PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Huey Newton (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Seth Bender (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Seth Bender has the better chin. Will he look to stand and bang today?

Newton
vs
Bender

178 cm
25
170 lbs
10 - 11 - 0

165 cm
26
165 lbs
7 - 5 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Dangerous knees
Insanely flexible

BJJ Purple Belt
Good kicks
Powerful

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, in the lightweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 10 - 11 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Huey Newton!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 7 - 5 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Seth Bender!
The judges for this bout are Tatsuya Matsuyama, Yukihiro Shimada and Kenichi Hosakawa.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Bender has taken the fight to the clinch.
Bender prevents a body shot from Newton.
Bender blocks a body shot from Newton.
Newton wants to stall.
Newton landing knees to the body.
Knees in the clinch landing for Newton.
Newton landing knees to the head.
Newton stops a takedown attempt from Bender.
Newton prevents the takedown attempt.
Bender tries to score a body lock takedown but Newton shows good agility there to stay on his feet.
Huey Newton has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Seth Bender.
Newton scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Newton lands a good knee to the midsection. Bender won't want to take too many of those.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Bender is trying to break the clinch but Newton has him pressed against the ropes.
Newton keeps control of Bender as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.
Newton lands a nice knee to the body.
Newton using the Thai clinch to land knees to the body.
Newton connects with a knee to the head.

It looks like Seth Bender has been cut.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A real battle for position is taking place between these two warriors.
The two fighters are working to gain dominance in the clinch.
Bender fails to pull the fight into his guard.
Bender wants to stall.
Newton lands a hook to the body. It's hard to tell if that hurt Bender or not.
Bender goes for a takedown attempt but Newton pushes him away and we're back to fighting at a distance.

Bender clinches.
Bender jumps guard but Newton stands there with Bender around his waist. Bender gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
Knees in the clinch landing for Newton.
Bender taking a breather.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Newton stays in close to his opponent and throws a right hand to the body.
Newton stalls.
Bender tries to take the fight to the ground by pulling guard but can't manage it.
Newton scores a nice knee to the body.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Newton lands a knee to the body.
Bender looks gassed!
Newton crunches a lovely knee into Bender's ribcage.
Newton effectively controlling the action here.
Bender avoiding damage as Newton throws knees to the body.
A frustrated look appears on Bender's face as he tries to break the clinch.
Newton tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Bender avoids it.
Newton lands a knee to the head.
Newton stays in close to his opponent and throws a right hand to the body.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Newton digs a right hand into Bender's ribs. Those have got to be taking their toll on Bender's gas tank.
Stalling in the clinch from Newton.
Newton seems to have come into the fight with the intention of avoiding any damage in the clinch, rather than actually showing any aggression.
Bender takes a knee to the side of the body.
Newton lands on the inside with an uppercut.
Newton stalling the fight.
Newton trying to control the position but instead, Bender has worked for underhooks and has pushed Newton into the ropes.

Bender ties up his opponent against the ropes and manages to drag the fight down to the ground. Bender no doubt will be looking to work submissions from his guard.
Newton trying to control the position from guard on top but Bender is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Newton won't allow Bender to sweep him here.
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.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Bender is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
Newton controls the pace of the fight for a moment.

Huey Newton has forced the referee to step in and bring the fight back to the feet.

Newton fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with Bender, pushing him back against the ropes.
Newton misses with a hook to the ribs.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Bender has hold of a leg and is looking for a trip takedown. Newton avoids it nicely though and we remain in the clinch.
Newton tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Bender's elbow.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Bender fails to pull the fight into his guard.

Bender's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Huey Newton dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Seth Bender's cut.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin!

Bender has closed the distance and engaged Newton in a clinch.
Newton misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Newton tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Bender avoids it.
Bender tries to take the fight to the ground by pulling guard but can't manage it.
Bender is looking to break free of the clinch but Newton has double underhooks.
Bender wants a takedown.
Bender blocks a body shot from Newton.
Newton missing with knees to the body.
Newton stalling the fight.
Bender fails to pull guard.
Huey Newton has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Seth Bender.
Newton trying to stall but Bender improves his position.

Bender jumps into guard, dragging Newton to the mat.
Bender wants to get back to his feet but Newton passes into half guard.
Bender is trying to maintain the position but Newton is very close to passing his half guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Newton controlling the pace.
Bender is looking to improve his position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

We're going to have a standup here because Huey Newton wasn't active enough for the referee's liking.
Newton scores with a body shot.
Newton explodes with a nice body kick and back out of range. Nice work.

