PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between James Shepard (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Kami Iakopa (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Shepard comes to the cage accompanied by This Is Usually The Part Where People Scream. Iakopa has chosen Ziggy Marley - Beach in Hawaii as his entrance music, which hasn't gone down very well with the crowd. James Shepard has the better chin. Will he look to stand and bang today?

Shepard
vs
Iakopa

175 cm
20
165 lbs
1 - 2 - 0

185 cm
24
177 lbs
3 - 4 - 1

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Good chin

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Powerful

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the welterweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 1 - 2 - 0, fighting out of New York, James Shepard!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 4 - 1, fighting out of New York, Kami Iakopa!
The judges for this bout are Franklyn Lucas, Anthony Taglia and Jonathan Paton.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
A left lands for Iakopa.

It looks like James Shepard has been cut.
Kami Iakopa seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Shepard looks exhausted already! Oh dear, he should have come in in better shape than this!

Iakopa bobbing and weaving well here. And he's unloaded with a massive right hand that drops Shepard! He dives into his guard looking to finish!

Shepard is rocked!
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Iakopa slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.
Oh Shepard is still in real trouble! Will he be able to recover?!!
Shepard seems to have got his legs back now.
Let's hope that Iakopa has the urge to step up the pace any second now because for the last 15 or 20 seconds he's just been holding on tight.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Despite being in the dominant position, Kami Iakopa just isn't active enough and the referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Iakopa fails to land with a series of punches.
Iakopa fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Iakopa fails to land with a series of punches.
Shepard on the wrong end of a nice jab.

Oooh a lovely combination from Iakopa sends Shepard down but not out. Iakopa dives into side control looking to finish.
Shepard is being controlled here.
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!

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Iakopa stands up and beckons Shepard to his feet.
Iakopa scores with a hook to the body. Shepard takes a step back and tries to catch his breath.
Iakopa throws a nice looking combination but Shepard bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
Iakopa throws a right and a left that Shepard avoids nicely.
Shepard is on the wrong end of a nice combination from Iakopa.
Iakopa fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Iakopa lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Shepard circles away quickly and effectively.
Shepard tries to bum rush Iakopa with a series of wild strikes but Iakopa uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Iakopa avoids the body shot from Shepard.
Left hook, right uppercut from Iakopa.
Iakopa misses with a double jab.
Nice jab there from Iakopa.
Iakopa slaps away a takedown attempt from Shepard, before circling back to the center of the mat.
A punch combination from Iakopa misses.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Shepard shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Iakopa defends it nicely.
Shepard showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Iakopa.
Iakopa defends well against a solid takedown attempt from Shepard.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for James Shepard. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Iakopa fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Iakopa throws a two punch combo that lands nicely.
Shepard swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Iakopa fakes a jab and then connects with a hook.
Iakopa lunges in with an uppercut that skims his opponent's chin.

Shepard has taken the fight to the clinch.

Iakopa pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Iakopa lands a two punch combo.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Iakopa looks to land a combination but Shepard avoids it well.
Kami Iakopa is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
A looping hook to the body misses from Iakopa. Shepard does a little dance to reset his feet.
Iakopa is working the combinations to good effect here.
A punch combination from Iakopa misses.
Shepard shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Iakopa but Iakopa pushes him off and we're back to square one.
Jab, cross, leg kick. Nice combination by Iakopa!
Iakopa looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Shepard keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Iakopa.
Iakopa has used his reach advantage pretty well so far tonight.
Iakopa cracks Shepard with a good jab.
Iakopa misses with a wild combination.
Iakopa lands a nice hook to Shepard's body. Shepard takes it in his stride and looks to land his own strikes.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Shepard throws a head kick that misses.
Iakopa throws a series of punches but Shepard moves out of range.
Shepard tries to shoot in for a takedown. He's got hold of a leg but Iakopa swivels and escapes.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Kami Iakopa dominated that round.
The cut man is working on James Shepard's cut.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Iakopa misses with a wild combination.

Shepard closes the distance and gets a double leg, slamming Iakopa to the mat! Iakopa manages to get full guard.
There's a bit of a scramble here and now Iakopa is on top in guard.
Iakopa is stalling in the full guard.
Iakopa's corner are shouting for him to control the position and he seems happy to oblige.
Iakopa passes Shepard's left leg - he's now in half guard.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Iakopa seems to be taking a bit of a break to think of his next move. He lands a short punch in the meantime.
Neither fighter is being very active at the moment, with Iakopa in particular looking to stall.
Shepard is trying to stand.
Iakopa is taking a breather. Shepard says something to him but it's hard to make out. Perhaps he's telling him to get on with it and actually do something.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.

