PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Rob Cruz (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Rashad Evans (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the ring.

Cruz
vs
Evans

185 cm
20
170 lbs
0 - 1 - 0

175 cm
26
170 lbs
2 - 3 - 0

Dangerous GnP
Brawler
Cuts easily

Good wrestler
Good elbows
Powerful

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 2 rounds, in the welterweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Amsterdam, Rob Cruz!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Amsterdam, Rashad Evans!
The judges for this bout are Radbod Blank, Saam Ante and Nard Betker.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Nice takedown defense from Evans. No joy for Cruz on that attempt.
Cruz has a takedown stuffed.
Cruz will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Rob Cruz. That's going to take a lot out of him.

Evans closes the distance, clinches up and gets a nice trip takedown into side control. Very smooth.
Evans with the ground and pound but Cruz regains half guard under the barage of strikes.
Cruz keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Evans slips a nice elbow through Cruz's hands, connecting with Cruz's forehead.
Evans landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.

It looks like Rob Cruz has been cut.
Cruz keeps control of the position for the meantime.
Cruz blocking the ground and pound attempt from Evans.
Evans thows a big elbow that misses, also allowing Cruz to regain full guard.
Evans landing some decent shots from guard.
Evans is looking to work some ground and pound but Cruz has wrist control.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Evans lands a couple of decent looking shots.
Evans makes a bit of distance and scores with some ground and pound, still in guard.
Evans landing some decent shots from guard.
Cruz is breathing heavily.
Evans throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Evans postures up and scores with a shot to the body and a follow up elbow to the head.
The fighters are trapped in the ropes so we're going to have a reposition here. The ref calls for a break and repositions the fighters in the center of the ring.
Cruz preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Cruz preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Evans throwing strikes but missing.
Evans pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Cruz is keeping the position for now.
Evans in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Cruz working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Evans.
Evans in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
Evans working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of Cruz's head.
Evans with a flurry of punches that miss.
Evans postures up in Cruz's guard and throws a big left but Cruz blocks it.
Evans working from the guard for now, landing some ground and pound.
Evans works over Cruz with some ground and pound from guard.
Evans working some strikes from top position.
Evans is in close to Cruz's body, working some short punches and elbows.
Evans with a nice head shot there.
Evans throwing strikes from guard but Cruz blocks nicely.
Evans working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Evans is in close to Cruz's body, working some short punches and elbows.
Evans slips nicely into half guard.
Evans slips a nice elbow through Cruz's hands, connecting with Cruz's forehead.
Evans throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Evans 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.
Evans slips a nice elbow through Cruz's hands, connecting with Cruz's forehead.
Evans is nestled in close to Cruz, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
Evans sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Cruz defending well though.
Evans not landing any meaningful shots this time.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Evans slips a nice elbow through Cruz's hands, connecting with Cruz's forehead.
Evans is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.
Evans trying to pass the guard but Cruz defending well.
Evans thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
Evans takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Evans throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Evans not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Evans drops an elbow to the side of Cruz's head.
Evans looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Cruz with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Evans throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.

That's five minutes gone in the round.
Evans throwing shots but Cruz is blocking nicely.
Evans slips a nice elbow through Cruz's hands, connecting with Cruz's forehead.
Evans missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
Cruz on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
Evans working over Cruz with some ground and pound. Cruz looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
Evans working the head and body with strikes.
Cruz wants to improve his position but Evans is controlling well.
Evans throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Evans not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Cruz taking some punishment here, with Evans in his half guard.

That's six minutes gone in the round.
Evans missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
Evans thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Cruz's head.
Evans lands with an elbow from half guard - that looked like it hurt.
Evans looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Cruz with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Evans wants to pass the guard but Cruz is defending well.
Ground and pound from Evans.
Evans is nestled in close to Cruz, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.

That's seven minutes gone in the round.
Cruz blocking the ground and pound attempt from Evans.
Evans seems to be taking a bit of a break to think of his next move. He lands a short punch in the meantime.
Evans takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Cruz is trying to defend against the ground and pound but Evans scores with a couple of nice shots.
Evans thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
Cruz trying to hold on to Evans's head to control him but Evans postures up.
Evans throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Evans not landing any meaningful shots this time.
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Evans connects with a nice short shot to Cruz's temple.
Evans thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Cruz's head.

That's eight minutes gone in the round.
Evans throwing shots but Cruz is blocking nicely.
Cruz blocking the ground and pound attempt from Evans.
Evans sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Cruz defending well though.
Evans not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Evans lands strikes from half guard.
Evans takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Evans looks to land a strike but Cruz avoids it nicely and regains full guard.
Cruz has momentary wrist control but Evans slips an elbow through the middle.
Cruz looking to control.
Evans throwing strikes from guard but Cruz blocks nicely.

That's nine minutes gone in the round.
Evans loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Evans content to strike from guard, landing some decent shots.
Evans throwing strikes from guard but Cruz blocks nicely.
Evans loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Evans chips away with some ground and pound.
Evans cracks Cruz with a solid left hand.
Evans works over Cruz with some ground and pound from guard.
Evans works over Cruz with some ground and pound from guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Rashad Evans dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Rob Cruz's cut.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. The crowd applaud as we get ready to start the final round!