Newton tries to keep at a distance but Bender has taken the fight into the clinch.
Newton presses Bender against the ropes and delivers a mid-strength body shot.
Bender tries to pull guard but can't drag his opponent to the mat. Newton just stands there and leans against the ropes.
Bender has a body lock and is looking for a takedown. Newton is bouncing around trying to prevent the takedown and somehow he has indeed managed to stay on his feet.
Bender is breathing heavily.
Newton pressing his opponent against the ropes.
Newton lands a body shot.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Bender has a body lock and is looking for a takedown. Newton is bouncing around trying to prevent the takedown and somehow he has indeed managed to stay on his feet.
Bender is looking for a takedown up against the ropes. Newton gets underhooks though and prevents the takedown attempt.
Newton landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.
Newton pushes Bender back against the ropes and unloads with a body punch.
Newton taking a breather.
Knees to the body from Newton.
Newton effectively controlling the action here.
Newton lands a body punch - he's looking to wear down Bender.
A right hook to the body lands for Newton.
Newton connects with a knee to the head.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Bender misses with a hook from the clinch.
Newton lands a good knee to the midsection. Bender won't want to take too many of those.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Newton is trying to stall.
A right hook to the body lands for Newton.
Newton stalling in the clinch but Bender improves position.
Newton connects with a knee to the head.
Newton using the Thai clinch to land knees to the body.
Bender tries to score a body lock takedown but Newton shows good agility there to stay on his feet.
Newton works for underhooks and lands a body shot in the process.
Newton unloads a knee to the mid-section. Bender lets out a prehistoric sounding urrrrgh.
Newton lands a knee to the body.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Newton landing knees to the head.
Newton lands a knee to the head there! That was nasty!
Newton landing some nice looking knees to the body.
Newton holding his opponent close, against the ropes.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Huey Newton dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Seth Bender's cut.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

A nice inside leg kick there by Newton. That's going to slow Bender down.
Jab by Newton.
Bender shoots in but Newton avoids the takedown attempt easily.
Bender shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Newton but Newton pushes him off and we're back to square one.
A jab lands there for Newton.
Newton lands a slapping body shot.
Newton is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Bender can do to turn this around?
Bender takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Bender swings and misses with a hook to the body.

Bender closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the ropes.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Bender blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Newton misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Bender.
Bender jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Newton walks away with a smile on his face. Bender gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
Huey Newton has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Seth Bender.
Newton connects nicely with a jab. Noted by the judges no doubt.
Bender on the wrong end of a nice hook.

Bender moves into the clinch.
A real battle for position is taking place between these two warriors.
Newton landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.
Newton pressing his opponent against the ropes.
Newton crunches a lovely knee into Bender's ribcage.
Newton pushes Bender back against the ropes and unloads with a body punch.
Newton lands a body shot in the clinch.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Newton putting his Muay Thai to good use. He has Bender in a tight clinch and is doing some damage with knees to the body.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Newton is pushing Bender up against the ropes, for a bit of lean and pray action. Action being used the in the loosest possible sense of the word.
Bender takes a knee to the side of the body.
Knees in the clinch landing for Newton.
Bender fails to pull the fight into his guard.
Newton using the Thai clinch to land knees to the body.
Newton stalling in the clinch.
Newton gets a warning from the ref for wasting time.
Newton lands a nice knee to the body.
Newton scores with a hook to the body.
Newton trying to control the position but instead, Bender has worked for underhooks and has pushed Newton into the ropes.
Bender working hard to break the clinch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Bender tries to take the fight to the ground by pulling guard but can't manage it.
Bender fails to pull the fight into his guard.
Newton gets underhooks to prevent Bender's takedown attempt.
Newton is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Bender is keeping busy.
Bender tries to pull guard but can't drag his opponent to the mat. Newton just stands there and leans against the ropes.
Newton is leaning against Bender and scores with a nice uppercut to the body.
Newton is working hard here but doesn't seem to be able to control effectively, up against the ropes.
Bender takes a knee to the side of the body.
Newton leaning against his opponent.
A right hook to the body lands for Newton.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Newton lands a knee to the head there! That was nasty!
Bender jumps guard but Newton stands there with Bender around his waist. Bender gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
A right handed body shot lands from Newton.
Newton connects with a knee to the head.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
A knee to the head by Newton.
Newton trying to stall but Bender improves his position.
Newton lands a body shot.
The pace slowing considerably in the clinch, as Newton takes a break from that fighting nonsense to think about the finer things in life.
Newton landing some nice looking knees to the body.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Bender wants to break the clinch but can't.
A knee to the head by Newton.
Newton lands a good knee to the midsection. Bender won't want to take too many of those.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Huey Newton clearly takes that round.
The cut man is working on Seth Bender's cut.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action!

Newton lands a front kick.
Newton displays good takedown defense there as he swats away a double leg from Bender.
Bender fails to land the takedown.

Newton moves into range and clinches up with Bender.
Bender tries to score a body lock takedown but Newton shows good agility there to stay on his feet.
Huey Newton has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Seth Bender.
Bender wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Bender is absolutely dripping with sweat - he looks exhausted.
Newton lands a body punch in the clinch.
A battle for position here, against the ropes.

