PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Dan King (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Matt Johnson (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Johnson is bouncing up and down as he enters the arena, backed by The Maple Leaf Forever. Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

King
vs
Johnson

187 cm
19
259 lbs
3 - 1 - 0

200 cm
19
250 lbs
2 - 1 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter striker
Big heart

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Determined

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 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, Dan King!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, Matt Johnson!
The judges for this bout are Steve Smith, William Peck and Yves DeLean.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
A punch combination from King misses.
Johnson looks really tired already! That doesn't bode well for a good, competitive fight!

King instigates a clinch.
King landing knees to the body.
King crunches a lovely knee into Johnson's ribcage.
King landing some nice looking knees to the body.
King crunches a lovely knee into Johnson's ribcage.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
King misses with a knee to the head.
King with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
King unloads a knee to the mid-section. Johnson lets out a prehistoric sounding urrrrgh.
King is trying to wear down his opponent with knees to the body.
King with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
King with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.
King using the Thai clinch to land knees to the body.
King utilising his Muay Thai to score with a knee to the body.
King is trying to wear down his opponent with knees to the body.
King scores with a knee to the head.
King with a knee to the head.
Kneeeeees! The crowd are calling for knees to the body. King obliges.
King unloads a knee to the mid-section. Johnson lets out a prehistoric sounding urrrrgh.
King lands a nice knee to the body.
Johnson tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. King smiles and moves away.
King moves in looking to clinch but Johnson pushes him off.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Left hook, right uppercut from King.
King scores with a hook to the body. Johnson takes a step back and tries to catch his breath.
King's corner calls for a 1,2 combination and King duly obliges.
Dan King is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Johnson throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
King tries to clinch there but Johnson circles away.
Johnson falls off balance throwing a combination
enabling King to counter with a crisp jab.
Johnson wants to clinch
and King counters with a left and a right that stings Johnson.
King tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Johnson paws at him with a jab and circles away.
King scores with a body shot.
King tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
King tries to clinch but Johnson moves out of range.

King moves into range and clinches up with Johnson.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
King working Johnson over with knees to the body.
King misses with a knee strike.

Johnson breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Johnson shoots in for a double leg but King sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.
Johnson darts in trying to clinch
and King counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.

Johnson moves into the clinch.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
King with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.
Johnson is trying to break free.
King connects with a knee to the head.
Johnson managing to block the knees to the body from King.
King scores a nice knee to the body.
King lands a good knee to the midsection. Johnson won't want to take too many of those.
King connects with a knee to the head.
King misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Johnson.
Johnson blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
King lands a knee to the head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Johnson blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Johnson on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
King throws a knee to the head but misses.
Johnson is looking to break free of the clinch but King has double underhooks.

Johnson escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Johnson circles away from the clinch attempt

and Johnson counters with a shoot takedown. King fights it but they end up in guard.
Johnson controls the pace of the fight for a moment.
Johnson looking to pass the guard.
King is looking to stand up but Johnson isn't so interested in that idea.
Johnson slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.
King wants to stand up but Johnson is controlling him.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Johnson trying to control the position from guard on top but King is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Johnson postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
King is looking to get back to his feet but can't, whilst Johnson is controlling him.

Well, the referee has seen enough. Neither fighter is active enough on the ground so he's stood them back up.
Johnson uses good footwork to get in and out, landing a nice hook.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!

King drives through and clinches with Johnson against the cage.
King tries to land a knee to the head but Johnson blocks with his arms.
Johnson slowing the pace effectively.
King tries to land a knee to the head but Johnson blocks with his arms.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Dan King dominated that round.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Johnson tries to clinch but King is having none of it.
Johnson avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Johnson throws a lazy head kick
and King counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
Ouch! a nice leg kick from King, right into the meat.
King thuds a left hand into Johnson's body.
King is looking to clinch.
The fight stays on the outside here - King looks like he's thinking about clinching though.

King takes the fight into the clinch.
King throws a knee to the head but misses.
Johnson misses with some punches.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
King lands a knee to the body.
Knees to the body from King.
King using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Johnson has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Johnson wants to break the clinch but can't.
Johnson is trying to break the clinch but King has him pressed against the cage.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Johnson drops to a knee looking for a takedown but King gets the underhooks and prevents it.

Johnson jumps guard and drags King to the mat. He's obviously going to be looking for submissions off his back.
King throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
King trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
King keeps in close for a moment and lands a decent shot to the side of Johnson's head.
King preventing the sweep.
King wants to control from the top but Johnson keeps moving.
King preventing the sweep.

That's two 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.
Johnson is looking to sweep but instead, King has passed into half guard.
King trying to control from half guard but Johnson is working away.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Johnson circles away from the clinch attempt.
King tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Johnson paws at him with a jab and circles away.
King tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Johnson paws at him with a jab and circles away.
King throws a combination. Johnson tries to block but a couple of punches get through.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Johnson darts in and clinches King up against the cage.
King throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Johnson blocks it with crossed arms.
Johnson avoiding damage as King throws knees to the body.

