Dos Santos tries to grapple but his opponent circles

and Whit moves into the clinch.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that Ernie Whit will probably get the nod.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action. This is the final round!

Whit closes the distance and takes a jab right on the nose as he does so.
Dos Santos tries to close the distance and clinch up but Whit swats him away and circles back towards the center.
A big right from Whit misses.
Dos Santos tries to close the distance and clinch but Whit swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Dos Santos tries to clinch up but Whit circles away and keeps his distance.
Dos Santos is looking to clinch but Whit is avoiding it.
Whit looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Whit looks to score with a jab to the body but Dos Santos is just out of range.
Whit closes the distance and lands a one-two.
Dos Santos slips under a jab.
Whit thows a left - swing and a miss!
Whit shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Dos Santos defends it nicely.
Dos Santos is looking to clinch.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Dos Santos tries to clinch but Whit moves out of range.
Whit swinging wilding here.
Dos Santos moves in looking to clinch but Whit pushes him off.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Whit closes the distance and gets a double leg, slamming Dos Santos to the mat! Dos Santos manages to get full guard.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Dos Santos utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Whit trying to control but Dos Santos is working from the bottom.
Dos Santos wants to stand but Whit is controlling the position.
Whit looking to sit in guard and control but Dos Santos gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.
Dos Santos wants to control from the top but Whit keeps moving.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Dos Santos working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Whit tries to land a sweep but no joy.

Well, the referee has seen enough. Neither fighter is active enough on the ground so he's stood them back up.
Whit throws a hook to the side of Dos Santos's head but Dos Santos sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.
Dos Santos moves in looking to clinch but Whit pushes him off.
Dos Santos tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Dos Santos lands an overhand right.
Dos Santos tries to close the distance and clinch but Whit swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Whit keeps the fight on the outside.

Whit looking for a takedown here - he's got it.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Dos Santos is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
Whit pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Dos Santos is keeping the position for now.
Ernie Whit is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Whit is frustrating his opponent with some stalling tactics from top position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
Dos Santos is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
Gabriel Dos Santos has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Whit wants to control from the top but Dos Santos keeps moving.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Whit throws and elbow that misses. Dos Santos uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Whit's guard. Nice move by Dos Santos!

And that's the end of the fight!
Ernie Whit showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Whit, 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 Kavanagh scores the fight 30:27
Judge Chad Campbell scores the fight 30:27
Judge Anthony Taglia scores the fight 30:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Ernie Whit!