PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Luke Cage (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Nuckin Futz (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Luke Cage could well score a knockout today. He has the power to get to Nuckin Futz's chin.

Cage
vs
Futz

170 cm
24
159 lbs
5 - 3 - 0

177 cm
32
158 lbs
19 - 14 - 0

Good wrestling
World class boxer
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
Excellent boxer
Heavy handed

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the featherweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 5 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Luke Cage!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 19 - 14 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Nuckin Futz!
The judges for this bout are Leandro Rodrigues, Edson Gomes and Thiago Cunha.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Cage throws a head kick that looked like it stung.
A big left from Cage misses.
Cage turns his hip over beautifully as he lands a nice leg kick.
Cage on the wrong end of a nice hook.
Futz has his front leg slapped to the side - a nice low kick landing there from Cage.
Cage pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Futz scores with a jab. Cage acknowledges it with a nod of the head.
Cage shoots in looking for a takedown but Futz manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Cage's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
Futz throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
A looping hook to the body misses from Futz. Cage does a little dance to reset his feet.
Cage waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Futz.
Cage pulls out of a head kick attempt.

Cage clinches.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Cage looking for a takedown.
Futz blocks an elbow strike.
Cage prevents a body shot from Futz.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A short right from Futz.
Cage lands with a short head shot on the inside.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Futz.
Futz lands with a good tight uppercut to the head.
Futz prevents a body shot from Cage.
Cage gets an overhook and lands an elbow to the side of the head.
Cage misses with a hook from the clinch.
Both fighters working to control the clinch.
Cage misses with a hook to the ribs.
Cage lands a nice uppercut.
Cage misses with some punches.
Futz stalls.
Futz lands with a left to the head.
Futz holding his opponent close, against the cage.
Cage has a couple of punches blocked by Futz.
Cage lands an elbow inside that Futz shrugs off.

It looks like Nuckin Futz has been cut.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Futz takes an elbow to the temple.
A real battle for position is taking place between these two warriors.
Cage tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
The referee calls for Futz to work.
Cage lands a body punch.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Cage misses with a body punch.
Cage throws a head punch that misses.
Cage throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Cage creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.
Cage works for underhooks and lands a body shot in the process.
Cage lands a right hand that snaps the head of Futz backwards.
Cage misses with a hook from the clinch.
Futz blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Cage lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Futz backwards.
Cage lands a nice elbow.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Cage creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.

Futz is rocked!
Futz throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Futz is still on wobbly legs! Can Cage finish him?
Stalling in the clinch from Futz.
Futz seems to have recovered his senses.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Both fighters working to control the clinch.
Cage throws a punch but it's blocked by Futz.
Cage lands a nice elbow from the clinch.
Cage misses with the head strike.
Cage lands a right hand that snaps the head of Futz backwards.

Futz escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Futz lands a really nice looking cross but Cage seems unphased.
Nice straight punches there by Cage. You know Roy Jones Jr respects the hands of Cage.
Cage jabs Futz to the body, keeping him at a distance.
Futz tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Cage was well out of range. Poor timing from Futz.
Cage misses the jab.
Cage avoids the body shot from Futz.
Cage scores with a head kick. Futz tried to block it but didn't get his arm up in time.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Futz is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Futz throws an overhand right that lands on Cage's shoulder, as Cage tries to avoid the shot.
Cage tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Futz waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Cage.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Cage misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Cage scores with a sloppy right hand. Futz should have avoided that one.
Futz scores with a body shot.
Futz lands with a nice body punch.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Cage shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Futz sprawls well. Futz wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Cage gets slowly back to his feet.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Luke Cage. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Cage is breathing heavily.
Cage finds nothing but air with that leg kick attempt.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Luke Cage dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Nuckin Futz's cut.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Cage keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Futz thows a body shot but no joy.
Cage throws a right high kick that is partially blocked by Futz.
Cage ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Cage throws a low kick but Futz avoids it.
Futz is throwing a lot of body shots here, looking to wear down Cage rather than just go for the knockout.
Futz punishes Cage's body with a nice straight punch.
Some wild striking there from Futz.
Cage slips under a jab from Futz.
Cage pulls out of a head kick attempt.
A decent looking body kick lands there for Cage.
Cage misses with a head kick.
Futz misses with a wild body shot.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Cage lands a nice looking body shot.
Futz scores with a three punch combo!
Futz takes a hook to the side of the head. I wonder if that's got his ears ringing.
Futz misses the jab.
Cage buckles his opponent's knee momentarily with a nice leg kick.
Cage tries to shoot in for a takedown. He's got hold of a leg but Futz swivels and escapes.
Futz missing with a left hand there. Cage was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Futz lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Cage circles away quickly and effectively.