Despite being in the dominant position, Kami Iakopa just isn't active enough and the referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Iakopa scores with a sloppy right hand. Shepard should have avoided that one.
Iakopa goes to the watering hole and comes back with a big thumbs up from the judges as he scores a three punch combo.
James Shepard is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Iakopa misses with a few strikes there.
Shepard shoots in and drives through. Iakopa sprawls well.
Shepard slips a jab and a cross from Iakopa.
Iakopa lands a jab to Shepard's midsection.
Iakopa avoids a punch combination nicely.
A punch combination from Iakopa misses.
Shepard fails with a takedown attempt.
Shepard showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Iakopa.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Iakopa clobbers Shepard with an overhand right that has the crowd gasping. That made a horrendous noise.
Iakopa connects with a nice looking jab.
Iakopa misses with a double jab

and Shepard counters with a nice double leg into half guard.
Iakopa is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
Iakopa gets back to full guard.
Iakopa keeping moving, preventing Shepard from controlling successfully.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Iakopa lands a beautiful switch and he's in full mount! That could spell trouble for Shepard!
You get the feeling that Shepard really doesn't like being in this position too much.
Shepard in a bad spot here, taking shots to the head.
Iakopa controlling his opponent.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close second round but Kami Iakopa will probably get the nod - 10:9.
The cut man is working on James Shepard's cut.
That's time! Back to the action! This is the final round!

Iakopa scores with a one two! Shepard had his feet all tangled up there and couldn't avoid the strikes.
Iakopa throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Iakopa misses with a jab, cross combination.
Shepard looks for a takedown but Iakopa sprawls well.
Shepard drops his hands and takes a jab to the jaw for his troubles.
Iakopa swinging wildly here.
Shepard showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Iakopa.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Shepard tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Iakopa misses with a wild combination.
Iakopa stuffs the takedown attempt from Shepard. Shepard gets slowly back to his feet.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Iakopa looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Kami Iakopa seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Some wild striking there from Iakopa.
Iakopa throws a nice looking combination but Shepard bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
Iakopa misses with a two punch combination.
Shepard throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
and Iakopa counters with a stiff right hand.
Iakopa swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Iakopa lands a two punch combo.
Iakopa misses with a wild combination.
Iakopa defending well as Shepard loads up on a big left hand.
Shepard moves his head to the side to avoid a jab but walks straight into a cross.
Iakopa misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Shepard is defended easily by Iakopa.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for James Shepard. That's going to take a lot out of him.

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.
Iakopa lands with an overhand left.
Shepard dodges the punch combination from Iakopa.
Shepard misses with a takedown attempt
and Iakopa counters with a three punch combo that has Shepard backing up. Shepard nods at Iakopa to acknowledge the strikes.
Iakopa misses with the combination.
Shepard fails with an attempt to clinch.
Iakopa looks to land a combination but Shepard avoids it well.
Shepard showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Iakopa.
Iakopa fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Iakopa stuns Shepard with a nice body shot, before stepping back out of range.
Iakopa thuds his right hand into Shepard's forehead from close range. That could be painful for both fighters.
Shepard looks like he's developed a pretty tasty lump over his left eye. He'll need to avoid taking much more damage to that.
Iakopa misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Shepard gets the takedown into side control.

Shepard tries for an arm triangle. That looks pretty tight to me. Is this one over!?! Possibly, maybe, no Shepard has let go of the choke. Obviously it wasn't as tight as we thought!
Iakopa manages to land a sweep and he's now on top! Lovely Jiu Jitsu!
James Shepard has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Well, if Iakopa is going to just lie there, perhaps we should talk about what we're having for dinner tonight… I'm having a ham and pineapple pizza… Yum. Can't wait.
Shepard is looking to improve his position.
Kami Iakopa has got the better of the ground game so far.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Iakopa slips a nice elbow through Shepard's hands, connecting with Shepard's forehead.
Kami Iakopa is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Iakopa perhaps working for something from half guard, or maybe not. It looks like he's just sitting there.
Shepard is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
Iakopa sitting and controlling from the half guard.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.

And that's the end of the fight!
Kami Iakopa comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Iakopa 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 Franklyn Lucas scores the fight 26:30
Judge Anthony Taglia scores the fight 26:30
Judge Jonathan Paton scores the fight 26:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Kami Iakopa!