PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Chris Johnson (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Urijah Samuel (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Samuel has chosen Knock Yourself Out as his entrance music. Chris Johnson looks tired to me. Hopefully he has got enough gas left in the tank to put in a good performance.

Johnson
vs
Samuel

184 cm
20
185 lbs
2 - 3 - 0

177 cm
24
190 lbs
4 - 6 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Counter striker
KO power

BJJ Purple Belt
Decent boxing
Good gas tank

Empire Threads - The Best $15 You've Ever Spent!

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 2 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, Chris Johnson!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 4 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, Urijah Samuel!
The judges for this bout are Trevor Gratis, Elvis Blanc and Robert Douchet.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Samuel will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Samuel fails miserably with a takedown attempt.
No luck with that takedown attempt from Samuel.
Chris Johnson has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Urijah Samuel.
Samuel with a lazy takedown attempt

and Johnson counters with a takedown into side control.
Samuel tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Johnson controlling the position.
Johnson wants to control but Samuel is keeping him busy.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Samuel tries to work a leg under to get back to half guard but Johnson wriggles his own leg back out and remains in side control.
Johnson wants to lay and pray for a moment but Samuel keeps working.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Samuel tries to buck Johnson off but Johnson is having none of it.
Johnson wants to control but Samuel is keeping him busy.
Johnson happy to just control the position for now.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up, due to lack of activity on the part of Chris Johnson.
Samuel throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Johnson's waist but Johnson gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Samuel off to one side.

Samuel scores with a nice takedown into half guard. Let's see what he's got on the ground.

Samuel is sneakily working for an arm triangle but Johnson sees it coming and defends easily.
Johnson trying to hold on to Samuel's head to control him but Samuel postures up.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Johnson is doing well to control the position and prevent Samuel from advancing to side control.
Johnson trying to control but Samuel postures up.
Samuel throwing shots but Johnson is blocking nicely.
Johnson is looking to control Samuel's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Johnson avoid being mounted?
This has been an exciting period of action!

The ref stands the fighters back up because Chris Johnson just wasn't active enough.
Johnson keeps the fight standing with a nice sprawl.
Samuel shoots in for a double leg but Johnson sprawls well. That's going to sap some energy.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Samuel fails with a takedown attempt.
Samuel tries to shoot in for a takedown. He's got hold of a leg but Johnson swivels and escapes.
Johnson shoots in looking for a takedown but Samuel manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Johnson's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
Samuel misses with a takedown attempt

and Johnson counters with a takedown into full mount! That could mean trouble for Samuel!
Samuel is wriggling around trying to escape.
Samuel tries to hold on but Johnson postures up.
Samuel working to try and regain half guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Samuel sneaks a leg under to get to half guard.
Neither fighter is being very active at the moment, with Johnson in particular looking to stall.
Johnson's ground tactics aren't going to win him many fans. Let's hope he's got fireworks for us if he gets back to his feet because he's not doing much on the ground.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Johnson is looking to stall here but Samuel recovers full guard.
Johnson wants to control from the top but Samuel keeps moving.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
We may be looking at a referee standup if the pace doesn't pick up soon.
The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Chris Johnson dominated that round.
That's time! Back to the action!

Samuel has his takedown stuffed

and Johnson counters with a takedown into side control.
Samuel tries to bench press Johnson off him but Johnson keeps the position.
Samuel regains half guard.
Johnson wants to control but Samuel is keeping him busy.
Still in half guard, Johnson seems content to control.
Samuel tries to roll over but Johnson keeps him under control.
Samuel is trying to maintain the position but Johnson is very close to passing his half guard.
Johnson controlling the action here.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Chris Johnson has forced the referee to step in and bring the fight back to the feet.
Samuel shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Johnson but Johnson pushes him off and we're back to square one.
Johnson defends well against a solid takedown attempt from Samuel.
Chris Johnson has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Urijah Samuel.
Johnson has his takedown stuffed

and Samuel counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
The fighters are battling for position here. Johnson manages to regain full guard. Nice work.
Samuel is looking to work some ground and pound but Johnson has wrist control.
Samuel throwing strikes but missing.
Johnson is pulling down on Samuel's head. It's preventing any offense from Samuel, at least for the moment.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Samuel makes a bit of distance and scores with some ground and pound, still in guard.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Samuel keeps in close for a moment and lands a decent shot to the side of Johnson's head.
Samuel postures up.
Samuel chips away with some ground and pound.

