PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Art Vandelay (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Haji Muakbar (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Vandelay comes to the cage accompanied by Lynyrd Skynyrd - Simple Man . Muakbar has chosen That Punjabi Jay-Z song as his entrance music. Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Vandelay
vs
Muakbar

173 cm
22
156 lbs
3 - 0 - 0

171 cm
25
159 lbs
9 - 4 - 0

Powerful takedowns
Dangerous knees
Insanely flexible

Good wrestler
Decent boxing
Good gas tank

Stonewall

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 3 - 0 - 0, fighting out of New York, Art Vandelay!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 9 - 4 - 0, fighting out of New York, Haji Muakbar!
The judges for this bout are Eddie Farnsworth, Columbo Gatti and Russell Pearce.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Muakbar swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
and Vandelay counters with an outside leg kick.
Vandelay fakes a jab and then connects with a hook.
Muakbar takes a thudding leg kick, right into the meat of the thigh.
Muakbar throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Vandelay tries a head kick but it misses.
Muakbar misses with an uppercut.

Vandelay rushes Muakbar and presses him up against the cage.
Vandelay misses with a knee strike.
Muakbar is trying to work for a single leg takedown but Vandelay pulls him back up using the underhooks.

Muakbar breaks from the clinch.
Vandelay tries a head kick but it misses.
Vandelay stuns Muakbar with a nice body shot, before stepping back out of range.
Vandelay displays good takedown defense there as he swats away a double leg from Muakbar.
Vandelay's jab looks to have found its range, popping Muakbar under the eye.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Vandelay closes the distance and gets a double leg, slamming Muakbar to the mat! Muakbar manages to get full guard.
Vandelay looking to pass the guard.
Muakbar controlling Vandelay's posture.
Vandelay pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Muakbar is keeping the position for now.
Muakbar pulls Vandelay in close to prevent any damage.
Vandelay controlling from the guard. I say controlling but really, he's stalling.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.

Muakbar shoots in for a takedown and gets it. Let's see what he's got on the mat.
Vandelay is trying to stand up but he's not managed so far.
Vandelay keeping full guard, as Muakbar tries to pass.
Vandelay keeping moving, preventing Muakbar from controlling successfully.
Muakbar stopping the sweep attempt from Vandelay.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Muakbar trying to control but Vandelay is working from the bottom.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Muakbar loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Muakbar postures up and scores with a shot to the body and a follow up elbow to the head.
Vandelay not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
Vandelay working a defensive guard but Muakbar passes into half guard.
Vandelay is trying to stand.
Muakbar landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
Muakbar is looking to advance position but Vandelay won't allow it.
Vandelay tries to kick Muakbar off but Muakbar keeps his base steady and stays in half guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Muakbar throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Muakbar sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Vandelay defending well though.
Vandelay pushes Muakbar off looking to stand but Muakbar dives back in and keeps control.
Muakbar wants to control but Vandelay is keeping him busy.
Muakbar is in a good position here but he's just trying to control... And he's not even managing to do that successfully.
Muakbar has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.
Muakbar not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Muakbar is pressing down on Vandelay's thigh, looking to free his foot. Vandelay is holding on for now.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Muakbar is trying to control the action in half guard but Vandelay is working away on the bottom, looking perhaps to get back to full guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close round but Haji Muakbar will probably get the nod.
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.

Vandelay ducks under a wild hook from Muakbar.
Nice takedown defense from Vandelay. No joy for Muakbar on that attempt.
Muakbar takes a thudding leg kick, right into the meat of the thigh.
Muakbar misses with a straight right.
Vandelay tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in the close the distance. Muakbar manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
Muakbar throws a right hand that Vandelay ducks under and follows up with a left that Vandelay also avoids with ease.

Muakbar scores with a takedown into Vandelay's guard.

