PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Noah Payne (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Rashad Sokoudjou (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Payne
vs
Sokoudjou

188 cm
32
266 lbs
20 - 12 - 0

197 cm
30
272 lbs
22 - 12 - 1

Abu Dhabi Champ
World class boxer
Cardio machine

ADCC Champion
Excellent MT
Granite chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 20 - 12 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Noah Payne!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 22 - 12 - 1, fighting out of Montreal, Rashad Sokoudjou!
The judges for this bout are Robert Douchet, William Peck and Alec Ball.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Sokoudjou drops his hands and takes a jab to the jaw for his troubles.
Payne shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Sokoudjou sprawls well. Sokoudjou wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Payne gets slowly back to his feet.

Payne drops down and drives through with a powerful takedown into guard.
Payne is fighting to break Sokoudjou's control of his arms but Sokoudjou is doing a good job of controlling the position at the moment.
Payne tries to free his leg and advance position but Sokoudjou is retaining full guard.

Sokoudjou is looking for a guillotine. You can't force these things though and Payne defends well.
Payne wants to stand but Sokoudjou has a closed guard, so he can't escape.
Payne trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Sokoudjou pulls Payne in close to prevent any damage.
Payne is taking a break and basically stalling. The referee will not allow him to do that for long.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Payne wants to control from the top but Sokoudjou keeps moving.
Sokoudjou controlling Payne's posture.

The ref stands the fighters back up because Noah Payne just wasn't active enough.
Payne avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Payne dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Sokoudjou throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Payne stalks Sokoudjou and leaps in with a furious combination of punches. Uppercuts and crosses smash into Sokoudjou's face. Sokoudjou staggers backwards, shaken.

It looks like Rashad Sokoudjou has been cut.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Payne lands with a cross.
Sokoudjou throws out a leg kick but Payne moves out of range and Sokoudjou only half commits.
Sokoudjou feints a straight left to the body, then turns around with a flashy move and hits Paynes jaw with a dramatic spinning back fist!
A jab from Payne misses.
Payne throws a body punch but Sokoudjou moves out of range.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A swing and a miss from Sokoudjou.
Nice shot lands for Sokoudjou.
Payne tries to close the distance and clinch but Sokoudjou swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.

Payne forces Sokoudjou back against the cage and clinches.
A battle for position here, against the cage.
Sokoudjou throws a head punch that misses.

Sokoudjou breaks the clinch.
Payne throws the kick towards the body but Sokoudjou avoids it.
Payne scores with a punch to the head.
Payne swings widly with a right hand
and Sokoudjou counters with a nice uppercut.
Sokoudjou misses the shot to the body.
A telegraphed right hand from Payne misses the target.
Payne lands a nice shot to the body.
Payne slips a straight right by Sokoudjou.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Payne looks to score with a jab to the body but Sokoudjou is just out of range.
Sokoudjou takes one to the chin there.
Payne lands with a cross.
Sokoudjou slips a jab from Payne.
Sokoudjou blocks a head kick by Payne.
Nice uppercut lands for Payne. That snapped Sokoudjou's head back.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Payne avoids a punch combination nicely.
Good shot there by Payne.
Payne keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Sokoudjou slips under a jab.
Payne missing with a left hand there. Sokoudjou was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Payne tries to clinch but Sokoudjou moves out of range.
Sokoudjou takes one to the chin there.
Payne jabbing away but nothing is landing.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Payne misses with a lunging right hand
and Sokoudjou counters with a good low kick that Payne was not able to check.
Donk. Sokoudjou catches Payne right on the button with a cross.
Payne takes a swing at Sokoudjou's ribcage but misses.
Payne misses with a jab, cross combination.
Payne thows a body shot but no joy.
Noah Payne seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Sokoudjou takes a swing at Payne's ribcage but misses.
Payne is really peppering his opponent's head with punches.
Sokoudjou keeps the fight on the outside.
Payne wants to clinch up but Sokoudjou keeps it at a distance.
Sokoudjou lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Payne circles away quickly and effectively.
Payne fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Sokoudjou manages to avoid it.
A big right from Payne misses.
Sokoudjou misses with a hook.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Payne checks a low kick from Sokoudjou.
Payne waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Sokoudjou.
Payne misses with a looping right.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Noah Payne dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Rashad Sokoudjou's cut.
That's time! Payne's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight.

