PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Amir Zukic (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Jean Claude Van Damme (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Zukic comes to the cage accompanied by 50 cent - Many man. Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Zukic
vs
Claude Van Damme

173 cm
26
159 lbs
14 - 7 - 0

175 cm
23
178 lbs
14 - 5 - 1

Good wrestling
World class MT
Very quick

Good wrestler
Good low kicks
Powerful

Rōnin
Rōnin

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 14 - 7 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, Amir Zukic!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 14 - 5 - 1, fighting out of Montreal, Jean Claude Van Damme!
The judges for this bout are Robert Douchet, Yves DeLean and Elvis Blanc.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Van Damme lands a slapping body shot.
Well, he's not going to score with shots like that. A lazy body kick attempt from Zukic.
Van Damme connects with a lovely right hand, straight down the pipe.
Amir Zukic seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Zukic throws a leg kick that is checked
and Van Damme counters with a lovely shot to the body.
Zukic throws a leg kick that misses.
Zukic throws a leg kick that is checked
and Van Damme counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.

Zukic closes the distance and clinches.
Zukic lands a body punch.
Zukic lands a body shot.
Van Damme lands with a short shot to the head.
Van Damme looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Van Damme blocks an uppercut.
Zukic makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.

Zukic manages to break the clinch.
Van Damme throws a shot to the body.
Van Damme checks a low kick from Zukic.
Zukic lands a leg kick. The shin dug right into the meat of the thigh.
That's a knee to de groin and it's over and out! Van Damme crumples to the ground after an illegal strike from Zukic - the referee stops the clock and Van Damme gets 5 minutes to recover from that one. "I'm sorry" says Zukic. Van Damme manages to get back to his feet and the fight resumes.
Zukic lands a nice looking kick to the body. Van Damme takes a step back to recover.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Zukic throws a sloppy head kick and Van Damme moves out of range easily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Van Damme thuds a left hand into Zukic's body.
Zukic changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Van Damme tries to avoid it but Zukic manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Van Damme to the ground. Van Damme escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
Van Damme blocks a head kick by Zukic.
Van Damme throws a sloppy body shot
and Zukic counters with a head kick.
Zukic tries to close the distance and clinch up but Van Damme swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Van Damme throws out a powerful jab.

Zukic drops down and drives through with a powerful takedown into guard.
Zukic trying to pass the guard. He's being very persistent here but Van Damme manages to land a sweep and now he's on top!
Zukic is looking to sweep but instead, Van Damme has passed into half guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The fighters are battling for position here. Zukic manages to regain full guard. Nice work.
Zukic trying to keep a closed guard but Van Damme is proving a slippery customer.
Zukic is going to have to think about doing something other than just controlling because Van Damme is managing to avoid having the position dictated to him.
Van Damme trying to control the position from guard on top but Zukic is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Zukic is trying to keep Van Damme in close.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Van Damme controlling from the guard. I say controlling but really, he's stalling.
The referee wants the fighters to be more active or he's going to reset them on the feet.

The ref stands the fighters back up. Amir Zukic wasn't doing enough on the ground.

Zukic closes the distance, clinches up and gets a nice trip takedown into side control. Very smooth.

Zukic tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.
Van Damme is trying to get back to half guard. He's pushing on Zukic's leg. He's managed it. Nice work.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Van Damme is staying active underneath Zukic, who seems content to just control the action from this position.
Van Damme makes his way to full guard. A much better position for Van Damme.
Zukic trying to control the position from guard on top but Van Damme is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Amir Zukic dominated that round.
That's time! Back to the action!

Van Damme lands with an uppercut that bounces Zukic off the cage and back into rage.
Zukic throws a feint and then finishes with a kick to the body.
Van Damme tries to bum rush Zukic with a series of wild strikes but Zukic uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Van Damme wings a very wild body shot but it does the job and lands to the midsection.
Van Damme closes the distance and lands a one-two.
Van Damme scores with a jab to the head.
Zukic tries to clinch up.
Van Damme throws a leg kick that misses.
Van Damme lands a body shot.
Van Damme looks to land a right hand but Zukic moved out of range.

