PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Kane Legion (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Crin Antonescu (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Legion comes into the arena with FACE THE PAIN blaring out of the sound system. Crin Antonescu will no doubt be trying to keep this one on the feet, where he has a distinct advantage.

Legion
vs
Antonescu

197 cm
18
265 lbs
1 - 0 - 1

188 cm
18
234 lbs
0 - 2 - 1

BJJ Blue Belt
Basic striking
Cuts easily

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Granite chin

Cutthroat

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 1 - 0 - 1, fighting out of Sydney, Kane Legion!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 2 - 1, fighting out of Sydney, Crin Antonescu!
The judges for this bout are John Mangel, Eliza Hachem and Winston Howard.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Antonescu lands with a shot to the body.
Legion looks exhausted already! Oh dear, he should have come in in better shape than this!
No luck for Antonescu with that takedown attempt.
Nice sprawl there from Legion as Antonescu shoots in.
Nice takedown defense from Legion. No joy for Antonescu on that attempt.
Kane Legion has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Crin Antonescu.
Jab, cross, leg kick. Nice combination by Antonescu!

It looks like Kane Legion has been cut.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Antonescu moves in looking to clinch but Legion pushes him off.

Antonescu closes the distance and clinches.

Antonescu breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.

Legion gets caught napping as Antonescu dives in and scores a takedown. Legion manages to retain guard.
We could do with one of the fighters taking the initiative a bit more on the ground - they're both waiting to capitalize on a mistake.
Legion keeping full guard, as Antonescu tries to pass.
Antonescu wants to control from the top but Legion keeps moving.
Antonescu preventing the sweep.
Legion keeping moving, preventing Antonescu from controlling successfully.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Antonescu is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
Antonescu prevents Legion from getting back to his feet.
Antonescu trying to control but Legion is working from the bottom.
Legion looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Antonescu won't allow Legion to get back to his feet.
Antonescu trying to control but Legion is working from the bottom.

The ref calls for a clean break and stands the fighters back up. Crin Antonescu wasn't active enough on the ground.
Antonescu lands a nice shot that snaps Legion's head back.
Antonescu tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Antonescu throws a series of punches but Legion avoids them all with ease.
Legion swats away the attempt to clinch by Antonescu.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Antonescu lands a head kick. Legion smiles back at him and beckons him forward.
Antonescu looking to throw a kick but he's pulled out of it.

Antonescu closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.
Antonescu is pressed up against the cage. Legion has hold of a leg and is looking to drag Antonescu down to the mat. Antonescu avoids the attempt though and has circled away. We're back to striking at a distance.
Legion avoids the clinch attempt nicely.

Antonescu forces Legion back against the cage and clinches.
Antonescu wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Legion has him pressed against the cage.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Legion has Antonescu pressed up against the cage and is working for takedown. Antonescu manages to improve position though and keeps the fight standing.
Antonescu lands with a short shot to the head.
Legion can't get the takedown.
Antonescu is trying to force a seperation but Legion has the dominant position.
Antonescu landing knees to the body.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Antonescu breaks the clinch.
Antonescu stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Antonescu wants it to stay on the feet.

Antonescu instigates a clinch.

Antonescu ties up his opponent against the cage and manages to drag the fight down to the ground. Antonescu no doubt will be looking to work submissions from his guard.

Legion drops back looking for a heel hook - he quickly realises he's not going to get it but Antonescu manages to dive on top of him before he can escape and now Legion has Antonescu in his guard.

Legion kicks Antonescu off and gets to his feet.
Legion tries to bum rush Antonescu with a series of wild strikes but Antonescu uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Antonescu connects with a high kick.
Antonescu pivots, looking for a leg kick but Legion is out of range and Antonescu settles back down.
Antonescu fakes a couple of low kicks, before throwing one on the third attempt. It connects and Legion has to reset his feet before getting ready to engage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Antonescu lunges at Legion with a hook that half lands and is half blocked by Legion's hand.
Nice sprawl there from Legion as Antonescu shoots in.
Legion stuffs the takedown.
Antonescu stuffs the takedown attempt from Legion. Legion gets slowly back to his feet.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Legion avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Antonescu throws a mid kick that lands with a slap.
Antonescu wants to clinch.
Legion is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Legion misses with a takedown attempt - Antonescu sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Crin Antonescu dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Kane Legion's cut.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Antonescu fails with the takedown.
Legion is looking to clinch but Antonescu is avoiding it.
Antonescu is looking to take this fight into the clinch.

Antonescu gets a clinch.

Antonescu manages to break the clinch.

