PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Kenji Okabe (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Barde Mopsi (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Both fighters look pumped up here. Let's hope this is a good fight!

Okabe
vs
Mopsi

177 cm
26
181 lbs
17 - 5 - 0

180 cm
26
185 lbs
10 - 3 - 0

Abu Dhabi Champ
Excellent boxer
Granite chin

Good wrestler
Dangerous knees
Good gas tank

MERKIN FIGHTWEAR
[WAO]MADE IN GERMANY

Crippler's Corner

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 17 - 5 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Kenji Okabe!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 10 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Barde Mopsi!
The judges for this bout are Frank Dennis, Daniel Franklin and Chris Downing.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Mopsi throws a decent looking leg kick but it doesn't land clean.

Okabe closes the distance and gets a double leg, slamming Mopsi to the mat! Mopsi manages to get full guard.
Okabe postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Mopsi controlling Okabe's posture.
Okabe content to strike from guard, landing some decent shots.
Mopsi can't keep his opponent in guard - Okabe advances to half guard, no doubt looking to mount.
Okabe trying to pass the guard but Mopsi defending well.
Mopsi is working for an escape here. He's hooked one of Okabe's legs and he's managed to sneak out and take Okabe's back!
Okabe rolls, trying to escape but Mopsi keeps control of the position.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Mopsi working for a RNC but it's not happening just yet.

Mopsi is working really hard to secure the rear naked choke. Okabe defends successfully for a significant amount of time. Both fighters are looking very determined.

Mopsi has his hand under the chin of his opponent looking for the choke. He's nearly got it! This one could be all over! But no, Okabe has freed his hand and lives to survive another… well, another couple of seconds at least!
Mopsi tries to get the hooks in deep but Okabe pushed the leg off.

Okabe defending nicely against the rear naked choke attempt.
Mopsi is looking to control Okabe but Okabe is wriggling around and keeping busy.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Okabe rolls, trying to escape but Mopsi keeps control of the position.

Mopsi is persistently looking for the submission but Okabe is defending it well.
Okabe rolls, trying to escape but Mopsi keeps control of the position.
Okabe holding both Mopsi 's hands and preventing any damage.
Okabe trying to control the action but Mopsi just sinks the hooks in.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Okabe turns into Mopsi and is now in his guard.
Mopsi looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Okabe throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Okabe trying to control the position from guard on top but Mopsi is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Okabe trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Mopsi trying to keep a closed guard but Okabe is proving a slippery customer.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Okabe stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Mopsi swivels though and keeps the full guard.
Okabe loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Mopsi working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Okabe.
Mopsi trying to control the position here.
Mopsi keeping full guard, as Okabe tries to pass.
Okabe throwing strikes but missing.
Okabe throws a strike but Mopsi rolls with it and manages to sweep. Now he's in guard on top.
Okabe wants to sweep but no luck.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Okabe is working the butterfly guard. He manages to land a nice scissor sweep and is now in half guard on the top. Nice move.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Kenji Okabe 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.

Mopsi throws a head kick that connects with a bit of head and a bit of hand.
Mopsi throws a low kick but Okabe moves out of range easily.
A jab from Okabe misses.
Barde Mopsi seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Okabe checks a leg kick nicely.
Okabe shoots in for a takedown but Mopsi shows good takedown defense.
Mopsi pivots, looking for a leg kick but Okabe is out of range and Mopsi settles back down.
Okabe throws a hook to the side of Mopsi's head but Mopsi sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.
A head kick misses from Mopsi.
Barde Mopsi is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Mopsi wants to clinch up but Okabe keeps it at a distance.
Okabe avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Mopsi ducks under a wild hook from Okabe.
Oooooooooooh, not good. A low kick from Mopsi lands where it shouldn't have, right in the... well, you know what he did? He kicked him in the penis. He's injured, injured bad. The referee sends both fighters to their corners and Okabe has 5 minutes to recover. He's OK now though... a thumbs up from Okabe and we're back underway with a touch of gloves.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Mopsi tries a head kick but it misses.
Okabe throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Okabe blocks a leg kick.
Okabe fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Mopsi manages to avoid it.
Okabe moves away from the strike by Mopsi.
Mopsi avoids the body shot from Okabe.
Mopsi takes a jab right on the kisser.
Mopsi dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Okabe. That did some damage!
Mopsi moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.
Mopsi tries a head kick but it misses.
Mopsi lands a leg kick. The shin dug right into the meat of the thigh.
Mopsi misses with a low kick.
Mopsi is looking to clinch but Okabe is avoiding it.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Okabe gets the takedown into side control.
Mopsi is pushing Okabe's head away, looking to escape. Okabe manages to hold on to the position though.
Okabe sitting in side control, looking to soften his opponent up with elbows and hammerfists but Mopsi is avoiding damage well and looking to escape the position.
Mopsi is trying to control Okabe's posture but Okabe avoids it.
Mopsi taking a bit of punishment here - Okabe scoring with strikes.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Okabe in side control, trying to ground and pound but not landing this time.
Okabe scores with a couple of short elbows.
Okabe scores with a couple of nice shots to the head there. The referee takes a look at Mopsi to see if he's OK.
Okabe is looking to take a break and control but Mopsi is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Mopsi stuck in half guard on the bottom here.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Okabe is putting a hurting on Mopsi here, landing some big shots from side control.
Mopsi takes a big shot right to the temple there but he's taken it well.
Sloppy strikes there by Okabe.
Mopsi parries the strikes from Okabe easily there. Okabe is wary of posturing up too much because it might enable Mopsi to escape.
Okabe misses with the ground and pound.
Mopsi is working to avoid the ground and pound but Okabe connects with a decent elbow.
Mopsi tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Okabe trying to control the position but Mopsi is working away.
Okabe working away.
Okabe tries to move into full mount but can't pass Mopsi's legs.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Okabe connects with a decent looking elbow from side control that caused Mopsi some visible discomfort.
Okabe has knee on belly and now moves to full mount! Trouble for Mopsi!
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Okabe lands a big elbow.
Mopsi tries to hold on but Okabe pushes him away.
Okabe lands a big shot there that rocks Mopsi but he's holding on and managing to survive for now.
Mopsi is working to get back to half guard.
Mopsi is breathing heavily.
Okabe looking to control but Mopsi is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.
Okabe has been looking to land a fair amount of strikes on the ground. He might be looking to soften his opponent up in order to work for a submission.
Mopsi squirming around on the bottom, looking to escape.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Mopsi regains half guard.
Okabe prevents Mopsi from improving his position.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Kenji Okabe dominated that second round.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin!

