PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Kevin Van Dam (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Donnie O Brien (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). O Brien has chosen Rocky Road to Dublin as his entrance music. Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Van Dam
vs
O Brien

159 cm
22
142 lbs
6 - 2 - 0

172 cm
28
142 lbs
20 - 6 - 1

BJJ Purple Belt
World class boxer
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
Decent boxing
Powerful

[CBK] Legal Highs ↑ 160Q STAMINA + ENERGY
[CBK] Legal Highs ↑ 160Q STAMINA + ENERGY

Fossington & Blythe: Gentlemen's Fight Attire

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the bantamweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 6 - 2 - 0, fighting out of London, Kevin Van Dam!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 20 - 6 - 1, fighting out of London, Donnie O Brien !
The judges for this bout are William Gold, Colin Fotheringham and James Atkins.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

O Brien closes the distance, clinches up and gets a nice trip takedown into side control. Very smooth.
The referee is pacing around the two fighters - he looks like he's thinking about a standup.
O Brien is pausing for a moment. What's he doing? It looks like he's clearing his nose. Oh dude! He's shot a load of snot all down Van Dam's shoulder. That is not cool.
Van Dam is trying to escape and get back to his feet.
O Brien controls the position.
Van Dam is looking to work his way out of this bad position but O Brien is controlling him well.
Van Dam trying to remain calm as O Brien controls from the top position.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Van Dam is working hard to escape and get back to his feet. After a battle for position, O Brien asserts his dominance and retains side control.
Van Dam prevents O Brien from improving position.
Van Dam is trying to escape and get back to his feet.
O Brien tries to cartwheel into mount but he doesn't manage it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Van Dam is putting a lot of effort into getting back to his feet here.
O Brien controls the position.
Van Dam wants to get back to his feet but O Brien drags him back down.
O Brien taking a breather here.
Van Dam tries to escape but O Brien is in control.
O Brien is maintaining the dominant position - no doubt Van Dam will start to get frustrated soon if he's not already.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

The ref calls for a clean break and stands the fighters back up. Donnie O Brien wasn't active enough on the ground.
Van Dam misses with an uppercut. O Brien saw that one coming.
O Brien misses the shot to the body.

O Brien closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.
Van Dam wants to break the clinch but can't.

O Brien pulls Van Dam into guard.
O Brien is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
Van Dam wants to stand but O Brien has a closed guard, so he can't escape.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.

O Brien looking for submissions off his back, moving his hips, looking for an opening.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Van Dam has decided he wants to stand but the closed guard of O Brien is proving hard to escape from.
O Brien seems keen to control Van Dam's posture.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
There's a bit of a scramble here and now O Brien is on top in guard.
O Brien stays in close to Van Dam's body and controls the position.
Van Dam is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
O Brien is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Van Dam pushes O Brien off and scrambles back to his feet.
O Brien looks to score with a jab to the body but Van Dam is just out of range.
Van Dam throws a shot from downtown. O Brien moves away and avoids it.
Van Dam misses with a hook. O Brien ducked under it nicely.
Van Dam fakes high and swings low for a body shot but O Brien manages to avoid it.
O Brien tries to bum rush Van Dam with a series of wild strikes but Van Dam uses good footwork to avoid the assault.

O Brien scores a trip takedown into side control. Nice.
This has been an exciting period of action!
O Brien tries to move to mount but Van Dam blocks the move with his legs.
Van Dam pushes O Brien away and creates a bit of space to escape. He's almost out here... but no, O Brien gets a good hold of his legs and remains firmly in side control.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
O Brien remains in side control and seems content to stay there. It's a versatile position from which he can work both strikes and submissions, whilst maintaining that control, so maybe he'll sit here for a while.
Van Dam pushes O Brien away and creates a bit of space to escape. He's almost out here... but no, O Brien gets a good hold of his legs and remains firmly in side control.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Donnie O Brien dominated that round.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action.

Van Dam lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but O Brien circles away quickly and effectively.

O Brien closes the distance and pushes Van Dam back into the cage.
Van Dam wants to break free but O Brien has control.
Van Dam wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Van Dam gets double underhooks to prevent a takedown attempt from O Brien .
Van Dam is trying to push O Brien away but O Brien has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
O Brien keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Van Dam's efforts to push away.
O Brien prevents Van Dam from breaking the clinch.
O Brien is trying to pull guard but being pressed up against the cage enables Van Dam to keep the fight standing.
Van Dam is trying to break the clinch but O Brien is controlling him.
O Brien is trying to pull guard but Van Dam turns him against the cage and we stay in the clinch.
Kevin Van Dam has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Donnie O Brien .
Van Dam tries to break free but O Brien pushes him back against the cage.

Van Dam breaks from the clinch.

That's one minute gone in the round.
O Brien slips a jab from Van Dam.
Van Dam misses the shot to the body.
A jab from Van Dam misses.
Van Dam throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Van Dam throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
O Brien tries to clinch there but Van Dam circles away.
O Brien uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Van Dam.