Sokoudjou misses with a takedown attempt - Payne sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Payne throws a jab when Sokoudjou was well out of range.
Sokoudjou connects with a leg kick. He turned his hip over nicely there.
Sokoudjou takes one to the chin there.
Payne misses with a hook. Sokoudjou ducked under it nicely.
Ouch! a nice leg kick from Sokoudjou, right into the meat.
A slapping body kick lands there for Sokoudjou.
Sokoudjou tries to move into range but Payne moves to the side and lands with a nice right hand.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Payne stalks Sokoudjou and leaps in with a furious combination of punches. Uppercuts and crosses smash into Sokoudjou's face. Sokoudjou staggers backwards, shaken.
Payne tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Sokoudjou was well out of range. Poor timing from Payne.
Good leg kick by Sokoudjou there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.
Sokoudjou throws a hook but Payne avoids it easily.
Payne defends well against a solid takedown attempt from Sokoudjou.
Payne cracks the inside of Sokoudjou's front leg.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Sokoudjou swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Sokoudjou ducks right into an uppercut from Payne.
Payne keeps his opponent at a distance with a nice jab.
Payne throws an off balance right hand
and Sokoudjou counters nicely by changing levels and landing a hook to the body.
Payne swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
A big right from Payne misses.
Payne swings for the body but Sokoudjou moves out of range.
Payne just misses with a punch to the body.
Payne fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Sokoudjou manages to avoid it.
Sokoudjou moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.
Payne throws the left hand but Sokoudjou avoids the punch easily.
Payne throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Sokoudjou sees it coming and avoids it easily.
The fighters circling - Payne throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Payne tries to close the distance and clinch but Sokoudjou swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Payne scores with a crisp jab that stopped Sokoudjou in his tracks.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Sokoudjou throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Payne looks to land a left hand but Sokoudjou moved out of range nicely.
Sokoudjou slips a straight right by Payne.
Sokoudjou throws a lazy right hand but Payne sees it coming a mile off and sidesteps it easily.
Sokoudjou lands a straight punch to the body, keeping Payne at a distance.
Payne slips a jab and a cross from Sokoudjou.
Payne gets cracked with a nice right hand there by Sokoudjou.
Payne feints a jab promting Sokoudjou to slip. Payne then demonstrates his capabilities by jabbing again. Sokoudjou slips again and ducks right into an uppercut.
Sokoudjou misses the shot to the body.
Sokoudjou swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Sokoudjou throws a right hand that Payne ducks under and follows up with a left that Payne also avoids with ease.
Sokoudjou displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Payne throws out the jab.
Sokoudjou scores with the left hand. Payne knows he should have avoided that one.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sokoudjou avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Payne steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Sokoudjou.
Payne avoids a punch combination nicely.
Sokoudjou walks straight into an uppercut. Luckily it didn't land flush.

That has opened up Rashad Sokoudjou's cut even more.
Sokoudjou uses good footwork to get in and out, landing a nice hook.
Sokoudjou lands a leg kick. The shin dug right into the meat of the thigh.
Sokoudjou jabs Payne right on the nose. Payne blinks but takes it well.
Sokoudjou throws a right and a left that Payne avoids nicely.
Noah Payne is winning the standup battle so far.
Sokoudjou cracks Payne with a hook to the jaw. Both fighters smile at eachother and high-five before getting back down to business.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Payne lands with a nice body punch.
Payne ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Sokoudjou moves away.
Sokoudjou keeping at a good range here, avoiding a leg kick.
Payne scores with a nice strike.
Payne throws a shot from downtown. Sokoudjou moves away and avoids it.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A punch combination from Sokoudjou misses.
Sokoudjou throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Sokoudjou uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Payne.
Payne looks to throw the jab but Sokoudjou is out of range.
Payne wants to clinch up but Sokoudjou keeps it at a distance.
Payne throws out a token jab with nothing on it.
Payne throws a hook but Sokoudjou blocks it.
Payne is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Sokoudjou throws a nice looking combination but Payne bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Payne fails with an attempt to clinch.
Payne thows a body shot but no joy.
Payne throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
No joy there for Payne, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Noah Payne dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Rashad Sokoudjou's cut.
That's time! Back to the action! This is the final round!

