PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Ben Barnham (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Aonghus Fionn (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). The crowd seem to be enjoying Fionn's choice of entrance music: O Danny Boy. Both these guys have really solid chins. Will we see a standup war or will they both decide that a knockout is unlikely and try to win the fight elsewhere?

Barnham
vs
Fionn

196 cm
24
216 lbs
7 - 7 - 0

190 cm
24
222 lbs
5 - 2 - 0

Good wrestling
Excellent boxer
Granite chin

Good wrestler
World class MT
Good gas tank

Milwaukee's Best 159's - $55

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the light heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 7 - 7 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Ben Barnham!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 5 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Aonghus Fionn!
The judges for this bout are Bruno Hogan, Summer Carpenter and Eliza Hachem.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Barnham misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Fionn.
Barnham swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Fionn bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Fionn thumps Barnham with a low kick.
Barnham swings away with a body shot that misses
enabling Fionn to counter with a crisp jab.
Barnham looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.
Fionn takes a shot to the nose. Hopefully that hasn't broken it.
Fionn takes one on the chin but keeps coming.
Nice body kick there by Fionn.
Barnham throws a right and a left that Fionn avoids nicely.
Barnham fails to land with a series of punches.
A slapping leg kick lands for Fionn.
Ben Barnham seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Fionn throws a leg kick but Barnham moved away.
Ouch! a nice leg kick from Fionn, right into the meat.
Barnham checks a low kick from Fionn.
Well, he's not going to score with shots like that. A lazy body kick attempt from Fionn.
Barnham throws a shot from downtown. Fionn moves away and avoids it.
Fionn looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
Aonghus Fionn is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Fionn keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Barnham rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Fionn moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
Barnham moves out of range of the body kick from Fionn.
Fionn misses with a leg kick
and Barnham cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
Barnham looks to score with a jab to the body but Fionn is just out of range.
Good leg kick by Fionn there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.
Barnham throws a right hand that Fionn ducks under and follows up with a left that Fionn also avoids with ease.
Barnham swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Barnham looks to land a combination but Fionn avoids it well.
Barnham throws a series of punches but Fionn avoids them all with ease.
Fionn throws a head kick but Barnham moves out of range.
Fionn throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Barnham misses with a wild body shot.
Barnham is looking to clinch but Fionn is avoiding it.
Barnham lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Fionn circles away quickly and effectively.
Fionn throws a leg kick which misses Barnham's front leg but catches the back leg as Barnham tries to avoid it.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Fionn lands a leg kick that knocks Barnham off balance momentarily.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Barnham waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Fionn.
Nice body kick there by Fionn.
Barnham is breathing heavily.
Barnham throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Fionn.
Fionn connects with a solid leg kick.
Fionn's corner calls for a 1-2. Fionn obliges with the 1 part as he scores the single shot and moves back out of range.
Fionn thows a body shot but no joy.
Barnham cracks Fionn with a hook to the jaw. Both fighters smile at eachother and high-five before getting back down to business.
Fionn throws a nice inside leg kick.
Fionn throws a feint and then finishes with a kick to the body.
Good leg kick by Fionn there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.
Fionn cracks Barnham with an open hand slap.
Barnham is hobbling a little on that front leg after taking quite a few leg kicks so far in this fight.
Barnham misses with a double jab.
Fionn turns his hip over beautifully as he lands a nice leg kick.
Fionn fakes a head shot and lands one to the body.
A jab lands there for Fionn.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Fionn throws a good cross that connects.
A solid body kick from Fionn.
A nice leg kick lands there from Fionn.
Fionn bobs and weaves and then throws a good body kick.
Fionn fakes with a right hand and throws a good leg kick, right into the thigh. That had to hurt Barnham.
Good leg kick by Fionn there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.
Fionn throws a body kick that digs right into the meat.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Fionn feints and then cracks Barnham's leading leg with a nice low kick. He's obviously looking to slow Barnham down.
Fionn connects with a leg kick. Barnham looked like he was expecting something else and didn't defend it.
Barnham takes a shot to the eye socket. That's gotta hurt.
Fionn feints and then cracks Barnham's leading leg with a nice low kick. He's obviously looking to slow Barnham down.
A nice inside leg kick there by Fionn. That's going to slow Barnham down.
Barnham will be looking to protect his midsection after taking some solid kicks to the body.
Barnham on the wrong end of a nice low kick. He's acting like it's no big deal but he doesn't want to take many more of those.
Fionn dips to his left and cracks Barnham with an uppercut!
Fionn throws a couple of head shots and lands with the final one - a decent hook, which struck Barnham on the side of the head.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Barnham takes one on the chin but keeps coming.
Barnham tries to check the leg kick but that clearly hurt him.
Fionn connects with a crisp jab.
Fionn scores with a leg kick.
Fionn with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.
Barnham throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Fionn is landing a lot of head punches in this opening round! Barnham had better start moving his head a bit unless he wants his face to turn into pâté.
Fionn swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Barnham.
Fionn lands a leg kick. The shin dug right into the meat of the thigh.
Fionn lands a front kick.
A nice leg kick lands there from Fionn.
Barnham takes a body kick right on the floating rib. Ouchie.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Fionn scoring well with a low kick there.
Fionn scores with a leg kick.
Fionn fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.
Barnham has his head snapped back a nice jab. A little nod from Barnham there as he acknowledges the shot.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Aonghus Fionn 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.

