PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Benigno Aquino (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Gibson Rickenbacker v.2 (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). 2. Rickenbacker v.2 has chosen Back Stabber! as his entrance music. Both fighter's entrance songs getting the crowd jumping here.

Aquino
vs
Rickenbacker v.2

180 cm
24
182 lbs
9 - 3 - 0

175 cm
22
180 lbs
13 - 6 - 0

Good wrestling
Excellent boxer
Insanely flexible

BJJ Brown Belt
Lethal high kicks
Good gas tank

Steel Penn's Laundry 93%

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the welterweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 9 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Benigno Aquino!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 13 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Sydney, Gibson Rickenbacker v.2!
The judges for this bout are Damien Edna, Hugh Johnson and Bruno Hogan.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Rickenbacker v.2 looks to land a left hand but Aquino moved out of range nicely.
Aquino slips a jab from Rickenbacker v.2.
Rickenbacker v.2 lands a head kick!
Aquino throws a sloppy head kick and Rickenbacker v.2 moves out of range easily.
Aquino tries a head kick but it misses.
Rickenbacker v.2 leaves Aquino with his face pressed against the mat as he sprawls beautifully, defending against a solid takedown attempt.
Rickenbacker v.2 cracks the inside of Aquino's front leg.
Aquino throws a half hearted mid kick.

Rickenbacker v.2 moves into the clinch.
Rickenbacker v.2 tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Aquino blocks an elbow strike.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
With the fighters up against the cage, Rickenbacker v.2 throws an elbow but misses.
Aquino managing to block the knees to the body from Rickenbacker v.2.

Aquino lands a nice trip takedown into half guard.
The referee is asking the fighters to pick up the pace.
Aquino not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Aquino seems to be taking a bit of a break to think of his next move. He lands a short punch in the meantime.
Rickenbacker v.2 avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Aquino.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Aquino lands strikes from half guard.
Aquino throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Aquino throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Aquino throwing shots but Rickenbacker v.2 is blocking nicely.
Rickenbacker v.2 moves his hips nicely and gets into full guard.
Aquino is looking to work some ground and pound but Rickenbacker v.2 has wrist control.
Aquino postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Rickenbacker v.2 seems keen to control Aquino's posture.
Rickenbacker v.2 wants to stand up but Aquino is controlling him.
Aquino is looking to work some ground and pound but Rickenbacker v.2 has wrist control.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Aquino postures up in Rickenbacker v.2's guard and throws a big left but Rickenbacker v.2 blocks it.
Aquino in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
Aquino wants to pass the guard but Rickenbacker v.2 is keeping the position.
Rickenbacker v.2 has Aquino pulled in close to control his posture.
Let's hope that Rickenbacker v.2 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.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!

OK we're going to have a standup here. Gibson Rickenbacker v.2 hasn't been effective enough on the ground and the referee wants a restart.
Rickenbacker v.2 misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Rickenbacker v.2 pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Nice shot by Aquino.
Rickenbacker v.2 throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Rickenbacker v.2 defends well against a solid takedown attempt from Aquino.
Rickenbacker v.2 throws a head kick but Aquino moves out of range.
Aquino circles away from the clinch attempt.
Rickenbacker v.2 wants to clinch up but Aquino keeps it at a distance.
Benigno Aquino seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
A head kick misses from Rickenbacker v.2.
Aquino shuffles to his left behind two crisp jabs. Rickenbacker v.2 eats them both and turns towards Aquino to reposition himself and eats a stinging right hand-left hook combo.

Aquino bobs and weaves into range and then changes levels and scores with a nice takedown into side control.
Aquino tries to advance to mount but can't.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Aquino tries to advance to mount but Rickenbacker v.2 instead regains half guard.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Rickenbacker v.2 keeps control of the position for the meantime.

