PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Doug DeSouza (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Dan Henderson (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). I'm sure you'll be fascinated to know that I was talking to some pointless Z list celebrity before the fight and he thought that Dan Henderson was going to win. Let's see if he was right.

DeSouza
vs
Henderson

183 cm
22
188 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

185 cm
22
193 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

BJJ Brown Belt
Counter striker
Cuts easily

BJJ White Belt
Brawler
Granite chin

Ice Gear

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 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Doug DeSouza!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Dan Henderson!
The judges for this bout are Cecil Peabody, Chris Downing and Gwen Towbar.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
No joy there for Henderson, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Henderson misses with a wild combination.
DeSouza throws a shot to the body.
DeSouza displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Henderson throws out the jab.
Dan Henderson seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Henderson fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
DeSouza closes the distance and clinches up with Henderson, looking for a takedown. DeSouza pushes Henderson against the cage but Henderson circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
DeSouza with poor footwork there. He got himself in a bit of a tangle, enabling Henderson to score with a decent uppercut.
Henderson attempts a leg kick but it's missed by a good margin.
DeSouza moves out of range of the leg kick from Henderson.
DeSouza shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Henderson but Henderson pushes him off and we're back to square one.
Henderson misses with a telegraphed body shot
and DeSouza cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Henderson throws a poor cross that misses
and DeSouza counters with a left and a right that stings Henderson.

DeSouza scores a trip takedown into side control. Nice.
A bit of a lull in the action. I'm sure it will pick up again soon... even if the ref has to physically pick them up and put them back on their feet.
DeSouza trying to control the position but Henderson is working away.
We get told so often about how wrestlers don't like to be on their backs. Let's see if Henderson can do anything to dispel that myth.
DeSouza working the head with strikes.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Henderson is looking for a sweep.
Henderson is looking to slip a leg under and get half guard but DeSouza is one step ahead and moves to full mount!
A nice elbow there by DeSouza.
BOOM! DeSouza connects with a massive shot to the dome!
DeSouza takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
Henderson taking shots to the head.
DeSouza is landing with some decent strikes but Henderson is trying to advance his position so the referee is letting the fight continue.
DeSouza looking to control but Henderson is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.
Henderson really trying hard to get back to half guard here.
Henderson looks gassed!
DeSouza lands a shot to the body, followed up by a shot to the exposed head of his trapped opponent.
DeSouza controlling his opponent.
Henderson can't escape the position.
DeSouza dominating with strikes here.
DeSouza wants to control the pace but Henderson is squirming around nicely.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
DeSouza scoring with some good ground and pound from mount here. Will he manage to finish Henderson?
DeSouza is in the full mount, landing strikes.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Henderson is in all sorts of trouble here.
Henderson is squirming around, avoiding DeSouza's attempts to control the action.
DeSouza postures up and cracks his opponent a couple of times before moving back into close ground control. Henderson looks a forlorn figure.
DeSouza landing shots from mount.
DeSouza can't quite control the action as he would like just now, as Henderson is looking to escape.
DeSouza is landing with some decent strikes but Henderson is trying to advance his position so the referee is letting the fight continue.
DeSouza with good strikes from the mount here!
The crowd growing excited in anticipation of a finish here! Right on cue, DeSouza cracks his opponent with a massive right hand that draws loud cheers!
DeSouza takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
DeSouza trying to control but he's not successful this time.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
DeSouza tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.
DeSouza unloading with bombs!
DeSouza 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.
DeSouza trying to control but Henderson is having none of it.
DeSouza controlling from mount.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