O Brien bobs and weaves into range and then changes levels and scores with a nice takedown into side control.
Van Dam tries to get back to his feet but has found himself mounted instead. Damn, that's gotta suck.
O Brien looking to control but Van Dam is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.
O Brien controlling the pace for now.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
O Brien wants to control the pace but Van Dam is squirming around nicely.
O Brien punching from mount but Van Dam doing a good job of avoiding damage.
Van Dam might be looking to lock onto one of his opponent's long limbs for a submission, whilst we're on the ground.
O Brien looking to control and managing it successfully.
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!
Van Dam is trying to stand up.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
O Brien tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.

The ref calls for a clean break and stands the fighters back up. Donnie O Brien wasn't active enough on the ground.

O Brien decides to change it up a bit and drives through with a nice takedown into half guard.
Donnie O Brien has got the better of the ground game so far.
Still in half guard, O Brien seems content to control.
O Brien wants to take a breather but Van Dam is having none of it.
O Brien trying to control the pace.
We must be close to a standup if these guys don't pick up the pace.

The ref stands the fighters back up, due to lack of action by Donnie O Brien .

O Brien closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
O Brien jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Van Dam walks away with a smile on his face. O Brien gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
Van Dam stuffs the takedown attempt from O Brien . O Brien gets slowly back to his feet.
O Brien looks for a takedown but Van Dam sprawls well.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
O Brien misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
A jab from Van Dam misses.

O Brien darts in and clinches Van Dam up against the cage.
Van Dam is trying to break the clinch but O Brien is controlling him.

O Brien manages to pull guard. Let's see whether he can land a sub off his back.
O Brien controls Van Dam momentarily but Van Dam frees himself.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Van Dam tries to stand but O Brien is controlling from the bottom.
O Brien looking to control.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Donnie O Brien 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!

O Brien keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Van Dam dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Van Dam swings for the body but O Brien moves out of range.
O Brien ducks under a wild hook from Van Dam.
Van Dam missing with a left hand there. O Brien was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.

O Brien drops down and drives through with a powerful takedown into guard.
O Brien trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
O Brien engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.
O Brien pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Van Dam is keeping the position for now.
Van Dam wants to stand but O Brien is controlling the position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
O Brien looking to control the position here, rather than advance.

The ref stands the fighters back up, due to lack of action by Donnie O Brien .
O Brien shoots in for a takedown but Van Dam shows good takedown defense there and keeps this one on the feet.

O Brien closes the distance and gets a trip takedown into side control. Van Dam quickly recovers to half guard.
O Brien stops Van Dam from getting back to his feet.
O Brien scores with a couple of good hammerfists.
O Brien content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
O Brien 's corner are shouting for him to control the position and he seems happy to oblige.

The ref stands the fighters back up, due to lack of action by Donnie O Brien .
O Brien fails with a takedown attempt from distance.
Van Dam swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
O Brien will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Kevin Van Dam has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Donnie O Brien .
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
O Brien shoots for a takedown but Van Dam saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Van Dam ducks down and throws a hook to the body but O Brien moves away.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Van Dam misses with a body shot.
Van Dam jabs away that one connects to the head of his opponent.
Van Dam throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
O Brien looks for a takedown but Van Dam sprawls well.
O Brien will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Van Dam misses with a two punch combination.
Van Dam digs a good hook to O Brien 's body.
Van Dam swings and misses with a hook to the body.

O Brien gets the takedown into side control.
O Brien moves into full mount!
O Brien looking to control and managing it successfully.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
O Brien tries to control but Van Dam wriggling away.
O Brien controlling his opponent.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Van Dam squirming around on the bottom, looking to escape.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Donnie O Brien really dominated that round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

O Brien tries to score a power double leg takedown but Van Dam sees that one coming and sprawls well. That will dishearten O Brien somewhat.
Van Dam throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
No luck with that takedown attempt from O Brien .
Horrible takedown by O Brien or perhaps it was just good defense by Van Dam which made him look bad.
Kevin Van Dam has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Donnie O Brien .
Van Dam throws a shot to the body.
O Brien shoots for a takedown but Van Dam saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Van Dam is really struggling to find his range with his punches. O Brien 's reach advantage is clearly causing him problems.
Van Dam swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Nice body punch from Van Dam.
O Brien fakes high and shoots in for a takedown but Van Dam avoids it really well and circles away.
O Brien ducks under a wild hook from Van Dam.
Sloppy strikes from Van Dam. Those never looked like landing.
O Brien closes the distance and clinches up with Van Dam, looking for a takedown. O Brien pushes Van Dam against the cage but Van Dam circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.

That's one minute gone in the round.
O Brien takes a shot to the eye socket. That's gotta hurt.
Van Dam misses with a hook to the body

and O Brien moves into the clinch.

Van Dam breaks the clinch.

O Brien darts in and clinches Van Dam up against the cage.

Van Dam breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
O Brien will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
O Brien shoots in looking for a takedown but Van Dam manages to keep the fight standing, pushing O Brien 's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
O Brien is absolutely dripping with sweat - he looks exhausted.
Van Dam swings for the body but O Brien moves out of range.
Kevin Van Dam seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
O Brien slips under a jab from Van Dam.

