PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Hattori Hanzo (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Micheal King (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Hanzo comes into the arena with Kage No Gundan blaring out of the sound system. King has chosen X Gon' give it to ya as his entrance music. Micheal King has the better chin. Will he look to stand and bang today?

Hanzo
vs
King

185 cm
22
195 lbs
5 - 7 - 0

175 cm
25
190 lbs
7 - 11 - 0

Powerful takedowns
Counter striker
Very quick

BJJ Purple Belt
Decent boxing
Solid chin

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 5 - 7 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Hattori Hanzo!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 7 - 11 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Micheal King!
The judges for this bout are John Mangel, Hugh Johnson and Donatello Bradman.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

King gets a clinch.
Hanzo drops to a knee looking for a takedown but King gets the underhooks and prevents it.
Hanzo goes for a takedown in the clinch but King prevents it.

King manages to pull guard. Let's see whether he can land a sub off his back.
King bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Hanzo's guard.
Hanzo has a closed guard, preventing King from standing up.
Hanzo working a defensive guard here.
King thows a big elbow that misses.
Hanzo controls King momentarily but King frees himself.

That's one minute gone in the round.
King wants to control from the top but Hanzo keeps moving.
King tries to free his leg and advance position but Hanzo is retaining full guard.
King looking to sit in guard and control but Hanzo gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.
Hanzo trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.

Hanzo is holding a leg here, probably looking for an ankle lock - he drops back and goes for it! King is in trouble! Is it all over??? No! King has escaped and now he's on top!
Hanzo keeping full guard, as King tries to pass.

That's two 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.

King stands up from guard. Let's bang!
Hanzo fails with the takedown

and King counters with a driving takedown into guard. Nice work there by King.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Hattori Hanzo. That's going to take a lot out of him.

King drops back looking for a heel hook - he quickly realises he's not going to get it but Hanzo manages to dive on top of him before he can escape and now King has Hanzo in his guard.

Hanzo thinks about going for a leg but decides against it, in order to maintain the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
King tries to land a sweep but no joy.

Hanzo drops back for a leg! It's a sloppy attempt though and Hanzo jumps back into guard quickly, to retain the dominant position.

Hanzo postures up as if he's going to throw some strikes but drops back for an ankle! King is in big trouble! He looks ready to tap! But no, he's escaped and dives on top of Hanzo, into his guard.
King looks gassed!
King wants to control from the top but Hanzo keeps moving.

That's four 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.
King tries to free his leg and advance position but Hanzo is retaining full guard.
Hanzo has a closed guard, preventing King from standing up.
King trying to control but Hanzo is working from the bottom.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
King looking to sit in guard and control but Hanzo gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.
King keeping full guard, as Hanzo tries to pass.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Micheal King dominated that round.
That's time! Back to the action!

Hanzo has his takedown stuffed

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

King has gone for a leg lock! Hanzo slips out almost immediately though and dives into King's guard.

Hanzo has gone for a leg lock! King slips out almost immediately though and dives into Hanzo's guard.
King must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.
King postures up.
Hanzo is going to have to think about doing something other than just controlling because King is managing to avoid having the position dictated to him.

That's one minute gone in the round.

King is holding a leg here, probably looking for an ankle lock - he drops back and goes for it! Hanzo is in trouble! Is it all over??? No! Hanzo has escaped and now he's on top!
King is breathing heavily.

King escapes his hips to the side and looks to be working for an armbar. Hanzo gives him a little smile and shakes his head. No chance.

Hanzo gets to his feet - King follows without any prompting.
Hanzo shoots and misses

and King counters by moving into the clinch. Good anticipation by King.
King tries for a takedown but Hanzo manages to get underhooks.
King is working for a takedown up against the cage. He can't get it on this occasion though.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
King prevents the takedown attempt.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Hattori Hanzo. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Hanzo looking for a takedown.
King prevents the takedown attempt.
King is pressed up against the cage. Hanzo has hold of a leg and is looking to drag King down to the mat. King avoids the attempt though and has circled away. We're back to striking at a distance.
Hanzo with a lazy takedown attempt

and King counters with a nice double leg into guard.
King trying to control the position from guard on top but Hanzo is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Hanzo pulls King in close to prevent any damage.
King is looking to advance position but Hanzo has hit a scissor sweep - now he's on top in mount!

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Hanzo jumps to side control looking for an arm triangle but King manages to avoid the submission attempt.

Hanzo thinks about going for a far side armbar but bails out and retains the dominant position instead.

Hanzo tries for a kimura but King is defending well.

Hanzo tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Hanzo goes for an armbar! This could be all over! Wait, no, King rolls with the submission and now he's on top in Hanzo's guard! Nice work there by King!
Micheal King has got the better of the ground game so far.
King trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
King trying to control but Hanzo is working from the bottom.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Hanzo controls King momentarily but King frees himself.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close second round but Micheal King will probably get the nod - 10:9.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business. This is the final round!

Hanzo tries for a takedown but King circles away easily

and King counters with a shoot takedown. Hanzo fights it but they end up in guard.
King trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Hanzo is trying to control the position from the bottom.
King looking to sit in guard and control but Hanzo gets the butterfly guard and sweeps. He's now in the guard on the top.
King looking for a sweep. Not yet King, not yet.
King takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hanzo pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. King is keeping the position for now.

Hanzo drops back looking for a leg! King is in trouble here! The fighters roll with the hold and King manages to kick Hanzo off! Hanzo jumps back into King's guard.

King throwing his legs up looking for a triangle.

Hanzo drops back, looking for a kneebar! King looks panicked! The fighters roll across the mat, one looking to finish, one looking to escape. King looks to have wriggled free... Yes, he's got his leg free and he's dived into side control! Good work there from King!
Hanzo struggling a bit here.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Neither fighter has done anything of merit for a good minute or two here and the crowd are not happy about it.
Hanzo is not content to let King control the position.

King goes for an armbar here - this could be all over! But no, Hanzo has escaped beautifully and is now on top in side control! Oh, that's unlucky for King but great work by Hanzo.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Hanzo tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.

Hanzo has hold of King's arm. He's looking for a kimura. King seems comfortable defending it but Hanzo has shifted his position slighty and is cranking on the arm! King is real pain and he's forced to tap out! King is disgusted with himself for not defending it better but Hanzo couldn't care less - he's delighted!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 3:25 of round 3, we have a winner by way of Submission (Kimura). Hattori Hanzo!