Vandelay uses the cage to get back to his feet.
Vandelay slips under a jab from Muakbar.
Vandelay misses with a body kick.
Muakbar throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Vandelay takes a swing at Muakbar's ribcage but misses.
Muakbar throws out a leg kick but Vandelay moves out of range and Muakbar only half commits.
Vandelay tries to close the distance and clinch up but Muakbar swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Art Vandelay seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Like a baseball bat into the meat of his leg there - nice leg kick by Vandelay.
Vandelay lands with a head kick! That's gotta hurt.
Vandelay tries to clinch up but Muakbar circles away and keeps his distance.
Vandelay ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Muakbar moves away.
Muakbar thows a body shot but no joy.
Vandelay throws a head kick that connects with a bit of head and a bit of hand.
Muakbar closes the distance and clinches up with Vandelay, looking for a takedown. Muakbar pushes Vandelay against the cage but Vandelay circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Vandelay tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
A nice leg kick lands there from Vandelay.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Vandelay catches Muakbar with a nice straight right. He seems pissed - ooooh, it's on now! On like donkey kong!
Muakbar takes a shot right to the bread basket.
Vandelay moves into range and lands a nice body kick.
Art Vandelay is winning the standup battle so far.
Muakbar avoids a low kick by using good footwork.
Muakbar is moving around nicely and scores here with a single head shot.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Muakbar shoots in looking for a takedown but Vandelay manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Muakbar's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
Art Vandelay has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Haji Muakbar.
Vandelay throws a sloppy head kick and Muakbar moves out of range easily.

Muakbar gets a double leg takedown into Vandelay's guard.
Muakbar content to stall in guard here.
Muakbar is pushing down on Vandelay's leg trying to pass to half guard. Vandelay is fighting to maintain full guard but Muakbar has managed to sneak the leg through.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Vandelay is trying to stand back up but Muakbar is controlling him
Vandelay tries to push off, looking to stand up, but Muakbar manages to move to mount!
Vandelay tries to reverse the position but Muakbar maintains control.
Muakbar landing strikes from the mount and Vandelay is in trouble!
Muakbar lands a big elbow.
Vandelay is trying to stand up.
Vandelay in a bad spot here, taking shots to the head.
Muakbar punishing his opponent with strikes.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Muakbar trying to control but he's not successful this time.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Muakbar working Vandelay over with strikes here.
Muakbar won't let Vandelay get back to his feet... He wants to keep the fight where it is for now.
Vandelay really trying hard to get back to half guard here.
Haji Muakbar has got the better of the ground game so far.
Muakbar can't quite control the action as he would like just now, as Vandelay is looking to escape.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Haji Muakbar 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!

Muakbar checks a leg kick nicely.
Vandelay displays good takedown defense there as he swats away a double leg from Muakbar.
Muakbar shoots in for a takedown but Vandelay shows good takedown defense there and keeps this one on the feet.
Vandelay uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Muakbar.
Muakbar looks shocked there as he takes a right hand to the temple.
Muakbar takes a head kick and shrugs it off.
Vandelay misses with a hook. Muakbar ducked under it nicely.
Muakbar misses the jab.
Muakbar swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Muakbar fakes with the hands and throws a leg kick but Vandelay is out of range.

Vandelay looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into mount! Oh, that's bad for Muakbar!

That's one minute gone in the round.
Vandelay content just to control the position here.

Vandelay is in full mount, looking to secure a guillotine but Muakbar is surviving well by controlling Vandelay's body position as best he can.
Muakbar is squirming around, avoiding Vandelay's attempts to control the action.
Vandelay is really struggling to control Muakbar but he's trying to hold on to the position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Vandelay looking for a guillotine from mount but Muakbar is having none of it.
Muakbar tries to lock up and control but Vandelay gives him a forearm to the face and pushes him away.
Muakbar bucks up and manages to get a nice reversal! He's in guard on the top - nicely done!
Muakbar trying to control the position from guard on top but Vandelay is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Muakbar stops Vandelay from standing up.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Muakbar wants to control from the top but Vandelay keeps moving.
Art Vandelay has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Vandelay preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Vandelay controls Muakbar momentarily but Muakbar frees himself.
Vandelay keeping moving, preventing Muakbar from controlling successfully.
Haji Muakbar is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

The ref calls for a clean break and stands the fighters back up. Haji Muakbar wasn't active enough on the ground.
Vandelay fakes with a right hand and throws a good leg kick, right into the thigh. That had to hurt Muakbar.
Muakbar avoids the body shot from Vandelay.
No luck for Muakbar with that takedown attempt.
Art Vandelay has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Haji Muakbar.
Vandelay fails with an attempt to clinch.
Muakbar fakes a head shot and lands one to the body.

Vandelay shoots in from a long way out. He's driving through with the takedown attempt and he eventually gets it, landing in Muakbar's guard.
Muakbar working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Vandelay.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Vandelay throwing strikes but missing.

Vandelay drops back for a leg but he's not going to get it - he lets go and Muakbar dives on top into guard.

And that's the end of the fight!
Art Vandelay showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Muakbar 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 3 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Eddie Farnsworth scores the fight 28:29
Judge Columbo Gatti scores the fight 29:28
Judge Russell Pearce scores the fight 28:29

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