PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Johnny Deep (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Kazushi Sakuraba (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Sakuraba is bouncing up and down as he enters the arena, backed by Lose yourself. Fingers crossed for an exciting fight - I'm sure both fighters are looking for a nice under the table bonus!

Deep
vs
Sakuraba

181 cm
31
197 lbs
10 - 8 - 1

185 cm
25
201 lbs
10 - 0 - 1

Powerful takedowns
Solid boxing
Very quick

Good wrestler
Excellent MT
Good gas tank

Syndicate Nutrition
BeastMode

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 10 - 8 - 1, fighting out of Sydney, Johnny Deep!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 10 - 0 - 1, fighting out of Sydney, Kazushi Sakuraba!
The judges for this bout are Bruno Hogan, Winston Howard and Donatello Bradman.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Sakuraba connects with a lovely jab that went straight through the gap between Deep's hands.
Sakuraba is looking to score with low kicks.
Deep closes the distance and takes a jab right on the nose as he does so.
Sakuraba lands an overhand left. A wild punch that just about connected.
A good leg kick by Sakuraba.
Deep uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Sakuraba.
Deep tests Sakuraba's chin there with a solid looking shot.
Sakuraba staying out of range there.
A leg kick checked by Deep.
Deep shoots in looking for a takedown but Sakuraba manages to keep the fight standing, pushing Deep's face into the canvas for good measure before circling away.
Deep takes a body punch but keeps moving.
Sakuraba will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Sakuraba scores with a hook to the body. Deep takes a step back and tries to catch his breath.
Deep blocks a head kick by Sakuraba.
Sakuraba throws a series of punches but Deep moves out of range.
Deep avoids a punch combination nicely.
Sakuraba throws a leg kick which misses Deep's front leg but catches the back leg as Deep tries to avoid it.
Sakuraba misses the shot to the body.
Deep checks a leg kick nicely.
Sakuraba swings away with a leg kick that misses.
Sakuraba lands a head kick!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Deep walks into a straight right hand from Sakuraba.
Sakuraba lands a jab to Deep's midsection.
Sakuraba lands an overhand left. A wild punch that just about connected.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Sakuraba misses with a straight right.
Deep misses with a takedown attempt
and Sakuraba counters with a straight right hand.
Deep throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Sakuraba's waist but Sakuraba gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Deep off to one side.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Johnny Deep. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Sakuraba throws a leg kick which misses Deep's front leg but catches the back leg as Deep tries to avoid it.
A clash of legs there as Deep blocks the low kick.
A solid body kick from Sakuraba.
Sakuraba looks to land a left hand but Deep moved out of range nicely.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sakuraba swings widly with a right hand
enabling Deep to counter with a crisp jab.
A nice inside leg kick there by Sakuraba. That's going to slow Deep down.
Sakuraba with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.
Sakuraba scores with a sloppy right hand. Deep should have avoided that one.
Sakuraba fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.
Sakuraba listening to his corner there, landing a nice uppercut.
Sakuraba fakes with the hands and throws a leg kick but Deep is out of range.
Deep on the receiving end of a decent leg kick there by Sakuraba. Sakuraba obviously looking to wear him down.
This is turning into a torrid day at the office for Deep. He's trying desperately to land a takedown but he's failing miserably and getting slapped silly on the feet to compound his misery.
Sakuraba dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Deep. That did some damage!
Sakuraba is landing a lot of head punches in this opening round! Deep had better start moving his head a bit unless he wants his face to turn into pâté.
Sakuraba connects with a leg kick. Deep looked like he was expecting something else and didn't defend it.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Sakuraba lands a really nice looking cross but Deep seems unphased.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Deep takes a body punch but keeps moving.
Deep is hobbling a little on that front leg after taking quite a few leg kicks so far in this fight.
Sakuraba connects with a leg kick. Deep looked like he was expecting something else and didn't defend it.
Sakuraba throws a big shot that misses.
Sakuraba ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Deep moves away.
Sakuraba throws a head kick that misses.
Deep checks the leg kick nicely there.
Sakuraba misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Sakuraba looking to take his opponent's legs away with the low kicks.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
A thudding body kick lands there by Sakuraba!
Sakuraba uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Deep.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Kazushi Sakuraba dominated that round.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Sakuraba throws a hook but Deep avoids it easily.
Sakuraba throws a hook but Deep blocks it.
Kazushi Sakuraba seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Sakuraba tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Deep was well out of range. Poor timing from Sakuraba.
Deep takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
Sakuraba throws out a leg kick but Deep moves out of range and Sakuraba only half commits.
Sakuraba thows a body shot but no joy.
Sakuraba stuffs the takedown.
Deep on the receiving end of a decent leg kick there by Sakuraba. Sakuraba obviously looking to wear him down.
Sakuraba lands with a nice body kick.
Sakuraba lands with a kick to the ribs.
Deep takes one on the chin but keeps coming.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Deep takes one on the button.
Deep has his hands up protecting his head but a hook from Sakuraba finds it's way round the side to connect with Deep's head.
Deep ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Nice takedown defense from Sakuraba. No joy for Deep on that attempt.
Kazushi Sakuraba is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Sakuraba bobs and weaves and then throws a good body kick.
Sakuraba has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Sakuraba fakes with a right hand and throws a good leg kick, right into the thigh. That had to hurt Deep.
Jab from Sakuraba.
Deep takes a really solid shot there but just smiles back and shrugs his shoulders.
Sakuraba lands with a nice body punch.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!

