PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Nelson Torres (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Zack Mathiew (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Nelson Torres could well score a knockout today. He has the power to get to Zack Mathiew's chin.

Torres
vs
Mathiew

163 cm
20
132 lbs
2 - 1 - 0

168 cm
18
130 lbs
2 - 0 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Brawler
KO power

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter striker
Very confident

SAVE A FIGHTER

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the bantamweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 2 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Nelson Torres!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 2 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Zack Mathiew!
The judges for this bout are Tiny Johnson, Robert Twigg and Daniel Franklin.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Torres is looking to score with low kicks.
Torres will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Mathiew looks to land a combination but Torres avoids it well.
Mathiew looks to land a combination but Torres avoids it well.
Torres will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.
Torres is looking to clinch.
Mathiew motions for Torres to come forward. Mathiew throws a leg kick but it misses it's target.
Torres throws a leg kick that misses.
Mathiew displays good takedown defense there as he swats away a double leg from Torres.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Nelson Torres. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Mathiew fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Mathiew throws a low kick but his opponent is out of range.
Torres closes the distance and clinches up with Mathiew, looking for a takedown. Torres pushes Mathiew against the cage but Mathiew circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.

Torres fakes an overhand right and shoots for a takedown. Mathiew sprawls well initially but Torres persists and gets the takedown into half guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Mathiew pushes Torres off and gets back to his feet.
Mathiew looks gassed!
No luck for Torres with that takedown attempt.
Mathiew misses with a two punch combination.
Mathiew swinging wildly here.
Torres looks frustrated there after his takedown attempt is stuffed easily.
Torres misses with a takedown attempt - Mathiew sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Torres tries to close the distance and clinch but Mathiew swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Torres is trying hard to land a takedown here. Mathiew sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
A decent looking body kick lands there for Mathiew.
Torres wants to clinch up but Mathiew keeps it at a distance.
Mathiew rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Torres moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
No luck for Torres with that takedown attempt.
Mathiew misses with the combination.
Torres fails with an attempt to clinch.

Torres drives through and clinches with Mathiew against the cage.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Mathiew is trying to break the clinch but Torres has him pressed against the cage.

Mathiew's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Mathiew throws a body kick but he was well out of range there.
Torres takes a step back and watches a body kick go sailing past his mid section.
Torres throws a series of punches but Mathiew moves out of range.
Torres shoots for a takedown but Mathiew saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.

Torres has Mathiew up against the cage in a clinch.
Torres is trying to pull guard but being pressed up against the cage enables Mathiew to keep the fight standing.

Mathiew manages to break the clinch.
Mathiew pivots as if he's going to throw a leg kick but stops half way.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Mathiew fakes with a right hand and throws a good leg kick, right into the thigh. That had to hurt Torres.
Mathiew tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.

Torres looking to score a takedown here. Mathiew is defending well but Torres drives through and ends up in Mathiew's guard.
Torres won't allow Mathiew to get back to his feet.
Torres seems content to control from guard here. He's going to have to remain active though if he doesn't want to get stood back up.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
If this pace continues, the referee will definitely step in and force a standup.
Mathiew wants to get back to his feet but Torres 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.

That was a close round but I would say that Nelson Torres will probably get the nod.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

The sound of bone on bone echoes around the arena as Torres checks a leg kick.

Torres feints and as Mathiew raises his hands in defense, Torres changes levels and drives through with a takedown into guard.
Torres slows down the pace of the fight for a moment. He'll need to remain active if he doesn't want to see the fight stood back up.
Torres working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Torres passes Mathiew's right leg, so he's now in half guard.
Mathiew is trying to stand up here but Torres is controlling him well.
Torres looks over to his corner - he wants some instructions but his corner are not responding.
Mathiew is breathing heavily.
Torres wants to pass the guard but Mathiew is defending well.
Mathiew is trying to stand up here but Torres is controlling him well.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Mathiew blocking the ground and pound attempt from Torres.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Torres looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Mathiew with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Torres controlling the action here.
Torres'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.