Okabe thows a body shot but no joy.
A slow jab from Okabe misses its intended target.
Okabe jabs Mopsi right on the nose. Mopsi blinks but takes it well.
Mopsi looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
Okabe shoots in but no luck this time.
Okabe avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Okabe has his takedown stuffed
and Mopsi counters with a stiff right hand.
Mopsi stuffs the takedown attempt from Okabe. Okabe gets slowly back to his feet.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Kenji Okabe. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Some wild striking there from Mopsi.
Okabe fails with a takedown attempt.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Mopsi keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Okabe blocks a leg kick.
Okabe dodges the punch combination from Mopsi.
Mopsi throws a front kick aimed at Okabe's knee but Okabe avoids it well.
Mopsi keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
A big left from Mopsi misses.
Mopsi tries to close the distance and clinch up but Okabe swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Okabe has a takedown stuffed.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Okabe swings for the body but Mopsi moves out of range.
Okabe shoots in looking for a takedown but Mopsi manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Okabe's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
Mopsi tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in the close the distance. Okabe manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
Okabe cracks Mopsi with an open hand slap.
Mopsi moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.
Nice body kick there by Mopsi.
Good work by Okabe as he checks the leg kick.
Okabe checks a leg kick nicely.
Mopsi misses with a low kick.
Mopsi looks to land a left hand but Okabe moved out of range nicely.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Okabe misses with a straight right.
Mopsi tries to work over Okabe's front leg with a kick but Okabe checks it.
Okabe clobbers Mopsi with an overhand right that has the crowd gasping. That made a horrendous noise.

Okabe scores with a takedown into Mopsi's guard.
Okabe lands a couple of decent looking shots.
Kenji Okabe overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Okabe pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Mopsi is keeping the position for now.
Mopsi keeping moving, preventing Okabe from controlling successfully.
Okabe throws a big elbow that misses.

Mopsi working for a triangle but Okabe defends it easily.
Okabe won't allow Mopsi to sweep him here.
Mopsi takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Okabe works over Mopsi with some ground and pound from guard.
Okabe throwing strikes but missing.
Okabe loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Okabe is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Okabe postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Okabe stopping the sweep attempt from Mopsi.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Okabe passes easily into side control. Nice work.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Kenji Okabe clearly takes 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.

Mopsi connects with a high kick.
Mopsi takes a shot right to the liver - Bas would have been proud of that punch.
Mopsi fakes with a right hand and throws a good leg kick, right into the thigh. That had to hurt Okabe.
Mopsi lands a leg kick. The shin dug right into the meat of the thigh.
Mopsi uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Okabe.
Mopsi throws a low kick, looking for Okabe's leg but Okabe calmly moves out of range.
Mopsi keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
A bone on bone clash there as Okabe blocks the leg kick.
Mopsi throws a low kick but Okabe moves out of range easily.
Okabe jabs Mopsi to the body, keeping him at a distance.
Okabe throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Mopsi sees it coming and avoids it easily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Okabe cracks Mopsi with an open hand slap.
Okabe misses with a hook
and Mopsi counters with a nice kick to the body.
Mopsi throws a head kick but Okabe moves out of range.
Barde Mopsi is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Mopsi ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Mopsi is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Okabe.
Barde Mopsi seems to be getting the better of the standup.
An inside leg kick from Mopsi misses.
Okabe throws a jab but it's blocked by Mopsi.
Okabe thows a body shot but no joy.
Okabe ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Mopsi moves away.
Okabe misses with a straight right.
Okabe checks a leg kick.
Okabe thuds a left hand into Mopsi's body.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Okabe checks a low kick from Mopsi.
Mopsi scores with the left hand. Okabe knows he should have avoided that one.
Mopsi keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Mopsi tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
A good leg kick by Mopsi.
Mopsi doesn't manage to clinch there - Okabe circles away.
Mopsi moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.
A slow jab from Okabe misses its intended target.
Okabe throws a nice hook to the body that draws an oooh from the crowd.
Mopsi ducks under a wild hook from Okabe.
Okabe is hobbling a little on that front leg after taking quite a few leg kicks so far in this fight.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!

