PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Shinya Aoki (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Iztiar Berejemas (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Aoki comes to the cage accompanied by If. Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Aoki
vs
Berejemas

180 cm
25
159 lbs
0 - 1 - 0

175 cm
21
156 lbs
2 - 2 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Brawler
Good chin

BJJ Blue Belt
Basic striking
Tends to cut

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the lightweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Shinya Aoki!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Iztiar Berejemas!
The judges for this bout are Damien Edna, John Mangel and Skip Squint.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Berejemas closes the distance, clinches up and gets a nice trip takedown into side control. Very smooth.
An elbow from Berejemas crashes against the mat.
Aoki wants to control but Berejemas postures up.
Berejemas tries to land with some ground and pound but misses.
Aoki takes a couple of big shots there - the referee warns him that he has to defend himself better.
Aoki is working to avoid the ground and pound but Berejemas connects with a decent elbow.
Berejemas with the ground and pound but Aoki regains half guard under the barage of strikes.
Berejemas throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Berejemas thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Aoki's head.
Aoki blocking the ground and pound attempt from Berejemas.
Aoki is breathing heavily.
Berejemas lands with a punch from half guard.
Aoki blocking the ground and pound attempt from Berejemas.
Aoki has his hands clasped together around Berejemas's back. He's all about the action.
Aoki keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Aoki wants to improve his position but Berejemas is controlling well.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Aoki avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Berejemas.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Berejemas lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Berejemas throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Berejemas is nestled in close to Aoki, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
Berejemas drops an elbow to the side of Aoki's head.
Nice strikes from Berejemas there.
Berejemas is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.
Berejemas drops an elbow to the side of Aoki's head.
Aoki blocking the ground and pound attempt from Berejemas.
Berejemas thows a huge punch but Aoki dodges it nicely.
Berejemas winds up and cracks Aoki with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
Berejemas working the head and body with strikes.
Ground and pound from Berejemas.
Berejemas missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
Berejemas not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Berejemas sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Aoki defending well though.
Berejemas wants to free his trapped foot but Aoki is holding on for dear life with his legs.
Berejemas throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Berejemas is nestled in close to Aoki, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
Berejemas working some ground and pound from close in. He's looking to maintain this position and strike for a while by the looks of things... although he'll probably advance to full mount in a minute now I've said that.
Aoki tries to roll over but Berejemas keeps him under control.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Berejemas changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Aoki tries to avoid it but Berejemas manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Aoki to the ground. Aoki escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.

Berejemas closes the distance and gets a double leg, slamming Aoki to the mat! Aoki manages to get full guard.
Berejemas throws a big right hand that misses.
Berejemas with a nice head shot there.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Berejemas accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.

Aoki is looking for a triangle but Berejemas pushes his legs off easily.
Aoki trying to control the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Berejemasis looking to pass into half guard but Aoki pushes him away with his feet and jumps on top - now Aoki is in guard.
Berejemas is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.
Berejemas throws a couple of weedy looking strikes off his back.

The referee has ruled that neither fighter is active enough on the ground and has stood them back up.

Berejemas bobs and weaves into range and then changes levels and scores with a nice takedown into side control.
Berejemas scores with a couple of nice shots to the head there. The referee takes a look at Aoki to see if he's OK.
Aoki tries to buck Berejemas off but Berejemas is having none of it.
Aoki struggling a bit here.
Berejemas lands a knee to the body and follows it up with some ground and pound to the head. That will wear Aoki down.
Berejemas avoids the strikes from the bottom by Aoki.
Aoki tries to bench press Berejemas off him but Berejemas keeps the position.
Aoki taking a bit of punishment here - Berejemas scoring with strikes.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Aoki takes a couple of big shots there - the referee warns him that he has to defend himself better.
Aoki is looking to regain half guard here but Berejemas keeps moving and retains side control.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Berejemas shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Aoki sprawls well. Aoki wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Berejemas gets slowly back to his feet.

Berejemas shoots in and gets a takedown into half guard. Berejemas showed some decent athleticism there.
Aoki is trying to get back to full guard.
Aoki wants to get back to his feet.
Berejemas is nestled in close to Aoki, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
Berejemas scores with a couple of good hammerfists.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Iztiar Berejemas dominated that round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Berejemas decides to change it up a bit and drives through with a nice takedown into half guard.
Aoki trying to control from the bottom.

Aoki looking for submissions from an awkward position here.
Berejemas seems to be taking a bit of a break to think of his next move. He lands a short punch in the meantime.
Berejemas landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
Berejemas takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Ground and pound from Berejemas.
Berejemas is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.
Berejemas thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Aoki's head.
Berejemas is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.
Aoki avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Berejemas.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Aoki is trying to get back to full guard.
Berejemas working the head and body with strikes.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Berejemas thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
Berejemas sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Aoki defending well though.
Aoki is trying to get back to full guard.
Berejemas thows a huge punch but Aoki dodges it nicely.
Aoki is looking for a sweep. Berejemas is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.
Iztiar Berejemas has got the better of the ground game so far.

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fighter is doing enough on the ground.
Berejemas shoots in for a takedown but Aoki shows good takedown defense.
A shot to the liver by Berejemas. Beautiful body shot.
Berejemas fails with a takedown attempt.
Berejemas wings a very wild body shot but it does the job and lands to the midsection.

Berejemas decides to change it up a bit and drives through with a nice takedown into half guard.
Aoki avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Berejemas.
Berejemas sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Aoki defending well though.
Berejemas missing with the ground and pound from half guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Aoki manages to escape and get back to his feet!
Iztiar Berejemas seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.