Zukic instigates a clinch.
Zukic misses with a knee strike.
Zukic stalls.
Van Damme has a couple of punches blocked by Zukic.
Zukic misses with a knee to the head.
Zukic misses with a punch on the inside.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Van Damme can't break the clinch.
Both guys are working to get underhooks.
An uppercut to the body lands inside from Zukic.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Zukic creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.
Zukic scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Zukic swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Van Damme is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Zukic is keeping busy.
Zukic has Van Damme pressed against the cage, preventing Van Damme from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Zukic is working Van Damme over against the cage.
Zukic with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Zukic tries a knee to the head but Van Damme blocks it.
Van Damme tries to break free but Zukic pushes him back against the cage.
Van Damme lands punches inside but they're not really causing much damage.
Zukic misses with a body punch.
Zukic stalling in the clinch but Van Damme improves position.
Zukic lands a knee to the head.
Zukic lands a left hand.
Zukic is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.
Van Damme throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Van Damme gets double underhooks to prevent a takedown attempt from Zukic.
Zukic tries a body shot but Van Damme blocks it.
It really doesn't seem like the step up in weight is hurting Zukic here at all. He's more than holding his own against the bigger man.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Van Damme makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
Van Damme blocking some punches.
Zukic misses with a body punch.
Van Damme lands a hook that snaps the head of Zukic backwards.
Zukic lands with a left to the head.
Both guys are working to get underhooks.
Zukic lands a hook to the side of the head.
Van Damme lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Zukic backwards.
Zukic looking to throw knees to the head but Van Damme is blocking nicely.
Zukic is stalling here. The referee will be looking to step in if he doesn't pick up the pace.
Zukic tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Van Damme avoids it.

Van Damme manages to break the clinch.
Van Damme is looking to slow Zukic down with leg kicks.
Van Damme throws a shot to the body.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Zukic is defended easily by Van Damme.
Van Damme dips to his left and cracks Zukic with an uppercut!
Van Damme throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Zukic sees it coming and avoids it easily.
Van Damme keeping at a good range here, avoiding a leg kick.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Zukic closes the distance looking to clinch
letting Van Damme counter with a right hand.
A big left from Van Damme misses.
Van Damme throws a head kick but Zukic moves out of range.
Zukic tries to clinch but Van Damme moves away
and Van Damme counters nicely by changing levels and landing a hook to the body.
Jean Claude Van Damme is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Zukic fakes with a right hand and throws a good leg kick, right into the thigh. That had to hurt Van Damme.
Van Damme lands a slapping body shot.
Zukic with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.
Zukic pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Van Damme keeps the fight on the outside.
Van Damme digs a good hook to Zukic's body.
Van Damme scores with a body shot.
Zukic avoids the body shot from Van Damme.
Nice body punch from Van Damme.
Van Damme lands a beauty of a right hand that gets the crowd cheering.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Zukic tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Zukic drops his hands and takes a jab to the jaw for his troubles.
Good work by Van Damme as he checks the leg kick.
Van Damme getting the better of the striking in that exchange.
Zukic connects with a solid leg kick.
Zukic misses with a low kick.
Van Damme throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Van Damme fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
Van Damme is throwing a lot of body shots here, looking to wear down Zukic rather than just go for the knockout.
Zukic tries to score with a leg kick but it misses it's target.
Van Damme scores with a jab to the body.
Van Damme blocks a head kick by Zukic.
An inside leg kick from Zukic misses.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Van Damme scores with a nice looking left hook and follows it up with an uppercut!
Good standup being displayed there by Van Damme as he connects with a hook.
Some bone on bone action there as Van Damme checks a low kick. Luckily it wasn't a particularly hard one.
Van Damme lands a nice looking body kick.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Jean Claude Van Damme showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
That's the end of the interval. I'm sure that seemed a lot quicker than a minute for our two fighters! Back to the action. This is the final round!