Okabe darts in and lands a nice takedown into half guard.
Okabe scoring with strikes to the body and head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Okabe scores with a couple of good hammerfists.
Mopsi wants to get back to his feet.
Mopsi is absolutely dripping with sweat - he looks exhausted.
Okabe moves into full mount! Mopsi won't be happy about that!
Okabe is landing with some decent strikes but Mopsi is trying to advance his position so the referee is letting the fight continue.
Mopsi manages to regain half guard. Good work.
Okabe tries to pass the half guard into mount. Mopsi knows what he's doing though and prevents the attempt.
Mopsi wants to improve his position but Okabe is controlling well.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Mopsi on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
Okabe slips a nice elbow through Mopsi's hands, connecting with Mopsi's forehead.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Okabe is keen to just control but Mopsi is a slippery customer.
Mopsi blocking the ground and pound attempt from Okabe.
Mopsi is trying to control but can't.
Mopsi has hold of Okabe's hands but Okabe slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
Okabe seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Mopsi does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.
Okabe looking to pass the half guard. Not this time.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Okabe winds up and cracks Mopsi with a swinging punch to the side of the head.

Mopsi makes some distance and scrambles quickly back to his feet. Nice work!
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Kenji Okabe had his way with Barde Mopsi in that round.
That's time! Okabe's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight. Let's hear some noise people - this is the final round!

Good leg kick by Mopsi there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.
Okabe swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Mopsi looks to score with a jab to the body but Okabe is just out of range.
Okabe on the receiving end of a decent leg kick there by Mopsi. Mopsi obviously looking to wear him down.
Mopsi tries to work over Okabe's front leg with a kick but Okabe checks it.
Mopsi moves out of range as Okabe strikes.
Okabe takes a step towards his opponent and connects with a left hand, before circling away.
A swing and a miss from Okabe.
Okabe slips a straight right by Mopsi.
Like a baseball bat into the meat of his leg there - nice leg kick by Mopsi.
Okabe fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Mopsi manages to avoid it.
Okabe shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Mopsi defends it nicely.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A slow jab from Okabe misses its intended target.
Okabe with a nice cross.
Mopsi throws a body kick that digs right into the meat.
Mopsi wants to clinch up but Okabe keeps it at a distance.
Mopsi turns his hip over beautifully as he lands a nice leg kick.
Mopsi throws the kick towards the body but Okabe avoids it.
Okabe swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Mopsi fails with an attempt to clinch.
Okabe throws the left hand but Mopsi avoids the punch easily.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Okabe just misses with a punch to the body.
Okabe shoots in for a takedown but doesn't get it.
Both of our modern day gladiators look out of it here - an gruelling 5 rounds of action taking it's toll on them, no doubt.
Mopsi loads up on a big right hand but Okabe slips the punch.
A looping hook to the body misses from Okabe. Mopsi does a little dance to reset his feet.
Mopsi lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.
Okabe connects with a right hand. Mopsi shakes it off.
Mopsi lands a nice leg kick that just misses Okabe's sensitive parts.
Okabe swings for the body but Mopsi moves out of range.
Mopsi misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Mopsi misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Mopsi defends well against a solid takedown attempt from Okabe.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Kenji Okabe. That's going to take a lot out of him.

Okabe shoots in and bounces Mopsi off the cage to secure the takedown into guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Okabe postures up.
Okabe trying to control the position from guard on top but Mopsi is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Okabe postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Okabe tries to free his leg and advance position but Mopsi is retaining full guard.
Mopsi is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Okabe content to stall in guard here.

The referee has ruled that neither fighter is active enough on the ground and has stood them back up.

Okabe shoots in and scores a nice double leg takedown into half guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Okabe thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Mopsi's head.
Barde Mopsi has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Okabe is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.
Mopsi slips a foot under and gets full guard. Nice work.
Mopsi controls Okabe momentarily but Okabe frees himself.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Mopsi avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Okabe stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Mopsi swivels though and keeps the full guard.

And that's the end of the fight!
Kenji Okabe showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Okabe, 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 Frank Dennis scores the fight 50:45
Judge Daniel Franklin scores the fight 50:45
Judge Chris Downing scores the fight 50:45

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Kenji Okabe!
Kenji Okabe retains his welterweight title!
A very excited looking Kenji Okabe made sure he remembered to thank all the fans both in the arena and on the internet. He said all the coolest people spend all day on MMA websites, which got a big reaction.