Aquino looking for a kimura but he'll have to free his other leg if he wants to finish that. Perhaps he's just using it as a distraction technique.
Aquino trying to pass the guard but Rickenbacker v.2 defending well.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Aquino is trying a forearm choke… I don't think that's going to do much at this level of the game.
The referee walks around the fighters to get a better view of the action. Aquino lands a nice short elbow.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Aquino sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Rickenbacker v.2 defending well though.
Rickenbacker v.2 is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Benigno Aquino dominated that round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Aquino throws a right hand that Rickenbacker v.2 ducks under and follows up with a left that Rickenbacker v.2 also avoids with ease.
Aquino throws a series of punches but Rickenbacker v.2 moves out of range.
Rickenbacker v.2 throws a low kick but Aquino moves out of range easily.
Aquino misses with a series of wild punches.
Rickenbacker v.2 moves into range and lands a nice body kick.
Aquino misses with a jab, cross combination.
Rickenbacker v.2 pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Rickenbacker v.2 misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Benigno Aquino is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Rickenbacker v.2 throws a head kick that Aquino semi-blocks.

It looks like Benigno Aquino has been cut.
A decent looking body kick lands there for Rickenbacker v.2.
Aquino moves into range and throws a combination. A nice jab followed by a hook to the body.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.

Rickenbacker v.2 closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.
Rickenbacker v.2 holding his opponent close, against the cage.
Rickenbacker v.2 with the Thai clinch, lands a knee to the head.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Rickenbacker v.2 misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Aquino.
A real battle for position is taking place between these two warriors.
Aquino is looking for a takedown.
Aquino has dropped down and is looking to force the takedown but it's defended by Rickenbacker v.2 after a bit of a struggle.
Aquino takes a knee to the side of the body.
Aquino is trying to work for a single leg takedown but Rickenbacker v.2 pulls him back up using the underhooks.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Benigno Aquino. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Rickenbacker v.2 tries to land knees in the clinch but Aquino avoids the damage to the body.
Rickenbacker v.2 landing some nice looking knees to the body.
Rickenbacker v.2 lands a damaging elbow.
Rickenbacker v.2 looking to throw knees to the head but Aquino is blocking nicely.
A knee to the head by Rickenbacker v.2.
Rickenbacker v.2 is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Aquino is keeping busy.
Rickenbacker v.2 scores with a knee to the head.
Rickenbacker v.2 tries a knee to the head but he's missed.
Aquino drops to a knee looking for a takedown but Rickenbacker v.2 gets the underhooks and prevents it.
Rickenbacker v.2 tries a knee to the head but he's missed.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Rickenbacker v.2 using the Thai clinch to land knees to the body.
Aquino is looking for a takedown.
Aquino takes a knee to the side of the body.
Rickenbacker v.2 landing knees to the body.
Rickenbacker v.2 utilising his Muay Thai to score with a knee to the body.
Rickenbacker v.2 unloads a knee to the mid-section. Aquino lets out a prehistoric sounding urrrrgh.
A knee to the head by Rickenbacker v.2.
Rickenbacker v.2 manages to get underhooks and slows down the pace for a moment.
Rickenbacker v.2 utilising his Muay Thai to score with a knee to the body.
Rickenbacker v.2 gets an overhook and lands an elbow to the side of the head.
A battle for position here, against the cage.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Rickenbacker v.2 putting his Muay Thai to good use. He has Aquino in a tight clinch and is doing some damage with knees to the body.
Rickenbacker v.2 with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Rickenbacker v.2 gets an overhook and lands an elbow to the side of the head.
Rickenbacker v.2 is trying to stall.
Aquino changes levels and goes for a takedown here. Rickenbacker v.2 fights it off and pushes away nicely.
Rickenbacker v.2 tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Rickenbacker v.2 lands with an overhand left.
Aquino ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
Rickenbacker v.2 lands a leg kick and bounces back out of range.
Aquino throws a leg kick but Rickenbacker v.2 checks it.
Gibson Rickenbacker v.2 seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Aquino throws a lazy right hand but Rickenbacker v.2 sees it coming a mile off and sidesteps it easily.
Rickenbacker v.2 throws a head kick that half lands.