The referee stands the fighters back up. Doug DeSouza just wasn't active enough from the dominant position.
Henderson throws an off balance right hand
and DeSouza counters with a straight punch to the midsection.
Henderson throws a lazy uppercut

and DeSouza counters with a takedown into full mount! That could mean trouble for Henderson!
Henderson is in all sorts of trouble here.
DeSouza working Henderson over with strikes here.
DeSouza controlling the position easily from mount.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Henderson throwing hammer fists to the chest of DeSouza. What's that going to do exactly?
DeSouza landing punches.
DeSouza working away from the top, dropping strikes.
DeSouza trying to control but Henderson is having none of it.
DeSouza raining down shots from the mount!
Henderson is desperately trying to improve his position but DeSouza has a good base and remains in mount.
DeSouza pausing momentarily but resumes with a couple of decent strikes that do a bit of damage.
DeSouza controlling from the full mount.
DeSouza working away from the top, dropping strikes.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
DeSouza takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
DeSouza tries to control but Henderson wriggling away.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Doug DeSouza dominated that round.
That's time! Back to the action!

Henderson throws a combination but it was largely blocked by DeSouza.
Henderson rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
enabling DeSouza to counter with a crisp jab.
Henderson swings wildly with a couple of big hooks

and DeSouza counters with a takedown into full mount! That could mean trouble for Henderson!
DeSouza looking to control but Henderson is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.
DeSouza tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.
Henderson is wriggling around trying to escape.
Henderson really doesn't want to stay on the ground with DeSouza. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
DeSouza tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.
DeSouza wants to control the pace but Henderson is squirming around nicely.

The referee stands the fighters back up. Doug DeSouza just wasn't active enough from the dominant position.
Henderson takes a solid shot to the body. That one hurt him but he's trying not to show it.
Henderson is breathing heavily.
Henderson takes a shot to the eye socket. That's gotta hurt.
Henderson bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Henderson throws a right hand that misses
and DeSouza counters with a lovely straight right hand!

That's one minute gone in the round.
Good standup being displayed there by DeSouza as he connects with a hook.
Henderson takes a jab on the nose there. A little bit of blood seems to be coming out. Hopefully that won't affect his breathing.
A head kick misses from Henderson.
Henderson throws a lazy uppercut

and DeSouza counters with a shoot takedown. Henderson fights it but they end up in guard.
Doug DeSouza overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
DeSouza advances to half guard.
DeSouza controlling the action here.
Henderson is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
Henderson is staying active underneath DeSouza, who seems content to just control the action from this position.
DeSouza throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.

Well, the referee has seen enough. Neither fighter is active enough on the ground so he's stood them back up.
Henderson throws a left and a right that both miss

and DeSouza counters with a single leg into guard. Henderson didn't expect that.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
DeSouza wants to control from the top but Henderson keeps moving.
Both fighters really going for it on the ground here!
DeSouza is stalling in the full guard.
DeSouza scoring with punches to the head and body.
DeSouza trying to control the position from guard on top but Henderson is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Henderson looking to hit a scissor sweep but DeSouza is one step ahead there.
DeSouza trying to control but Henderson is working from the bottom.
DeSouza is working Henderson over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fight is doing enough on the ground.
Henderson walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. DeSouza checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.
Henderson throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
and DeSouza counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
DeSouza uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Henderson.
Henderson takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
DeSouza throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Henderson's waist but Henderson gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing DeSouza off to one side.
Henderson throws a low kick, looking for DeSouza's leg but DeSouza calmly moves out of range.
Henderson thows a leg kick but DeSouza checks it
and DeSouza counters with a three punch combo that has Henderson backing up. Henderson nods at DeSouza to acknowledge the strikes.
Boom, another hit is landed. "You're gunna get knocked out" taunts Henderson, as that shot connected.
Henderson sizes up DeSouza with a pawing jab and scores with a straight right down the middle.
DeSouza dodges the punch combination from Henderson.
Henderson tries to land a leg kick but DeSouza saw it coming and moves away.
DeSouza lands a with a good body shot.
Henderson wants to land a leg kick but DeSouza is out of range.
Henderson misses with a leg kick
and DeSouza connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
DeSouza scores with a jab to the jaw.
Henderson throws an off balance right hand
letting DeSouza counter with a right hand.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Henderson jabs away that one connects to the head of his opponent.
Henderson tries for a takedown but DeSouza circles away easily
and DeSouza counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
DeSouza lands a glancing blow to the side of Henderson's head.
Henderson throws a lazy uppercut
and DeSouza counters with a two punch combo.
DeSouza lands with a nice body punch.
Henderson stuffs the takedown.
Henderson misses with a left hand
and DeSouza cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.

