PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Tyson Bender (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Jesse Diaz (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Bender
vs
Diaz

180 cm
18
190 lbs
1 - 1 - 0

180 cm
18
192 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter striker
Granite chin

BJJ White Belt
Counter striker
Determined

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the middleweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 1 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Tyson Bender!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Jesse Diaz!
The judges for this bout are Frank Antenori, Timothy Bukovac and .

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Diaz wants to clinch up but Bender keeps it at a distance.
Diaz shoots in but Bender avoids the takedown attempt easily.
Bender tries to clinch but Diaz moves away

and Diaz counters with a shoot takedown. Bender fights it but they end up in guard.
Bender 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.
Diaz wants to control from the top but Bender keeps moving.
Diaz preventing the sweep.
Diaz must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.
Bender manages to sweep nicely, so he's now on top. Diaz manages to get himself to full guard.
Bender is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Diaz not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
Diaz wants to get back to his feet but Bender is in a dominant position and won't allow it.
Bender is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.
Bender trying to stand up but can't free himself from Diaz's guard.
Diaz looking to sweep here. No luck so far.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.
Bender throwing strikes from guard but Diaz blocks nicely.
Bender won't allow Diaz to get back to his feet.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Bender closes the distance looking to clinch

so Diaz counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Diaz with a flurry of punches that miss.
Diaz trying to control the position from guard on top but Bender is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Diaz controls from within his opponent's guard.
Bender keeping moving, preventing Diaz from controlling successfully.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
Diaz is stalling in the full guard.

The ref stands the fighters back up, due to lack of action by Jesse Diaz.
Bender tries to clinch but Diaz moves away

and Diaz holds on and brings the fighters into a clinch.
Diaz missing with knees to the body.
Bender misses with an elbow strike.
Diaz throws an elbow but it's blocked.
Bender lands an elbow that stopped Diaz in his tracks for a moment.
Diaz tries to stall but Bender uses the opportunity to gain a better position.
Bender tries to stall but Diaz uses the opportunity to gain a better position.
Diaz lands an elbow inside.

It looks like Tyson Bender has been cut.
Diaz tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Bender with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Bender landing knees to the head.
Bender connects with a knee to the head.
Bender looking to stall.
Bender tries to land knees in the clinch but Diaz avoids the damage to the body.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Jesse Diaz dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Tyson Bender's cut.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Diaz moves into the clinch.
Bender throws a knee to the head but misses.
Bender tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Bender crunches a lovely knee into Diaz's ribcage.
Bender comes over the top with an elbow. That landed flush.
Bender is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Diaz is defending well for now.
Diaz lands a nice elbow.
Diaz lands an elbow that stopped Bender in his tracks for a moment.
Bender tries to land knees in the clinch but Diaz avoids the damage to the body.
Diaz landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.
Diaz misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Bender.
Diaz lands an elbow inside that Bender shrugs off.
Diaz just leaning against Bender, taking a breather.
Diaz is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Bender is defending well for now.
Bender lands a nice elbow.
Bender connects with a nasty looking knee right to Diaz's face.
Bender with a knee to the head.
Diaz tries to land a knee to the head but Bender blocks with his arms.
Bender taking a breather.
Bender wants to stall.
Diaz lands a damaging elbow.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Bender is trying to maintain a safe position but Diaz gets an underhook and turns Bender into the cage.
Diaz unloads a knee to the mid-section.
Diaz misses with a knee strike.
Diaz lands a knee to the body.
Diaz stalling against the cage.
Bender takes an elbow to the forehead.

