PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Marcus Freedman (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Aleksandar Shalamanov (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Shalamanov has chosen Imany - You will never know as his entrance music. Marcus Freedman has the better chin. Will he look to stand and bang today?

Freedman
vs
Shalamanov

190 cm
20
200 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

186 cm
28
187 lbs
3 - 3 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Excellent boxer
Granite chin

Good takedowns
Decent boxing
Determined

[CBK] LEGAL HIGHS « AJFC↑ DOUBLE 160Q ®

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 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Marcus Freedman!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Aleksandar Shalamanov!
The judges for this bout are Shigeki Sano, Kenichi Hosakawa and Sosuke Kotani.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Nice sprawl there from Freedman as Shalamanov shoots in.
Freedman swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Shalamanov.
Freedman throws a hook to the side of Shalamanov's head but Shalamanov sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.
Shalamanov uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Freedman.
Freedman fakes a head shot and lands one to the body.
Shalamanov showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Freedman.
Freedman misses with an uppercut. Shalamanov saw that one coming.
Marcus Freedman seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Freedman throws out a powerful jab.
Freedman throws a hook to the side of Shalamanov's head but Shalamanov sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Freedman is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Shalamanov.
Freedman misses with a left hand

and Shalamanov counters with a nice shoot takedown that brings the fighters to the ground.
Freedman controlling the position.
Shalamanov wants to control from the top but Freedman keeps moving.
Shalamanov working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Shalamanov trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Shalamanov is looking to work some ground and pound but Freedman has wrist control.
Shalamanov throwing strikes but missing.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Shalamanov throws a big right hand that misses.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Freedman manages to sweep nicely, so he's now on top. Shalamanov manages to get himself to full guard.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Freedman forces his way into half guard.
Shalamanov regains full guard. Nicely done.
Freedman wants to pass the guard but Shalamanov is keeping the position.
Shalamanov tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Freedman pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Shalamanov is keeping the position for now.

Freedman is holding a leg here, probably looking for an ankle lock - he drops back and goes for it! Shalamanov is in trouble! Is it all over??? No! Shalamanov has escaped and now he's on top!
Shalamanov throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Freedman works some decent striking defense from the bottom.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Shalamanov throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Shalamanov is looking to work some ground and pound but Freedman has wrist control.
Shalamanov is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
Shalamanov trying to control but Freedman is working from the bottom.
Freedman preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Shalamanov trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Freedman wants to stand up but Shalamanov is controlling him.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Shalamanov makes a bit of distance and scores with some ground and pound, still in guard.

Shalamanov is trying to work a guillotine from the top, or something like that? Don't know how he thinks he's going to get a finish from there.
Freedman working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Shalamanov.

Shalamanov drops back for a leg! It's a sloppy attempt though and Shalamanov jumps back into guard quickly, to retain the dominant position.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Shalamanov accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Shalamanov accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
Freedman wants to get back to his feet but Shalamanov is in a dominant position and won't allow it.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close round but Aleksandar Shalamanov will probably get the nod.
That's time! Freedman's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

Shalamanov avoids a punch combination nicely.
Both fighters are looking to counter, which isn't making for the most exciting fight in the world.
Shalamanov slips a straight right by Freedman.
Freedman lands a powerful looking uppercut that connected with his opponent's jaw.
Freedman slaps away a takedown attempt from Shalamanov, before circling back to the center of the mat.
A jab lands there for Freedman.
Shalamanov shoots in looking for a takedown. Freedman tries to sprawl out of it but Shalamanov keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Freedman manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Freedman misses with the combination.
Shalamanov misses with a takedown attempt - Freedman sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Marcus Freedman has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Aleksandar Shalamanov.
Freedman throws a jab when Shalamanov was well out of range.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.
Freedman lands a nice looking body shot.
Freedman misses with a jab, cross combination.
Freedman pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Shalamanov closes the distance and clinches up with Freedman, looking for a takedown. Shalamanov pushes Freedman against the cage but Freedman circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
Freedman throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Freedman misses with a combination

and Shalamanov decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Freedman's guard.
Freedman avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Shalamanov throwing strikes from guard but Freedman blocks nicely.
Aleksandar Shalamanov has got the better of the ground game so far.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Shalamanov trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Shalamanov wants to control from the top but Freedman keeps moving.
Shalamanov postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Shalamanov trying to control but Freedman is working from the bottom.
Freedman is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Shalamanov is looking to work some ground and pound but Freedman has wrist control.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Shalamanov missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Freedman bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Shalamanov's guard.
Freedman is looking to advance position but Shalamanov has hit a scissor sweep - now he's on top in mount!
Freedman is writhing around trying to get back to his feet.
Shalamanov can't quite control the action as he would like just now, as Freedman is looking to escape.
Freedman tries to hold on but Shalamanov postures up.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Freedman is in all sorts of trouble here.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

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

Freedman misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Freedman misses with the combination.
Shalamanov dodges the punch combination from Freedman.
Shalamanov tries to score a power double leg takedown but Freedman sees that one coming and sprawls well. That will dishearten Shalamanov somewhat.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Shalamanov misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Freedman throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Shalamanov.
Freedman throws a big shot that misses.
Freedman fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
No joy there for Freedman, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Marcus Freedman is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Shalamanov shoots in but Freedman avoids the takedown attempt easily.
Marcus Freedman has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Aleksandar Shalamanov.
Freedman throws the left hand but Shalamanov avoids the punch easily.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Shalamanov fails with a takedown attempt.
Freedman fails to land with a series of punches.

Shalamanov scores a trip takedown into side control. Nice.
Freedman struggling a bit here.
Shalamanov working the ground and pound but he's contacting the mat, not the fighter.
Shalamanov misses with an attempted head punch from side control.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Shalamanov scores with a couple of short elbows.
Freedman manages to get one leg in to regain half guard.
Shalamanov missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.

Shalamanov is trying for a guillotine from the top but the pressure isn't in the right place so Freedman is just riding it out for now. Shalamanov eventually gives up the hold.

Shalamanov is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.
Freedman is trying to maintain the position but Shalamanov is very close to passing his half guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Shalamanov is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.
Freedman is controlling Shalamanov's trapped leg to prevent Shalamanov from advancing to side control.
Freedman trying to control here.
Shalamanov missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.

And that's the end of the fight!
I would just about give that final round to Aleksandar Shalamanov.
I think Shalamanov 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 Shigeki Sano scores the fight 28:29
Judge Kenichi Hosakawa scores the fight 28:29
Judge Sosuke Kotani scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Aleksandar Shalamanov!
Aleksandar Shalamanov made sure to mention his sponsor, 1337 ANZAC in his post fight interview.