Henderson closes the distance and gets a double leg, slamming DeSouza to the mat! DeSouza manages to get full guard.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
DeSouza seems keen to control rather than go for a submission, at least for now.
Henderson postures up.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Henderson stands up over DeSouza, holding his feet. He dives back in and lands a decent shot to the head.
DeSouza is trying to keep Henderson in close.
Henderson landing with the ground and pound.
Henderson being controlled here momentarily.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Doug DeSouza dominated that second round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. This is the final round!

DeSouza looks to land a combination. Henderson sees it coming but can only parry a couple of the shots.
DeSouza misses with an uppercut.
A low kick from Henderson misses
and DeSouza cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Henderson walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. DeSouza checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.
DeSouza checks a low kick from Henderson.
Henderson falls off balance throwing a combination
and DeSouza counters with a straight right hand.

DeSouza shoots in for a takedown and gets it.
DeSouza trying to control the action but Henderson is working from the bottom.
Henderson takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
DeSouza has freed up his trapped foot and advances to mount.
DeSouza lands a big elbow.

That's one minute gone in the round.
DeSouza controlling from the full mount.
DeSouza looking to ground and pound his opponent to a finish here.
DeSouza can't quite control the action as he would like just now, as Henderson is looking to escape.
Henderson is desperately trying to get back to half guard.
The crowd growing excited in anticipation of a finish here! Right on cue, DeSouza cracks his opponent with a massive right hand that draws loud cheers!
DeSouza takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
DeSouza lands a big shot there that rocks Henderson but he's holding on and managing to survive for now.
DeSouza looking to control and managing it successfully.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are starting to boo a lack of action.
DeSouza trying to control but Henderson is having none of it.

The referee stands the fighters back up. Doug DeSouza just wasn't active enough from the dominant position.

DeSouza darts in and lands a nice takedown into half guard.
Henderson is looking to improve his position.
DeSouza trying to control the pace.
DeSouza uses his free foot to push down on Henderson's thigh. Eventually he works his other foot free and he's advanced to mount - this is trouble for Henderson.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
DeSouza controlling from mount.
Henderson is desperately trying to improve his position but DeSouza has a good base and remains in mount.
DeSouza with a couple of short strikes.
Henderson is in all sorts of trouble here.
Henderson is persisting with the attempt to improve his position.
DeSouza working Henderson over with strikes here.
Henderson taking shots to the head.
Henderson is in all sorts of trouble here.
DeSouza looking to control but Henderson is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.
DeSouza prevents Henderson from getting the reversal.

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.
DeSouza landing strikes, looking to finish!
DeSouza unloading with bombs!
Henderson is squirming around, avoiding DeSouza's attempts to control the action.
DeSouza looking to ground and pound his opponent to a finish here.
Dan Henderson has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
DeSouza prevents Henderson from getting the reversal.
DeSouza lands a couple of nice shots there from mount.
Henderson is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.
DeSouza dominating with strikes here.
Henderson tries to get back to half guard but can't.
DeSouza looking to control and managing it successfully.
Henderson throwing hammer fists to the chest of DeSouza. What's that going to do exactly?
Henderson is trying to escape the mount.

And that's the end of the fight!
Doug DeSouza showed his dominance in that final round.
Well DeSouza has outscored his opponent in every aspect of the fight today. Only a scarily incompetent judge or two will keep him from a well deserved win... 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 Cecil Peabody scores the fight 30:27
Judge Chris Downing scores the fight 30:27
Judge Gwen Towbar scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Doug DeSouza!