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!
A head kick by Aquino misses
and Rickenbacker v.2 counters with a head kick.

Aquino shoots in for a takedown! He's got it and he's managed to land in full mount! That's better than Aquino was expecting from the takedown attempt, I'm sure!
Aquino avoids the attempt from Rickenbacker v.2 to control.
Aquino fakes a shot to the body and cracks his opponent in the head. Nice ground and pound there!
Aquino misses with a head shot.
Rickenbacker v.2 really trying hard to get back to half guard here.
Rickenbacker v.2 tries to hold on but Aquino postures up.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Rickenbacker v.2 is looking to get to half guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Gibson Rickenbacker v.2 showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Benigno Aquino's cut.
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. This is the final round!

Aquino looks to score with a combo but nothing lands.

Rickenbacker v.2 gets taken down but at least he's managed to land in guard.
Aquino has been looking to land a fair amount of strikes on the ground. He might be looking to soften his opponent up in order to work for a submission.
Rickenbacker v.2 is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
Aquino pushes down on Rickenbacker v.2's leg and manages to get into half guard.

Rickenbacker v.2 kicks Aquino off and gets back to his feet.
Aquino lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Rickenbacker v.2 circles away quickly and effectively.
Aquino throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Rickenbacker v.2 tries a head kick but it misses.
Aquino throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Aquino works the jab nicely.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Aquino shoots in for a takedown from distance. He catches Rickenbacker v.2 napping and manages to drive through into side control!
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Rickenbacker v.2 is not content to let Aquino control the position.
Aquino lands some shots froms side control.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Aquino throwing ground and pound but whilst doing so, he forgets to control position and Rickenbacker v.2 works his way back to half guard. Good composure under pressure.
Rickenbacker v.2 wants to control but Aquino is keeping busy.

Aquino is looking for a kimura but Rickenbacker v.2 is holding onto that half guard position, so it's hard for Aquino to get the leverage.
Aquino throwing shots but Rickenbacker v.2 is blocking nicely.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Aquino seems to be taking a bit of a break to think of his next move. He lands a short punch in the meantime.
Rickenbacker v.2 keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Aquino throws a strike but Rickenbacker v.2 avoids it easily and moves to full guard.
Rickenbacker v.2 wants to stand but Aquino is controlling the position.
Rickenbacker v.2 utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Aquino trying to control but Rickenbacker v.2 is working from the bottom.
Rickenbacker v.2 wants to get back to his feet but Aquino is in a dominant position and won't allow it.
Aquino is fighting to break Rickenbacker v.2's control of his arms but Rickenbacker v.2 is doing a good job of controlling the position at the moment.
Aquino missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Aquino working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Aquino looking to pass the guard.

Rickenbacker v.2 pushes Aquino off and scrambles back to his feet.
Aquino fails with a takedown attempt.
Aquino blocks a head kick by Rickenbacker v.2.
Rickenbacker v.2 throws a quick inside leg kick.
Aquino takes a kick to the side of the head.
Rickenbacker v.2 lands with a kick to the ribs.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Aquino looks for a takedown. He's got it. We're now in half guard.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Aquino prevents Rickenbacker v.2 from standing back up.
Aquino thows a huge punch but Rickenbacker v.2 dodges it nicely.

Aquino seems to be working for a kimura but Rickenbacker v.2 defends the submission attempt.
Aquino throwing shots but Rickenbacker v.2 is blocking nicely.
Aquino trying to mount his opponent but Rickenbacker v.2 defends it.
Benigno Aquino overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Aquino throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Aquino throws a big elbow that misses, also allowing Rickenbacker v.2 to regain full guard.

And that's the end of the fight!
Benigno Aquino showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Aquino has won this one but let's see what the judges have to say. 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 Damien Edna scores the fight 29:28
Judge Hugh Johnson scores the fight 29:28
Judge Bruno Hogan scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Benigno Aquino!
During a confident post fight interview, Benigno Aquino thanked all his fans. He seemed very genuine when describing how motivated his fans keep him.