It looks like Chris Johnson has been cut.
Chris Johnson overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Johnson wants to sweep but no luck.

Johnson working from the bottom, still in full guard. He's managed to get a loose triangle. Samuel doesn't seem to be doing much to defend here, obviously he feels comfortable in the position. Samuel manages to throw the legs off his shoulder and he's back into guard - no problem.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Samuel stopping the sweep attempt from Johnson.
Johnson not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Johnson is going to have to think about doing something other than just controlling because Samuel is managing to avoid having the position dictated to him.
Johnson pulls Samuel in close to his closed guard and prevents Samuel from doing any damage or advancing position.
The referee claps his hands together and tells the fighters to work.

Samuel drops back for a leg! It's a sloppy attempt though and Samuel jumps back into guard quickly, to retain the dominant position.
Johnson trying to keep a closed guard but Samuel is proving a slippery customer.

Chris Johnson has forced the referee to step in and bring the fight back to the feet.
Samuel is trying hard to land a takedown here. Johnson sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Samuel with a poor takedown

and Johnson counters with a nice shoot takedown that brings the fighters to the ground.
Samuel being controlled here, momentarily.
Samuel has his hands on Johnson's head, controlling the position.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Samuel looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Johnson wants to pass the guard but Samuel is keeping the position.
Johnson trying to control but Samuel is working from the bottom.
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!

We're going to have a standup here because Chris Johnson wasn't active enough for the referee's liking.
Johnson misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Samuel fails to land the takedown.
Urijah Samuel is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Samuel stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Samuel wants it to stay on the feet.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that Chris Johnson will probably get the nod.
The cut man is working on Chris Johnson's cut.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! This is the final round!

Samuel gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily
and Johnson counters with a lovely shot to the body.
Samuel fails miserably with a takedown attempt.
No luck for Samuel with that takedown attempt.
Chris Johnson has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Urijah Samuel.
Samuel stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Samuel wants it to stay on the feet.
Johnson shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Samuel but Samuel pushes him off and we're back to square one.
Samuel shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Johnson pinned against the cage. Johnson gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Johnson stuffs the takedown.
Johnson shoots for a takedown but Samuel saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Johnson looks for a takedown here. Will he get it? Samuel is fending him off so far but Johnson persists. Nope, Samuel circles away and we're back to standing.
Horrible takedown by Samuel or perhaps it was just good defense by Johnson which made him look bad.
Samuel misses with a takedown

and Johnson counters with a single leg into guard. Samuel didn't expect that.
Johnson slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Samuel wants to sweep here but Johnson controlling him for the moment.
Johnson is frustrating his opponent with some stalling tactics from top position.
It looks like the ref is thinking about a standup.
Samuel keeping moving, preventing Johnson from controlling successfully.

The ref stands the fighters back up. Chris Johnson wasn't doing enough on the ground.
Samuel fails with the takedown

and Johnson counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Johnson sitting and controlling from the half guard.
Samuel regains full guard. Nicely done.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Samuel keeping moving, preventing Johnson from controlling successfully.
Samuel looking to control the pace of the fight rather than finish it.

The ref stands the fighters back up because Chris Johnson just wasn't active enough.
Samuel fails with a takedown attempt.
Samuel fails with a takedown attempt.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A telegraphed takedown attempt from Johnson is defended easily by Samuel.
Samuel fails with the takedown

and Johnson counters with a nice double leg into half guard.
Samuel wants to improve his position but Johnson is controlling well.
Johnson frees up his trapped foot and advances to mount.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Samuel is looking to improve his position but Johnson isn't that keen on the idea.
Urijah Samuel has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Chris Johnson is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Johnson sitting in mount, just looking to control for the moment.

And that's the end of the fight!
Chris Johnson showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Johnson, winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. 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 Trevor Gratis scores the fight 30:27
Judge Elvis Blanc scores the fight 30:28
Judge Robert Douchet scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Chris Johnson!
An out of breath Chris Johnson thanked his loyal fans in his post fight interview, giving them credit for his success over the course of his career.