O Brien moves into the clinch successfully.

O Brien pulls guard successfully.
Van Dam wants to stand but O Brien is controlling his posture from full guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
O Brien is pulling down on Van Dam's head. It's preventing any offense from Van Dam, at least for the moment.
Van Dam has to be careful here, sitting in the guard of a superior BJJ player.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
O Brien is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
We may be looking at a referee standup if the pace doesn't pick up soon.

Donnie O Brien has forced the referee to step in and restart the fight on the feet.
A jab lands there for Van Dam.
O Brien shoots in but no luck this time.
O Brien dives in and grabs Van Dam's left leg, looking for a takedown. Van Dam pushes down on O Brien 's head and hops out.
Van Dam scores with a nice strike.
Van Dam is looking to wear down O Brien with body shots, infact he's throwing more body shots than head shots at the moment.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
This fight brought to you by 5M nutrition - it's mmmmm tasty. Nice jab by Van Dam.
O Brien takes a shot right to the liver - Bas would have been proud of that punch.
Van Dam swings for the body but O Brien moves out of range.
O Brien fails in his attempt to clinch.
Van Dam misses with a wild combination.
Van Dam changes levels and scores with a jab to the body.

O Brien looking to score a takedown here. Van Dam is defending well but O Brien drives through and ends up in Van Dam's guard.
Van Dam wants to get back to his feet but O Brien is in a dominant position and won't allow it.
O Brien slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.
Van Dam wants to stand up but O Brien is controlling him.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
O Brien advances to half guard.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
O Brien keeping composed on the top, looking to control the action.
O Brien is trying to advance to mount but he's lost his balance and Van Dam reverses the position - he's now on top in O Brien 's guard.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Van Dam has decided he wants to stand but the closed guard of O Brien is proving hard to escape from.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Kevin Van Dam had his way with Donnie O Brien in that round.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action! This is the final round!

O Brien closes the distance and clinches up with Van Dam, looking for a takedown. O Brien pushes Van Dam against the cage but Van Dam circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Van Dam ducks down and throws a hook to the body.
Van Dam swings and misses with a hook to the body.
A really sloppy takedown attempt there from O Brien .
Kevin Van Dam is winning the standup battle so far.
Jab by Van Dam.
Van Dam misses with a body shot.
Van Dam throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Van Dam just misses with a punch to the body.
A big left from Van Dam misses.

O Brien gets the takedown into side control.
O Brien works to advance to full mount. Van Dam defends for a few seconds but eventually he succumbs.
Van Dam is looking to get back to his feet - it's going to be hard from this position.
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.
O Brien tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Van Dam's corner are shouting for him to stand up but that's bad cornering - how is he meant to stand up when he's mounted? He should be looking to improve his position on the ground before trying to stand back up.
It looks like the ref is thinking about a standup.
O Brien tries to control but Van Dam wriggling away.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

The ref stands the fighters back up, due to lack of action by Donnie O Brien .
O Brien tries to clinch but Van Dam moves out of range.
Van Dam throws a series of punches but O Brien moves out of range.

O Brien throws the overhand right but ducks down into a quick takedown attempt. Van Dam was covering up waiting for the punch and O Brien finishes the takedown easily into guard.
O Brien 's corner is telling him to maintain position.
O Brien forces his way into half guard.
O Brien wants to free his trapped foot but Van Dam is holding on for dear life with his legs.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Van Dam is trying to stand up here but O Brien is controlling him well.
Neither fighter is being very active at the moment, with O Brien in particular looking to stall.
Let's hope that O Brien has the urge to step up the pace any second now because for the last 15 or 20 seconds he's just been holding on tight.

OK we're going to have a standup here. Donnie O Brien hasn't been effective enough on the ground and the referee wants a restart.
O Brien fails with the takedown.
Kevin Van Dam has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Donnie O Brien .

That's four minutes gone in the round.
O Brien closes the distance and clinches up with Van Dam, looking for a takedown. O Brien pushes Van Dam against the cage but Van Dam circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Van Dam throws a right and a left that both miss.
O Brien fails miserably with a takedown attempt.
Van Dam misses with a straight left.
Van Dam throws a predictable looking body shot

and O Brien counters into the clinch. Nicely done.
Donnie O Brien is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Van Dam wants to break free but O Brien has control.
Van Dam wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.

O Brien gets control of Van Dam's arms and successfully pulls guard. O Brien will no doubt be looking for submissions off his back.
O Brien wants to sweep but no luck.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Van Dam is looking to stand up but O Brien won't let him.
Kevin Van Dam has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
O Brien controls Van Dam momentarily but Van Dam frees himself.

And that's the end of the fight!
Donnie O Brien comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think O Brien has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. 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 William Gold scores the fight 46:49
Judge Colin Fotheringham scores the fight 46:49
Judge James Atkins scores the fight 46:49

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Donnie O Brien !
Donnie O Brien is the new bantamweight champion!
After the fight, Donnie O Brien 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.