Van Damme lunges in with an uppercut that skims his opponent's chin.
Van Damme feints and then cracks Zukic's leading leg with a nice low kick. He's obviously looking to slow Zukic down.
Van Damme misses with a looping left.
Zukic throws an overhand right that lands on Van Damme's shoulder, as Van Damme tries to avoid the shot.
Van Damme connects with a high kick.
Van Damme takes a push kick to the midsection and stumbles backwards.
Zukic fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Van Damme manages to avoid it.
Zukic throws an overhand right that lands on Van Damme's shoulder, as Van Damme tries to avoid the shot.
Van Damme connects with a good right hand that stumbles Zukic. Zukic circles away out of range and recomposes himself.
Zukic throws a nice outside leg kick.
Van Damme ducks down and throws a hook to the body.
Zukic looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
Zukic takes a nice looking leg kick right on the meat of his thigh there.
Zukic closes the distance looking to clinch
and Van Damme counters with an inside leg kick.
Zukic takes a shot right to the bread basket.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Van Damme scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
Zukic swings away with a leg kick that misses.
Zukic walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. Van Damme checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.
Zukic throws a leg kick but Van Damme moved away.
Van Damme lands with a head kick! That's gotta hurt.
Zukic throws a head kick that misses
and Van Damme cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Ouch! a nice leg kick from Zukic, right into the meat.
Van Damme swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Zukic.
Zukic misses with a leg kick.
Van Damme checks a leg kick nicely.
Zukic moves in looking to clinch but Van Damme pushes him off.
Van Damme lands with a thumping leg kick.
Van Damme waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Zukic.
Zukic takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
Zukic misses with a leg kick
and Van Damme counters with a straight right hand.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A low kick from Zukic misses
and Van Damme counters with a stiff right hand.
Zukic on the wrong end of a vicious looking body shot.
Zukic lands a head kick!
Zukic takes a nice looking leg kick right on the meat of his thigh there.
Van Damme ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Zukic moves away.

Zukic darts in and clinches Van Damme up against the cage.

Zukic breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Zukic wants to land a leg kick but Van Damme is out of range.
Van Damme throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Zukic fakes a jab and throws a low kick but Van Damme checks it well.
Zukic misses with a head kick.
Zukic tries to shoot in for a takedown. He's got hold of a leg but Van Damme swivels and escapes.
Van Damme throws a jab but it's blocked by Zukic.
Zukic throws a leg kick
and Van Damme counters with a straight right hand.
Van Damme needs to keep his hands up - Zukic had a free shot at his head there.
Van Damme misses with a body shot
and Zukic counters with a leg kick.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Zukic uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Van Damme.
Zukic throws a head kick but Van Damme moves out of range.
Van Damme throws a series of punches but Zukic moves out of range.
Van Damme fakes a head shot and lands one to the body.
A looping hook to the body misses from Van Damme. Zukic does a little dance to reset his feet.
Zukic throws a leg kick
and Zukic takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
Van Damme misses with a jab to the body
and Zukic counters with a nice low kick that buckles Van Damme's knee momentarily.
Jean Claude Van Damme seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Van Damme misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Zukic.
Zukic wants to clinch but Van Damme slips to the side
and Van Damme counters with a straight punch to the midsection.
Zukic throws a head kick that Van Damme semi-blocks.
Zukic shoots for a takedown but Van Damme saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Zukic lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.
Zukic misses with a low kick.
Zukic looks like he's developed a pretty tasty lump over his left eye. He'll need to avoid taking much more damage to that.
Zukic thows a leg kick but Van Damme checks it
and Van Damme counters with a lovely shot to the body.
Zukic does a little shimmy and throws a leg kick. The leg kick missed by a considerable margin though, making him look a little bit silly for doing the shimmy.
Van Damme throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Zukic throws a leg kick
and Van Damme counters with a stiff right hand.
Zukic scores with a spinning back kick!
Zukic misses with a head kick.
Van Damme's leg has a nasty welt from taking a succession of leg kicks. That must be slowing him down.
Van Damme scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
Zukic throws a head kick that misses
and Van Damme makes him pay by landing a nice hook to the body before moving out of range.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Van Damme misses with a body shot.
Zukic throws a leg kick which misses Van Damme's front leg but catches the back leg as Van Damme tries to avoid it.
Van Damme shuffles to his left behind two crisp jabs. Zukic eats them both and turns towards Van Damme to reposition himself and eats a stinging right hand-left hook combo.
Zukic fails in his attempt to clinch.
Zukic tries to clinch there but Van Damme circles away.
Zukic throws a leg kick
and Zukic takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Zukic takes a solid shot to the body. That one hurt him but he's trying not to show it.
Zukic needs to keep his hands up - Van Damme had a free shot at his head there.
A left lands for Van Damme.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Zukic turns his hip over beautifully as he lands a nice leg kick.

And that's the end of the fight!
Jean Claude Van Damme comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Van Damme has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. 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 Robert Douchet scores the fight 28:29
Judge Yves DeLean scores the fight 28:29
Judge Elvis Blanc scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Jean Claude Van Damme!