Cage takes the fight into the clinch.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Futz.
Cage lands a right hand that snaps the head of Futz backwards.
Cage trying to land knees to the body.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Cage stays in close to his opponent and throws a right hand to the body.
Futz fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Futz blocking some punches.
Cage blocks a punch to the side of the head.
We are yet to see a takedown attempt from Futz in the fight. On paper you would think he is the more dominant ground fighter so let's see if these unusual tactics pay off.
Futz blocking some punches.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Cage is working for a takedown up against the cage. He can't get it on this occasion though.
Cage fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Futz has Cage pushed against the cage.
Cage throws a head punch that misses.
Futz takes an elbow to the forehead.
Cage blocking some punches.
Cage lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.
Cage lands with a left to the head.
Futz is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.
Still in the clinch, Cage scores with a nice short uppercut.
Cage working aggressively here.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Futz misses with some punches.

Futz breaks the clinch.
Cage lands with a slapping head kick.
Futz jabs Cage to the body, keeping him at a distance.
Futz will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
Cage throws a sloppy head kick
and Futz counters with a nice uppercut.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Futz misses with the combination.
Futz fails with an attempt to clinch.
Futz throws a combination. Cage tries to block but a couple of punches get through.
Futz looks to score with a jab to the body but Cage is just out of range.
Futz throws a lazy right hand but Cage sees it coming a mile off and sidesteps it easily.
Cage with a nice cross.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Futz misses with a few strikes there.
Nice sprawl there from Futz as Cage shoots in.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Luke Cage. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Good work by Futz as he checks the leg kick.
Futz jabs Cage to the body, keeping him at a distance.
Cage throws a lazy uppercut
and Futz counters with a two punch combo.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Cage lands a nice looking kick to the body. Futz takes a step back to recover.
Cage lands a nice leg kick that just misses Futz's sensitive parts.
Luke Cage seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Cage staying out of range there.
Futz rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Cage moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
Futz on the receiving end of a decent leg kick there by Cage. Cage obviously looking to wear him down.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that Luke Cage will probably get the nod.
The cut man is working on Nuckin Futz's cut.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. This is the final round!

Cage throws a head kick that misses.
Cage tests Futz's chin there with a solid looking shot.
Futz swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Futz jabs Cage to the body, keeping him at a distance.
Cage misses with a head kick.
Cage dodges the punch combination from Futz.

Cage closes the distance and pushes Futz back into the cage.
Cage misses with a punch on the inside.
Cage is working Futz over against the cage.
Cage has Futz pressed against the cage, preventing Futz from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Futz takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
A shot in the inside from Cage.
Futz takes a shot to the head.

That's one minute gone in the round.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Cage.
Cage misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Futz.
Futz avoids the elbow strike from Cage, against the cage.
Cage lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
Futz takes an elbow to the temple.
Futz is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Cage is keeping busy.
Luke Cage has scored more points in the clinch so far.
Futz tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Futz blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Futz tries to stall but Cage uses the opportunity to gain a better position.
Futz takes a shot to the head.
Futz is trying to maintain a safe position but Cage gets an underhook and turns Futz into the cage.
Futz blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Cage blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Cage lands a damaging elbow.
Futz blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Cage lands with a left to the head.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Futz blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Futz blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Cage tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Cage working aggressively here.
A real battle for position is taking place between these two warriors.
Cage can't find room to land a body shot as Futz controls the action.
Cage lands with a short shot to the head.
Cage misses with some punches.
A nice right hand lands inside from Cage.
Nuckin Futz has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Futz scores with a shot to the side of Cage's head.
Cage scores with a shot to the side of Futz's head.
Futz pushes Cage back against the cage and unloads with a body punch.
Cage can't find room to land a body shot as Futz controls the action.
A nice glancing elbow lands by Cage.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Cage.
Cage looks to throw an elbow but misses.
A battle for position here, against the cage.
Futz blocks a couple of punches on the inside.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Futz blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
With the fighters up against the cage, Cage throws an elbow but misses.
Futz dodges an elbow strike from Cage.
A nice left hand lands by Futz.
Futz wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Cage swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Cage misses with some punches.
Futz blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Cage fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Cage misses with a hook from the clinch.
Futz stalling in the clinch but Cage improves position.
Futz avoiding damage.
Cage tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Cage takes a shot to the head.
Good body shot from Cage.
Futz is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Futz throws a head punch that misses.
Cage blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Futz content to slow the pace in the clinch.
Cage misses with an elbow strike.
Cage blocks an uppercut.
Futz tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Futz is trying to maintain a safe position but Cage gets an underhook and turns Futz into the cage.
Cage working some nice short punches in the clinch.
Luke Cage is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
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!
Cage lands on the inside with an uppercut.
Cage lands a body shot in the clinch.
Still in the clinch, Futz scores with a nice short uppercut.
Cage makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Futz misses with a punch on the inside.
Cage blocks a body shot from Futz.
Cage working Futz over with knees to the body.
Cage lands punches inside but they're not really causing much damage.
Futz takes an elbow to the temple.

And that's the end of the fight!
Luke Cage showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Cage 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 Leandro Rodrigues scores the fight 30:27
Judge Edson Gomes scores the fight 30:27
Judge Thiago Cunha scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Luke Cage!
Luke Cage made sure to mention his sponsor, xXx - Voodoo Labs - 159+ Energy - $45 in his post fight interview.