That's one minute gone in the round.
The referee calls for Newton to work.
Newton landing some nice looking knees to the body.
Bender wants a takedown.
Newton lands a hook to the side of the head.
Good anti-grappling being displayed by Bender as Newton tries to tie him up.
Huey Newton has scored more points in the clinch so far.
Newton lands a shot to the body.
Newton dictating the pace here, as the fighters clinch against the ropes.
The ref breaks the fighters up, due to lack of action by Huey Newton.

Newton closes the distance and clinches.
Bender drops to a knee looking for a takedown but Newton gets the underhooks and prevents it.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Newton leaning against his opponent.
Newton stops a takedown attempt from Bender.
Newton trying to control the position but instead, Bender has worked for underhooks and has pushed Newton into the ropes.
Newton is clearly stalling here... Pick up the pace son.
Bender drops to a knee looking for a takedown but Newton gets the underhooks and prevents it.
Stalling in the clinch from Newton.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Bender has hold of a leg and is looking for a trip takedown. Newton avoids it nicely though and we remain in the clinch.
Bender changes levels and goes for a takedown here. Newton fights it off and pushes away nicely.
Newton comes forward and lands a shot to the body, then darts back out of range.
Newton lands with a thumping leg kick.
Newton connects with a looping right hand.

Bender drives through with a takedown into Newton's guard. Let's see what he can do from the top position.
Bender passes Newton's right leg, so he's now in half guard.
Newton is refusing to be controlled, as Bender sits in half guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Bender wants to pass to mount but Newton is defending the position.
Newton is trying to get back to full guard.

Bender is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Newton slips a foot under and gets full guard. Nice work.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Huey Newton had his way with Seth Bender in that round.
The cut man is working on Seth Bender's cut.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. This is the final round!

Newton throws a head kick that misses.
Newton defending well as Bender loads up on a big left hand.
Horrible takedown by Bender or perhaps it was just good defense by Newton which made him look bad.
Newton scores with a push kick.
Bender tries to score a power double leg takedown but Newton sees that one coming and sprawls well. That will dishearten Bender somewhat.
Newton jabs Bender to the body, keeping him at a distance.
Newton thuds a left hand into Bender's body.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Newton ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Bender moves away.
Bender shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Newton as he avoids it easily.
Huey Newton has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Seth Bender.
Bender is wobbling all over the place through exhaustion. Will he make it to the final bell?
Newton lands a leg kick and bounces back out of range.
Newton throws a head kick that looked like it stung.
Newton throws a series of punches but Bender moves out of range.
Newton throws a mid kick that lands with a slap.
Newton is looking to wear down Bender with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.

Bender instigates a clinch.
Bender controlling the action here for a moment.
Bender tries to stall but Newton uses the opportunity to gain a better position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Bender managing to block the knees to the body from Newton.
Newton lands with a left to the head.
Newton using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Bender has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Newton misses with a punch to the body.

Bender pulls guard effortlessly.
Newton preventing the sweep.
Newton sneaks a leg through and gets to half guard. That was like a knife through butter how easily he passed Bender's guard.
Bender is looking to control Newton's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Bender avoid being mounted?
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!

That's three minutes gone in the round.
It looks like the ref is thinking about a standup.

The ref stands the fighters back up. Seth Bender was stalling too much, according to the referee.
Bender shoots in looking for a takedown. Newton tries to sprawl out of it but Bender keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the ropes. Newton manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
Newton leaves Bender with his face pressed against the mat as he sprawls beautifully, defending against a solid takedown attempt.
Bender fails to land the takedown.
Newton fakes low and throws an overhand right that catches Bender on the side of the head.
Nice cross by Newton.
Seth Bender is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Bender dives in and grabs Newton's left leg, looking for a takedown. Newton pushes down on Bender's head and hops out.
Bender is trying hard to land a takedown here. Newton sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Newton stalks Bender and leaps in with a furious combination of punches. Uppercuts and crosses smash into Bender's face. Bender staggers backwards, shaken.
Nice body punch from Newton.
Newton defends well against a solid takedown attempt from Bender.
Seth Bender has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Newton pushes Bender away with a front kick.
Good leg kick by Newton there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.

Bender gets in close and instigates a clinch.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Newton looking to stall.
Newton misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Bender.

And that's the end of the fight!
Huey Newton showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Newton, winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. Over to the ring announcer for the scorecards.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 5 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Tatsuya Matsuyama scores the fight 50:45
Judge Yukihiro Shimada scores the fight 50:45
Judge Kenichi Hosakawa scores the fight 50:45

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Huey Newton!
After the fight, Huey Newton was humble in paying tribute to his opponent but made it clear he wants to go on to bigger and better things. It seemed to go down well with the crowd who cheered him loudly.