Antonescu shoots in and scores a nice double leg takedown into half guard.
Legion wants to get back to his feet.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Antonescu working over Legion with some ground and pound. Legion looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Legion is trying to stand back up but Antonescu is controlling him
Antonescu is just sitting in half guard, waiting for something to happen.
Antonescu prevents Legion from standing back up.
Antonescu not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Legion is looking to escape.

Antonescu gets to his feet - back to striking we go!
Legion takes a jab right on the kisser.
A chopping leg kick lands by Antonescu.
Antonescu cracks Legion with a good shot that sees him stumbling back into the cage.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Antonescu cracks a nice hook into Legion's ribs.
Antonescu throws a right hand that Legion ducks under and follows up with a left that Legion also avoids with ease.
Kane Legion is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.

Antonescu drives through with a really nice takedown into side control.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Legion is working hard to escape and get back to his feet. After a battle for position, Antonescu asserts his dominance and retains side control.
Antonescu should think about turning a few of those tyres round his middle into muscle if he wants people to take him seriously as an athlete.
Legion wants to get back to his feet but Antonescu is dominant here and he's now got Legion's back!
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

Antonescu is remaining active here, looking for the choke. The more discerning members of the crowd will appreciate his efforts.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Antonescu wants to control but Legion is keeping busy.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Legion wants to get back to his feet.
Antonescu has his opponent trapped and is landing shots. Not a good position for Legion.
Legion holding both Antonescu 's hands and preventing any damage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Antonescu is working for the rear naked choke. He has one arm under the chin but Legion has hold of the other arm. A bit of a stalemate here.
Legion controlling the position well but he knows he's in a bad position.
Antonescu is working the ground and pound here and the referee is taking a close look at Legion. He must escape soon or this one will be stopped.
Legion looking very determined here, making life difficult for Antonescu.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Legion looking to stop the rear naked choke attempt by controlling the hands.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Crin Antonescu showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The cut man is working on Kane Legion'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!

Legion closes the distance and gets a trip takedown into side control. Antonescu quickly recovers to half guard.
Antonescu tries to roll over but Legion keeps him under control.
Antonescu is controlling Legion's trapped leg to prevent Legion from advancing to side control.

Legion is trying a forearm choke… I don't think that's going to do much at this level of the game.
Antonescu trying to control but Legion postures up.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Antonescu is looking to escape.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Legion is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.
Legion tries to pass the half guard into mount. Antonescu knows what he's doing though and prevents the attempt.
Crin Antonescu has got the better of the ground game so far.

Legion is sneakily working for an arm triangle but Antonescu sees it coming and defends easily.

Legion 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.
Legion is looking to advance position but Antonescu won't allow it.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Legion seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Antonescu does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.

Legion is working for submissions here but there's nothing on.
Antonescu moves his hips nicely and gets into full guard.

Legion drops back for a leg but he's not going to get it - he lets go and Antonescu dives on top into guard.

Antonescu 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.
Antonescu wants to get up but he can't break Legion's closed guard. He needs to be careful trying to break the legs open, as he's open to submissions here.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Legion kicks Antonescu off and gets to his feet.
Antonescu tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Legion paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Antonescu tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in the close the distance. Legion manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
Legion shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Antonescu as he jumps to the side.
Legion is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
A slapping body kick lands there for Antonescu.

Legion manages to get an easy takedown there - catching Antonescu on his heels. He'll look to pass Antonescu's guard now, I'm sure.

Legion is holding a leg here, probably looking for an ankle lock - he drops back and goes for it! Antonescu is in trouble! Is it all over??? No! Antonescu has escaped and now he's on top!

Legion pushes Antonescu off and gets back to his feet.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Legion feints and as Antonescu raises his hands in defense, Legion changes levels and drives through with a takedown into guard.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.

Antonescu escapes his hips to the side and looks to be working for an armbar. Legion gives him a little smile and shakes his head. No chance.

Legion is holding a leg here, probably looking for an ankle lock - he drops back and goes for it! Antonescu is in trouble! Is it all over??? No! Antonescu has escaped and now he's on top!
Crin Antonescu is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Antonescu won't allow Legion to get back to his feet.

And that's the end of the fight!
Kane Legion showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Antonescu has outworked and out performed his opponent in all aspects of the game today. He was simply too good and the decision should be no more than a formality. 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 John Mangel scores the fight 28:29
Judge Eliza Hachem scores the fight 28:29
Judge Winston Howard scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Crin Antonescu!
After winning the bout, Crin Antonescu thanked all his fans and promised he'd do even better in his next fight. The crowd seemed to love his humility.