Evans closes the distance and clinches.
Cruz changes levels and goes for a takedown here. Evans fights it off and pushes away nicely.
Cruz closes the distance and clinches up with Evans, looking for a takedown. Cruz pushes Evans against the ropes but Evans circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.

Evans shoots in with a lovely double leg takedown. Cruz manages to land in full guard to minimise the damage.
Evans wants to pass the guard but Cruz is keeping the position.
Evans is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
Evans passes easily into side control. Nice work.
Cruz takes a couple of big shots there - the referee warns him that he has to defend himself better.
Cruz taking a bit of punishment here - Evans scoring with strikes.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Cruz takes a couple of big shots there - the referee warns him that he has to defend himself better.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Evans scores with a couple of nice shots to the head there. The referee takes a look at Cruz to see if he's OK.
Evans working away.
Evans lands an elbow.
Evans scoring with punches from side control.
Evans is putting a hurting on Cruz here, landing some big shots from side control.
Evans working the body and head with strikes.
Evans has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Evans working away diligently from side control. Landing strikes effectively there - that will score him some points on the judges scorecards.
Cruz is trying to stand back up. He's worked his way up against the ropes but Evans has just dragged him back down to the mat.
Evans scoring with punches and elbows.
The ground and pound from Evans seems to be hitting the mat more than his opponent.
Evans working the head with strikes.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Evans looking to punish the body of his opponent here but Cruz is avoiding damage well.
Cruz wants to control but Evans postures up.
Evans cracks Cruz with an elbow. That is naaassty.
Evans lands some shots froms side control.
Evans sitting in side control, looking to soften his opponent up with elbows and hammerfists but Cruz is avoiding damage well and looking to escape the position.
Evans lands an elbow.
Evans looking to punish the body of his opponent here but Cruz is avoiding damage well.
Evans lands a nice forearm strike.
Evans working the head and body with strikes.
Evans working away diligently from side control. Landing strikes effectively there - that will score him some points on the judges scorecards.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Cruz wants to get back to his feet but Evans drags him back down.
Evans working away diligently from side control. Landing strikes effectively there - that will score him some points on the judges scorecards.
Cruz gets back to half guard.
Cruz avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Evans.
Evans misses with a head shot. Cruz uses the momentum to regain guard.
Cruz wants to sweep here but Evans controlling him for the moment.
Evans throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.
Cruz preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Evans with a flurry of punches that miss.
Cruz working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Evans.
Hammerfist, elbow! yells Evans's corner. There ya go! There ya go!
Cruz working a defensive guard here.
Evans stops Cruz from standing up.
The fighters are tangled up in the ropes here. We might need a restart if the fighters can't break free themselves.
Evans stopping the sweep attempt from Cruz.
Evans throws a big right hand that misses.
Evans must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.

That's five minutes gone in the round.
Evans looking to pass the guard.
Evans working some strikes from top position.
Evans scoring with some ground and pound.
Evans throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Cruz works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Evans cracks Cruz with a solid left hand.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Evans accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
Cruz is trying to control the position but Evans postures up.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Evans accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
Evans landing some decent shots from guard.
Evans throws a strike but Cruz rolls with it and manages to sweep. Now he's in guard on top.

That's six minutes gone in the round.
Cruz trying to control but Evans is working from the bottom.
Cruz looking to sit in guard and control but Evans gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.
Cruz controls Evans momentarily but Evans frees himself.
Evans trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Cruz wants to stand up but Evans is controlling him.

That's seven minutes gone in the round.
Evans working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Evans is looking to work some ground and pound but Cruz has wrist control.
Evans works a leg free and moves into half guard.
Evans throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Cruz keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Evans is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.
Evans looks to score some points with some ground and pound.
Evans not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Cruz looks like he's trying to stand up.

That's eight 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.
Cruz keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Cruz avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Evans.
Evans throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Cruz is trying to maintain the position but Evans is very close to passing his half guard.
Evans landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
Evans lands with an elbow from half guard - that looked like it hurt.
Cruz wants to control but Evans is keeping busy.

That's nine minutes gone in the round.
Evans slips a nice elbow through Cruz's hands, connecting with Cruz's forehead.
Rashad Evans has got the better of the ground game so far.
Evans not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Cruz trying to control from the bottom.
Cruz is going to have to think about doing something other than just controlling because Evans is managing to avoid having the position dictated to him.
Evans thows a huge punch but Cruz dodges it nicely.
Cruz on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
Nice strikes from Evans there.
Evans not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Evans winds up and cracks Cruz with a swinging punch to the side of the head.
Rob Cruz has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Evans landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.

And that's the end of the fight!
Rashad Evans comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Evans has outworked and out performed his opponent in all aspects of the game today. He was simply too good and the decision should be no more than a formality. Over to the ring announcer for the scorecards.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 2 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.

Judge Radbod Blank scores the fight for Rashad Evans!
Judge Saam Ante scores the fight for Rashad Evans!
Judge Nard Betker scores the fight for Rashad Evans!

Rashad Evans wins by unanimous decision!