PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between John Panther (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Steven Drake (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Panther
vs
Drake

184 cm
24
179 lbs
14 - 5 - 0

185 cm
23
175 lbs
11 - 20 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Excellent boxer
Very strong

Good wrestler
World class MT
Good gas tank

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the welterweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 14 - 5 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, John Panther!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 11 - 20 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Steven Drake!
The judges for this bout are George Francis, Chris Downing and Wesley Smith.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Panther connects with a lovely right hand, straight down the pipe.
Panther doesn't succeed with the takedown
and Drake counters with a head kick.
Panther misses with a leg kick.
Crunch! Drake slams his shin into Panther's torso.

Panther shoots in with a lovely double leg takedown. Drake manages to land in full guard to minimise the damage.
Drake has a closed guard, preventing Panther from standing up.

Panther drops back, looking for a kneebar! Drake looks panicked! The fighters roll across the mat, one looking to finish, one looking to escape. Drake looks to have wriggled free... Yes, he's got his leg free and he's dived into side control! Good work there from Drake!
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Panther seems a little lost for a moment, as Drake dominates the positioning.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Drake tries to advance to mount but Panther denies him.
Drake wants to stand but Panther has his arm trapped.
Panther is letting Drake control him for a moment.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are hurling abuse towards the fighters... You can hardly blame them though because there isn't a lot going on in the fight.

Drake stands up and we're back to a striking position.
Drake looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
Panther shoots and misses
and Drake counters with a head kick. That will keep Panther thinking before he tries any more sloppy attacks!

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Drake throws a body kick that misses.
Drake throws a leg kick but he was too far away and it doesn't land.
Drake dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Panther. That did some damage!
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Panther is defended easily by Drake.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for John Panther. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Drake takes one on the button.
Panther throws a nice hook to the body that draws an oooh from the crowd.
Both fighters are looking to counter, which isn't making for the most exciting fight in the world.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Panther doesn't succeed with the takedown
and Drake makes him pay by landing a thudding low kick.
Panther throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Drake throws a sloppy head kick
and Panther counters with a three punch combination, finished off with a leg kick. Nice work.
Drake throws a head kick that misses.
John Panther seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Drake throws a lazy head kick
and Panther counters with a nice uppercut.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Panther with a lazy takedown attempt
and Drake counters with a thumping low kick.
Panther throws a leg kick that is checked
and Drake counters with a nice kick to the body.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Steven Drake dominated that round.
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.

Drake throws a solid leg kick but Panther takes the impact on his shin and smiles at Drake.
Drake throws a leg kick
and Panther counters with a one-two to the body.
Drake thows a leg kick but Panther checks it
and Panther counters with a left and a right that stings Drake.
Drake turns his hip over beautifully as he lands a nice leg kick.
Panther misses with a takedown attempt
and Drake counters with a leg kick.
Drake throws a right high kick that is partially blocked by Panther.
Panther gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily
and Drake counters with a good low kick that Panther was not able to check.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Panther doesn't succeed with the takedown
and Drake counters with a slapping leg kick.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for John Panther. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Panther takes a head kick and shrugs it off.
Panther shoots and misses

and Drake counters with a head kick that drops Panther - he's looking to finish, following his stunned foe to the ground!
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Neither fighter is being very active at the moment, with Drake in particular looking to stall.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

OK we're going to have a standup here. Steven Drake hasn't been effective enough on the ground and the referee wants a restart.
Drake throws a nice inside leg kick.
Panther blocks a head kick by Drake.
Panther has his takedown stuffed
and Drake counters with a good low kick that Panther was not able to check.
Drake throws a head kick that Panther semi-blocks.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
A decent looking body kick lands there for Drake.
Panther blocks a low kick nicely.
Steven Drake seems to be getting the better of the standup.
A low kick from Drake is predictable there

and Panther counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
Panther not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Drake wants to control but Panther is keeping busy and won't allow it.
Panther throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Drake is looking for a sweep. Panther is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.

Panther escapes and gets back to his feet.
Panther gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily
and Drake counters with a nice leg kick.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A head kick from Drake lands but Panther takes it in his stride.
The fans in attendance giving it up for the two fighters, who have really let it all hang out in the last minute or so!
Drake thumps Panther with a low kick.
Panther with a poor takedown
and Drake counters with a head kick.
Panther tries for a takedown but Drake circles away easily
and Drake counters with an inside leg kick.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Drake scoring well with a low kick there.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Steven Drake showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
That's time! Back to the action!

Drake fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.
A clash of legs there as Panther blocks the low kick.
Drake misses with a low kick as Panther jumps back.
Drake lands with a thumping leg kick.
Drake ducks under a wild hook from Panther.
Drake connects with a high kick.
A chopping leg kick lands by Drake.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Panther doesn't succeed with the takedown
and Drake counters with a thumping low kick.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A low kick from Panther misses
and Drake counters with a huge head kick that drops Panther! The ref dives in to stop the fight and the crowd goes wild!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 1:17 of round 3, we have a winner by way of TKO (Strikes). Steven Drake!
Steven Drake is the new welterweight champion!