Sokoudjou throws an overhand right that lands on Payne's shoulder, as Payne tries to avoid the shot.
Payne walks straight into a jab right on the nose. That one stung - he's blinking and trying to clear his head.
Sokoudjou misses with a double jab.
Sokoudjou misses with a hook. Payne ducked under it nicely.
Payne fails in his attempt to clinch.
Sokoudjou cracks Payne with a nice right hand that draws applause from the crowd.
Sokoudjou with a nice cross.
Payne cracks Sokoudjou with an open hand slap.
Payne pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
A telegraphed right hand from Payne misses the target.
Rashad Sokoudjou is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Payne throws an off balance right hand
and Sokoudjou connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Payne fails in his attempt to clinch.
Payne lands a slapping body shot.
A big right from Sokoudjou misses.
Sokoudjou shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Payne but Payne pushes him off and we're back to square one.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Sokoudjou slips under a jab.
Sokoudjou keeps his opponent at a distance with a nice jab.
Payne throws out a leg kick but Sokoudjou moves out of range and Payne only half commits.
Sloppy strikes from Sokoudjou. Those never looked like landing.
Payne goes for a spinning back kick but it misses.
Sokoudjou misses with a hook. Payne ducked under it nicely.
Payne looks to score with a jab to the body but Sokoudjou is just out of range.
Payne connects with a lovely right hand, straight down the pipe.
Payne closes the distance and takes a jab right on the nose as he does so.
Payne fails to land with a series of punches.
Sokoudjou moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.
Sokoudjou swings wildly with a hook that is half blocked by Payne.
Payne jabs away that one connects to the head of his opponent.

That's two 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!
Sokoudjou looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
Payne tries a head kick but it misses.
Payne misses with a hook to the body
and Sokoudjou counters with a good, hard body kick but Payne shrugs it off.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Payne tries to clinch up but Sokoudjou circles away and keeps his distance.
A slow jab from Payne misses its intended target.
Payne moves forwards but Sokoudjou connects with a nice, crisp jab.
Sokoudjou looks to land a combination but Payne avoids it well.

Sokoudjou gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.
Sokoudjou makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
A head punch on the inside from Payne fails to land.
Payne is pushing Sokoudjou up against the cage, for a bit of lean and pray action. Action being used the in the loosest possible sense of the word.
Payne throws a blind hook that connects with the side of Sokoudjous head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Payne lands with a quick shot inside that doesn't really do much damage.
Payne misses with the head strike.

Sokoudjou turns his back and goes for a hip toss. It's a bit messy but it gets the job done and Sokoudjou manages to end up in side control.
Payne tries to buck Sokoudjou off but Sokoudjou is having none of it.
Check out the look on Sokoudjou's face as he threw that strike - that's one determined fighter!
Payne wants to control but Sokoudjou postures up.
Noah Payne is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Payne manages to work his way to half guard, despite Sokoudjou's best efforts.
Sokoudjou keeping composed on the top, looking to control the action.
Sokoudjou not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.

Payne looking for subs from the bottom but Sokoudjou mounts him!
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Sokoudjou prevents Payne from getting the reversal.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Payne wants to control but Sokoudjou is having none of it.
Sokoudjou lands a big shot there that rocks Payne but he's holding on and managing to survive for now.
Rashad Sokoudjou has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Sokoudjou lands a big shot there that rocks Payne but he's holding on and managing to survive for now.
Sokoudjou trying to control but he's not successful this time.
Payne tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Sokoudjou with good strikes from the mount here!
Payne is wriggling around trying to escape.
Rashad Sokoudjou has got the better of the ground game so far.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
A nice elbow there by Sokoudjou.

And that's the end of the fight!
Rashad Sokoudjou comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Payne 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 Robert Douchet scores the fight 29:28
Judge William Peck scores the fight 29:28
Judge Alec Ball scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Noah Payne!
An out of breath and clearly excited Noah Payne thanked [CBK] The Smashwear Corporation for their help and support (and free stuff they sent him).