Torres decides to stand up and try his luck on the feet.
Torres shoots in looking for a takedown. Mathiew tries to sprawl out of it but Torres keeps driving through. The fighters are pinned against the cage. Mathiew manages to get underhooks and after a bit of a struggle, circles away and we're back to standing.
Mathiew throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Torres.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Torres is looking to clinch.
Torres throws a sloppy head kick and Mathiew moves out of range easily.
Mathiew misses with a two punch combination.

Torres drives through with a takedown into guard.
Torres stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Mathiew swivels though and keeps the full guard.
Mathiew is looking to get back to his feet but can't, whilst Torres is controlling him.
Torres 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.
Torres passes easily into side control. Nice work.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!

Torres wants to work for a kimura but he's foiled early by Mathiew, who protects the arm well.

Torres stands up.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Mathiew tries a head kick but it misses.

Torres instigates a clinch.
Mathiew keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Torres's efforts to push away.
Torres throws a punch but it's blocked by Mathiew.
Mathiew has had enough of the clinch but Torres keeps him there for the moment.
Mathiew tries to break free but Torres pushes him back against the cage.
Mathiew tries to circle away but Torres has him pinned against the cage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Mathiew is looking to break free of the clinch but Torres has double underhooks.

Torres pulls guard.
Mathiew wants to stand and escape but instead Torres has hit a sweep and he's now on top in guard.
Torres engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.

Torres 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.

Torres decides he's had enough of playing guard and decides to stand. Come on Mathiew, up you get!
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Torres changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Mathiew tries to avoid it but Torres manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Mathiew to the ground. Mathiew escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
Mathiew throws a leg kick which misses Torres's front leg but catches the back leg as Torres tries to avoid it.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Nelson Torres dominated that second round.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! This is the final round!

Mathiew throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Zack Mathiew seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Mathiew throws a head kick but Torres moves out of range.

Torres manages to get an easy takedown there - catching Mathiew on his heels. He'll look to pass Mathiew's guard now, I'm sure.
Mathiew really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Torres. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Torres wants to control from the top but Mathiew keeps moving.
Mathiew preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.

Torres stands and steps away. Mathiew gets to his feet too and we're back to the striking game.
Torres tries to clinch but Mathiew is having none of it.
Torres moves out of range as Mathiew throws a body kick.
Torres shoots in looking for a takedown but Mathiew manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Torres's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Mathiew misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.

Torres clinches up against the cage.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Torres is struggling to control the position.

Torres's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Torres tries to clinch up but Mathiew circles away and keeps his distance.
Torres slips a jab and a cross from Mathiew.
Torres shoots for a double leg takedown but Mathiew sprawls well. He's pushed Torres's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
Mathiew misses with a head kick.

Torres feints and then dives in with a takedown. That was a long way out but the feint bought him enough time to close the distance and complete the takedown. Now we'll play guard for a bit and see who can get the better of that position.
Mathiew wants to stand and escape but Torres is having none of it.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Torres sneaks a leg through and gets to half guard. That was like a knife through butter how easily he passed Mathiew's guard.
Mathiew is looking to escape.
Torres stalling.
Mathiew is trying to stand up here but Torres is controlling him well.

Mathiew makes some distance and scrambles quickly back to his feet. Nice work!
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Torres shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Mathiew but Mathiew pushes him off and we're back to square one.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Nelson Torres. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Mathiew throws a series of strikes that have Torres backpedaling.
Torres checks the leg kick.
Nelson Torres is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.

Torres gets the takedown into side control.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Mathiew is trying to buck Torres off.
Torres is looking to take a break and control but Mathiew is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Mathiew is pushing Torres's head away, looking to escape. Torres manages to hold on to the position though.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Mathiew is using up a lot of energy trying to get back to his feet. Perhaps he should improve his position first.
Torres is moving around in side control but his primary objective seems to be to maintain the position.
Mathiew is working hard to escape and get back to his feet. After a battle for position, Torres asserts his dominance and retains side control.
Mathiew tries to get back to his feet but has found himself mounted instead. Damn, that's gotta suck.
Torres controlling the position easily from mount.
Nelson Torres 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.

Torres looking to secure an arm triangle but Mathiew defends it well.

And that's the end of the fight!
Nelson Torres showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Torres, 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 Tiny Johnson scores the fight 30:27
Judge Robert Twigg scores the fight 30:27
Judge Daniel Franklin scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Nelson Torres!