Tyson Bender's cut is getting worse.
Diaz utilising his Muay Thai to score with a knee to the body.
Diaz tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Diaz using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Bender has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Diaz missing with knees to the body.
Bender looks to throw an elbow but misses.
Diaz connects with a knee to the head.
Bender managing to block the knees to the body from Diaz.
Bender misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Diaz.
Diaz taking a break, stalling in the clinch.
Diaz misses with a knee to the head.
Diaz misses with a knee to the head.
Bender is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Diaz is keeping busy.
Diaz creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Bender's defenses.
Bender connects with a knee to the head.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Diaz lands an elbow inside that Bender shrugs off.
Knees to the body from Diaz.
A knee to the head by Diaz.
Diaz is stalling here.
Bender misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Diaz.
Diaz with a knee to the head.
Bender taking a breather.
Diaz creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Bender's defenses.
Diaz trying to control the position but instead, Bender has worked for underhooks and has pushed Diaz into the cage.
Bender is trying to maintain a safe position but Diaz gets an underhook and turns Bender into the cage.
Diaz looking to throw knees to the head but Bender is blocking nicely.
Diaz misses with a knee strike.
A nice glancing elbow lands by Bender.
Bender is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.
Diaz throws an elbow but it misses.
Diaz with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Bender pushes off an throws an elbow but Diaz leans to the side and avoids it. We're back to clinching against the cage.
Bender managing to block the knees to the body from Diaz.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Diaz lands an elbow just above Bender 's eye.
Bender trying to land knees to the body.
Diaz misses with a knee to the head.
Bender manages to get underhooks and slows down the pace for a moment.
Diaz managing to block the knees to the body from Bender.
Diaz dictating the pace here, as the fighters clinch against the cage.
Bender stalling in the clinch but Diaz improves position.
Diaz unloads a knee to the mid-section.
Bender is trying to stall.
Diaz gets an overhook and lands an elbow to the side of the head.
Diaz with a knee to the head.
Bender dodges an elbow strike from Diaz.
Bender misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Diaz.
Diaz misses with an elbow strike.
Diaz lands a knee to the head.
Diaz tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Bender avoids it.
Diaz throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.
Bender managing to block the knees to the body from Diaz.
Diaz is looking to score with knees to the body. Maybe he'll change it up and go body then head. Bender is defending well for now.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Bender landing knees to the head.
Diaz looking to throw knees to the head but Bender is blocking nicely.
Diaz leaning against his opponent.
Diaz throws a knee to the head but misses.
Diaz on the defensive, avoiding the knees to the body.
Diaz lands a damaging elbow.
A nice glancing elbow lands by Diaz.
Diaz misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Bender.
Bender tries a knee to the head but Diaz blocks it.
Diaz just leaning against Bender, taking a breather.
Bender with a knee to the head.
Diaz dodges an elbow strike from Bender.
Diaz is pushing Bender up against the cage, for a bit of lean and pray action. Action being used the in the loosest possible sense of the word.
Diaz throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Bender blocks it with crossed arms.
Bender lands an elbow just above Diaz 's eye.
Bender takes an elbow to the temple.
Bender misses with a knee strike.
Diaz looks to throw an elbow but misses.
Diaz lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
Bender is looking to control Diaz's arms but Diaz gets an underhook and turns him. Now Bender has his back to the cage.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Jesse Diaz showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Tyson Bender's cut.
That's time! Bender's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight. And we move into the final round!

Diaz drives through with a really nice takedown into side control.
Diaz working the ground and pound.
Diaz is looking to take a break and control but Bender is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Diaz working the ground and pound but Bender is defending the strikes.
Bender manages to land a sweep and he's now on top! Lovely Jiu Jitsu!
Diaz is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Diaz is persisting with the attempt to improve his position.
We get told so often about how wrestlers don't like to be on their backs. Let's see if Diaz can do anything to dispel that myth.
Diaz is looking to control Bender's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Diaz avoid being mounted?
Bender seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Diaz does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.
Diaz tries to get to full guard but Bender has control of the leg.

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

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fighter is doing enough on the ground.
Diaz tries to clinch but Bender moves away

and Bender counters by moving into the clinch. Good anticipation by Bender.
Bender blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Bender stalling here - the referee won't stand for too much of that.
A battle for position here, against the cage.
Diaz avoiding damage as Bender throws knees to the body.
Diaz lands an elbow that stopped Bender in his tracks for a moment.
Diaz tries to land a knee to the head but Bender blocks with his arms.
Bender managing to block the knees to the body from Diaz.
Bender takes a knee to the side of the body.
Bender misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Diaz.
Bender takes an elbow to the forehead.
Diaz connects with a nasty looking knee right to Bender's face.

Tyson Bender's cut is bleeding quite badly. He's got to try and protect it.
Diaz misses with a knee strike.
The referee calls for Diaz to work.
Diaz misses with a knee strike.
Bender throws an elbow but it misses.
Bender using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Diaz has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Diaz with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.
Diaz with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Bender tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Diaz avoids it.
Bender avoids the elbow strike from Diaz, against the cage.
Bender is pushing Diaz up against the cage, for a bit of lean and pray action. Action being used the in the loosest possible sense of the word.
Diaz creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Bender's defenses.
Bender tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Diaz missing with knees to the body.
Diaz throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.
Tyson Bender has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Diaz throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.
Bender lands a nice elbow from the clinch.
Diaz's corner are urging him to control the action in the clinch for a moment, rather than mount any serious offense. I'm sure the crowd appreciate those instructions... not.
Diaz misses with an elbow over the top.
Diaz pressing his opponent against the cage.
A battle for position here, against the cage.

That's four 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.
Diaz landing knees to the head.
Bender throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Diaz blocks it with crossed arms.
Bender blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Diaz tries a knee to the head but Bender blocks it.
Diaz misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Bender.
Jesse Diaz seems to be working more effectively in the clinch in the fight so far.
Bender pushes off and fires off an elbow that misses, before clinching up again, against the cage.
Bender throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Diaz blocks it with crossed arms.
Bender tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Diaz avoids it.
Diaz trying to control the position but instead, Bender has worked for underhooks and has pushed Diaz into the cage.
Bender lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Diaz connects with a knee to the head.
Bender manages to get underhooks and slows down the pace for a moment.
Diaz avoids the elbow strike from Bender, against the cage.
Jesse Diaz is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Bender pushes off an throws an elbow but Diaz leans to the side and avoids it. We're back to clinching against the cage.

And that's the end of the fight!
Jesse Diaz comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Diaz 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 Frank Antenori scores the fight 27:30
Judge Timothy Bukovac scores the fight 27:30
Judge Suge Night scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Jesse Diaz!