Johnson breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
King wants to clinch
and Johnson counters with a three punch combination, finished off with a leg kick. Nice work.
Johnson throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around King's waist but King gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Johnson off to one side.
Johnson tries for a takedown but King sees it coming a mile off and avoids it easily.
Dan King has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Matt Johnson.
King throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Johnson tries to clinch but King moves away
and King counters with a nice jab to the body that keeps Johnson thinking.
Johnson takes a shot to the eye socket. That's gotta hurt.
Johnson misses with the combination.
Johnson clinches but King breaks the clinch
and King counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
King fails in his attempt to clinch.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Johnson misses with a combination

and King counters by clinching up.
King misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Johnson.
Johnson tries to jump guard but he falls flat on his backside. King smiles and moves away.
Johnson tries to clinch but King moves out of range.
Johnson throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
and King counters with a right hand to the body.

Johnson has closed the distance and engaged King in a clinch.
King lands a knee to the head there! That was nasty!
King crunches a lovely knee into Johnson's ribcage.
King missing with knees to the body.
Johnson wants to get back to striking at distance but King won't allow it.

Johnson's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Johnson misses with a double jab
and King counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Dan King dominated that second round.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action! This is the final round!

Johnson throws a sloppy head kick and King moves out of range easily.
King tries to clinch up

and Johnson holds on and brings the fighters into a clinch.
King lands a knee to the body.
King scores with a knee to the head.
King with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
King unloads a knee to the mid-section.
Johnson managing to block the knees to the body from King.
King misses with a knee strike.
King blocks a couple of punches on the inside.

Johnson breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Johnson throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
and King counters with a nice body kick.
King fails in his attempt to clinch.
Matt Johnson seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
King moves out of range of the strikes.
Johnson tries to clinch but King moves out of range.
The fight stays on the outside here - King looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Johnson tries to clinch
and Johnson takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
King misses with a two punch combination.
Johnson moves into range and throws a lovely three punch combination.
King is looking to wear down Johnson with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.
Johnson goes for a high kick. It partially lands.
Johnson throws a head kick that misses
and King cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
King is looking to clinch.
Johnson lands a jab, followed by a cross and another cross, as King backs up against the cage.
Johnson misses with a two punch combination.
Johnson is looking to clinch but King is avoiding it.
King lands with a kick to the temple. Johnson shrugs as if to say "is that all you've got?"
King fails with an attempt to clinch.
Johnson takes a body punch that cleary hurt but he's trying not to show any weakness.
King lets the fists fly and connects with a left straight followed by a right hook.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are getting on the fighters' backs, as the pace has dropped off in the last minute or so.
Johnson throws a lazy head kick
and King counters with a big head kick but Johnson shrugs it off.
Johnson tries for a takedown but King circles away easily

and King moves into the clinch.
King throws a knee to the head but misses.
A frustrated look appears on Johnson's face as he tries to break the clinch.
Johnson wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
King with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Johnson tries to break the clinch but King is controlling the position.

Johnson breaks the clinch.
Johnson throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Johnson fails with the takedown.
King tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
King bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Johnson throws a wild combination but nothing lands.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
King misses with a wild combination.
Dan King is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
King tries to clinch there but Johnson circles away.
Johnson swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
and King counters with a three punch combo that has Johnson backing up. Johnson nods at King to acknowledge the strikes.

Johnson gets the takedown into side control.
King defending against the ground and pound.
Johnson postures up a little and throws a couple of hammerfists but they don't connect properly.
King wants to get back to his feet.
Johnson misses with a strike but at least he's keeping busy, looking to cause some damage - that will still help him when it comes to the judges scorecards.
Johnson sitting in side control, looking to soften his opponent up with elbows and hammerfists but King is avoiding damage well and looking to escape the position.
Johnson lands a decent elbow from side control.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
King prevents Johnson from improving position.

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fighter is doing enough on the ground.
Johnson fails with a takedown attempt from distance.
Dan King has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Matt Johnson.
King throws a head kick that misses
enabling Johnson to counter with a crisp jab.
Matt Johnson has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
King tries to clinch but Johnson moves out of range.
Johnson changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. King tries to avoid it but Johnson manages to keep hold of a leg and drag King to the ground. King escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
Johnson closes the distance and clinches up with King, looking for a takedown. Johnson pushes King against the cage but King circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Johnson throws a lazy head kick
and King counters with an inside leg kick.
Johnson tries to clinch

and King counters by moving into the clinch. Good anticipation by King.
Johnson tries to circle away but King has him pinned against the cage.
King blocks an uppercut.
King is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Johnson is defending well for now.
Johnson is looking to break free of the clinch but King has double underhooks.
King lands a nice knee to the body.
Dan King is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
King landing some nice looking knees to the body.

And that's the end of the fight!
That was a close round. You could make an argument for either fighter but I would give it to Dan King.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for King, 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 Steve Smith scores the fight 30:27
Judge William Peck scores the fight 30:27
Judge Yves DeLean scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Dan King!