Fionn buckles his opponent's knee momentarily with a nice leg kick.
Fionn throws the kick towards the body but Barnham avoids it.
Fionn throws a nice inside leg kick.
Barnham misses with a double jab.
Barnham scores with a nice one two combo and darts back out of range to avoid anything coming in the opposite direction.
Aonghus Fionn seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Fionn fakes a couple of low kicks, before throwing one on the third attempt. It connects and Barnham has to reset his feet before getting ready to engage.
Barnham looks to land a combination but Fionn avoids it well.
Fionn with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.
Barnham stumbles momentarily as he takes a strong leg kick from Fionn.
Fionn lands a slapping body shot.
Fionn has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Fionn connects with a leg kick. Barnham looked like he was expecting something else and didn't defend it.
Barnham misses with a hook.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Fionn is looking to slow Barnham down with leg kicks.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
A nice inside leg kick there by Fionn. That's going to slow Barnham down.
Fionn throws a nice outside leg kick.
Barnham takes a nice looking leg kick right on the meat of his thigh there.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Fionn lands a leg kick and bounces back out of range.
Barnham walks into a left hand.
Fionn scores with a body shot.
Barnham walks straight into a jab right on the nose. That one stung - he's blinking and trying to clear his head.
Fionn feints with a shoulder and throws a nice leg kick to Barnham's calf.
Fionn displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Barnham throws out the jab.
Fionn lands with a head kick! That's gotta hurt.
Fionn fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.
Barnham misses with a wild body shot.
Fionn throws a leg kick which misses Barnham's front leg but catches the back leg as Barnham tries to avoid it.
Barnham walks forward, straight into a front kick from Fionn.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Fionn misses with a double jab.
Fionn fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Barnham looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
Fionn connects with an inside leg kick.
This entire fight has taken place on the feet so far and you wonder whether Barnham might be better served trying to take this one to the ground because he's losing the standup battle so far.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Barnham takes a nice looking leg kick right on the meat of his thigh there.
A good leg kick by Fionn.
Barnham takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
Fionn is looking to slow Barnham down with leg kicks.
A nice inside leg kick there by Fionn. That's going to slow Barnham down.
Fionn misses the shot to the body.

Barnham gets tackled into the cage by Fionn. Fionn maintains the clinch.
Fionn lands an uppercut.
Fionn tries a body shot but Barnham blocks it.
Barnham has dropped down and is looking to force the takedown but it's defended by Fionn after a bit of a struggle.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Fionn.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Fionn.
A nice right hand lands inside from Fionn.
Fionn goes for a body shot but it's blocked.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Fionn creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.
Barnham has had enough of the clinch but Fionn keeps him there for the moment.
Barnham wants a takedown.
Barnham is trying to work for a single leg takedown but Fionn pulls him back up using the underhooks.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Ben Barnham. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Fionn lands a hook to the side of the head.
Barnham goes for a takedown attempt but Fionn pushes him away and we're back to fighting at a distance.
Fionn lets loose with a powerful body kick. Barnham will feel that in the morning.
Fionn is looking to slow Barnham down with leg kicks.
Fionn feints and then cracks Barnham's leading leg with a nice low kick. He's obviously looking to slow Barnham down.
Fionn cracks the inside of Barnham's front leg.
Fionn thuds a left hand into Barnham's body.
Fionn is looking to land body kicks.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Fionn misses with the combination.
Barnham throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Fionn.
A decent looking body kick lands there for Fionn.
Fionn fakes a couple of low kicks, before throwing one on the third attempt. It connects and Barnham has to reset his feet before getting ready to engage.
Fionn lands a slapping body shot.
Barnham takes a jab on the nose there. A little bit of blood seems to be coming out. Hopefully that won't affect his breathing.
Fionn uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Barnham.
Fionn dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Barnham. That did some damage!
Fionn throws a head kick that misses.
Barnham misses with a body shot.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Barnham shoots in but no luck this time.
Barnham throws out a loose jab but Fionn uses good head movement to avoid it.
Fionn misses with an attempted mid kick.
Barnham falls off balance throwing a combination
and Fionn counters with a nice leg kick.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Aonghus Fionn showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action! This is the final round!