Berejemas gets a takedown into half guard.
Berejemas working some ground and pound from close in. He's looking to maintain this position and strike for a while by the looks of things... although he'll probably advance to full mount in a minute now I've said that.
Berejemas not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Aoki trying to control from the bottom.
Aoki avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Berejemas.
Aoki keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Berejemas working over Aoki with some ground and pound. Aoki looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
Aoki trying to control but Berejemas postures up.
Berejemas prevents Aoki from standing back up.

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fighter is doing enough on the ground.

Berejemas moves into the clinch successfully.
Berejemas is trying to work for a single leg takedown but Aoki pulls him back up using the underhooks.
Shinya Aoki has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Iztiar Berejemas.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Berejemas stops a takedown attempt from Aoki.
Berejemas tries to take the fight to the ground by pulling guard but can't manage it.
Berejemas wants to break the clinch but can't.
Berejemas tries to take the fight to the ground by pulling guard but can't manage it.
Berejemas wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.

Aoki has moved round to his opponent's back and is looking for a suplex! Oh snap! He's tossed Berejemas clear over his head and slammed him to the mat!
Berejemas staying busy and making it hard for Aoki to control.
Aoki softening up his opponent with strikes here.
Berejemas rolls and manages to get back to half guard. Nicely done.
Aoki not doing much here.
Berejemas tries to strike from the bottom but it doesn't land.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Berejemas tries to strike from the bottom but it doesn't land.
Berejemas flails away from the bottom but he's not doing any damage.
Berejemas lands with a few short shots to the body.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Berejemas scores with a jab. Aoki acknowledges it with a nod of the head.
Berejemas scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.

Berejemas shoots in and scores a nice double leg takedown into half guard.
Berejemas takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Berejemas missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
Berejemas is looking to advance position but Aoki won't allow it.
Aoki keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Aoki is looking to control Berejemas's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Aoki avoid being mounted?
Berejemas with the ground and pound but Aoki uses the opportunity to regain guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Iztiar Berejemas showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action! This is the final round!

Berejemas fails to land the takedown.

Berejemas drives through with a takedown into guard.
Aoki wants to sweep but no luck.
Aoki utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Berejemas really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Aoki. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Aoki wants to sweep but no luck.
Aoki working a defensive guard here.
Berejemas working some strikes from top position.
Berejemas postures up and scores with a shot to the body and a follow up elbow to the head.
Aoki has momentary wrist control but Berejemas slips an elbow through the middle.
Berejemas throwing strikes but missing.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.

Berejemas shoots in from a long way out. He's driving through with the takedown attempt and he eventually gets it, landing in Aoki's guard.
Berejemas lands a couple of digs.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Aoki not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Berejemas postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.

Berejemas got a little sloppy there for a moment and Aoki has worked his way into a loose triangle - can he finish it?! No, Berejemas has managed to get both his arms back between Aoki's legs - danger averted.
Aoki with a couple of shots from the bottom there - nothing Berejemas can't handle though.
Aoki is trying to keep Berejemas in close.
Berejemas trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Berejemas postures up and scores with a shot to the body and a follow up elbow to the head.
Aoki trying to keep a closed guard but Berejemas is proving a slippery customer.
Aoki throws a couple of shots from the bottom but they don't land.
Aoki looking to control.
Berejemas trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Berejemas connects with a lovely right hand, straight down the pipe.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are starting to boo a lack of action.

Berejemas drops down and drives through with a powerful takedown into guard.
Aoki preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.

Aoki pushes Berejemas off and scrambles back to his feet.
Aoki tries a head kick but it misses.
Aoki drops his hands and takes a jab to the jaw for his troubles.
Berejemas cracks Aoki with a good shot that sees him stumbling back into the cage.
Berejemas wants to clinch.
Berejemas misses with a takedown attempt - Aoki sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Aoki tries to close the distance and clinch up but Berejemas swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Berejemas shoots in and drives through. Aoki sprawls well.
Shinya Aoki has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Iztiar Berejemas.
A left lands for Berejemas.
Berejemas will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Aoki throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
A left and a right from Berejemas both land. Nice combination.
Berejemas tries for a takedown but Aoki sees it coming a mile off and avoids it easily.
Aoki tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Berejemas bobbing and weaving, closes the distance and lands a hook to the side of Aoki's head.
Berejemas lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.
Berejemas swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Aoki.

Berejemas shoots in for a takedown and gets it. Let's see what he's got on the mat.
Berejemas is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
Berejemas must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.
Berejemas with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.
Aoki is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Aoki is going to have to think about doing something other than just controlling because Berejemas is managing to avoid having the position dictated to him.

Aoki had isolated an arm as going for a kimura. Berejemas defends it easily.
Berejemas prevents Aoki from getting back to his feet.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Berejemas lands a couple of elbows.
Berejemas cracks Aoki with a solid left hand.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
No luck for Berejemas with that takedown attempt.
Berejemas swats away the attempt to clinch by Aoki.
Berejemas feints with a shoulder and throws a nice leg kick to Aoki's calf.

Berejemas changes levels and drives through with a really nice takedown into side control. Aoki looks really pissed at himself for not defending that better.
Sloppy strikes there by Berejemas.
Berejemas tries to score with some ground and pound. Aoki controls his posture well this time though and the shots don't do any damage.
Aoki manages to work his way to half guard, despite Berejemas's best efforts.
Berejemas throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Shinya Aoki has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Iztiar Berejemas is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Berejemas thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Aoki's head.

And that's the end of the fight!
Iztiar Berejemas comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Berejemas 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 Damien Edna scores the fight 27:30
Judge John Mangel scores the fight 27:30
Judge Skip Squint scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Iztiar Berejemas!