Fionn throws a quick inside leg kick.
Barnham shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Fionn but Fionn pushes him off and we're back to square one.
Fionn cracks Barnham with a hook to the jaw. Both fighters smile at eachother and high-five before getting back down to business.
Fionn throws a wild combination but nothing lands.

Barnham shoots in for a takedown! He's got it and he's managed to land in full mount! That's better than Barnham was expecting from the takedown attempt, I'm sure!
Fionn tries to hold on but Barnham pushes him away.

Barnham goes for an armbar but he's not got it… Fionn turns into him and now he's in Barnham's guard.
Fionn is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

That's one minute gone in the round.

The ref stands the fighters back up, due to lack of action by Aonghus Fionn.
Barnham chopped to the floor by a nice leg kick but he springs right back up before Fionn can pounce on him.
Barnham misses with a double jab.
Barnham swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
and Fionn counters with a slapping leg kick.
Fionn scoring well with a low kick there.
Barnham misses with a wild body shot.
Barnham throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Fionn lands with a nice body punch.
Fionn chopping away at his opponent's legs.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Fionn lands a nice looking kick to the body. Barnham takes a step back to recover.
An inside leg kick lands from Fionn.
A good leg kick by Fionn.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Fionn fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.

Fionn moves into range and clinches up with Barnham.
Nice body punch from Fionn.
Fionn slows down the pace here.
Fionn goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Fionn lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Barnham backwards.
Barnham trying to stall but Fionn improves his position.
Barnham is trying to break the clinch but Fionn has him pressed against the cage.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Fionn has Barnham pressed against the cage, preventing Barnham from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Barnham working hard to break the clinch.
Barnham throws a punch but it's blocked by Fionn.
Barnham pushes Fionn back against the cage and unloads with a body punch.
A short left from Fionn.
Barnham lands a shot to the body.
Barnham blocks a body shot from Fionn.
Aonghus Fionn is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Fionn struggles to land a body shot inside as Barnham controls his hands.

Barnham's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Fionn slips a jab and a cross from Barnham.
Fionn pivots as if he's going to throw a leg kick but stops half way.
Fionn throws a low kick but it's checked well by Barnham.
Barnham throws a right and a left that Fionn avoids nicely.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Barnham misses with a double jab
and Fionn counters with a low kick, right behind Barnham 's knee.
Fionn lands a pitter patter jab to the forehead of his opponent.
Fionn uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Barnham.
Barnham scores with a hook to the body. Fionn takes a step back and tries to catch his breath.
Barnham on the wrong end of an overhand right that came out of nowhere.
Barnham throws a nice looking combination but Fionn bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
No luck with that takedown attempt from Barnham.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Barnham moves out of range of the body kick.
A good leg kick by Fionn.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Barnham swings for the body but Fionn moves out of range.
Nice jab there from Fionn.
Fionn uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Barnham.
Ben Barnham has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Ben Barnham is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Fionn throws the kick towards the body but Barnham avoids it.

And that's the end of the fight!
Aonghus Fionn comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I've got Fionn winning every round here. Surely the decision will go his way and he'll pick up a well deserved decision victory. 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 Bruno Hogan scores the fight 27:30
Judge Summer Carpenter scores the fight 27:30
Judge Eliza Hachem scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Aonghus Fionn!
In his post fight interview, Aonghus Fionn started talking himself up. Luckily his charisma kept the crowd on side and gave him a good reception.