Deep looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into side control! Oh, that's bad for Sakuraba!
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.
Sakuraba can't do much from the bottom here.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Sakuraba holds on tight, trying to prevent any damage.

Deep is looking to finish here, going for an Americana. Sakuraba knows the correct defense though, so he's OK.

Deep tries for a kimura but Sakuraba is defending well.
Sakuraba tries to get back to half guard but can't.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Deep is looking for a kimura. He might have it! No, Sakuraba has escaped the position, nice work there.
Sakuraba is trying to control Deep's posture but Deep avoids it.
Sakuraba gets one leg under and gets the fight to half guard.
Sakuraba trying to control from the bottom.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

Sakuraba has one foot on Deep's thigh - he pushes off and manages to get back to his feet.
Kazushi Sakuraba seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Sakuraba keeps Deep at a distance using the push kick.
Sakuraba feints a straight left to the body, then turns around with a flashy move and hits Deeps jaw with a dramatic spinning back fist!
Deep takes a shot to the eye socket. That's gotta hurt.
Donk. Sakuraba catches Deep right on the button with a cross.
Sakuraba misses the shot to the body.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Deep shoots in and drives through. Sakuraba sprawls well.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Johnny Deep. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Deep slips under a jab.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Sakuraba is looking to score with low kicks.
Sakuraba looks to score with a jab to the body but Deep is just out of range.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Kazushi Sakuraba showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
That's time! Deep's corner gives him a slap on the ass as he gets ready to fight. This is the final round!

Nice uppercut there from Sakuraba.
Like a baseball bat into the meat of his leg there - nice leg kick by Sakuraba.
Sakuraba scores with a head kick. Deep tried to block it but didn't get his arm up in time.
Deep's hands are dropping dangerously low here and Sakuraba connects clean with a right hook that sends him down to one knee! Deep scrambles back to his feet.
Sakuraba misses with a low kick as Deep jumps back.
Sakuraba fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.
Sakuraba feints with a shoulder and throws a nice leg kick to Deep's calf.
Nice sprawl there from Sakuraba as Deep shoots in.
Deep takes one on the chin but seems OK.
Deep takes a shot right to the bread basket.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Sakuraba throws a leg kick which misses Deep's front leg but catches the back leg as Deep tries to avoid it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Sakuraba throws a head kick that half lands.
Deep has his front leg slapped to the side - a nice low kick landing there from Sakuraba.
Sakuraba buckles his opponent's knee momentarily with a nice leg kick.
Thud! ouch! good body kick from Sakuraba - that will leave a mark!
Sakuraba fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.
Deep looks like he's developed a pretty tasty lump over his left eye. He'll need to avoid taking much more damage to that.
Sakuraba keeps his opponent at a distance with a nice jab.
Sakuraba stalks Deep and leaps in with a furious combination of punches. Uppercuts and crosses smash into Deep's face. Deep staggers backwards, shaken.
Deep tries to land a body kick
and Sakuraba connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Sakuraba moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.
Sakuraba throws a good cross that connects.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Sakuraba clobbers Deep with an overhand right that has the crowd gasping. That made a horrendous noise.
Sakuraba lands a head kick!

Deep is rocked!
Deep shoots in for a takedown. He's persisting with it as Sakuraba sprawls well. Sakuraba wins this battle and keeps the fight standing. Deep gets slowly back to his feet.
Oh Deep is still all over the place! His legs are completely gone! Will he be able to recover?!!
Deep shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Sakuraba as he jumps to the side.
Deep seems to have got his legs back now.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Johnny Deep. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Deep shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Sakuraba defends it nicely.
Kazushi Sakuraba is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sakuraba darts in and out, connecting with a jab.
Sakuraba fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Deep manages to avoid it.
Sakuraba lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Deep circles away quickly and effectively.
Sakuraba comes forward and lands a shot to the body, then darts back out of range.
Sakuraba works the jab nicely.
Sakuraba throws a head kick that looked like it stung.
A looping hook to the body misses from Sakuraba. Deep does a little dance to reset his feet.
Johnny Deep is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Sakuraba misses with a kick to the body.
Deep avoids the body shot from Sakuraba.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Deep throws a jab but it's blocked by Sakuraba.
Sakuraba scores with a nice right hand.
Sakuraba fakes the leg kick and cracks Deep in the body.
Deep avoids the head kick by Sakuraba.
Sakuraba thows a body kick. Deep tries to catch it but that hurt him.
Johnny Deep has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Sakuraba throws a couple of head shots and lands with the final one - a decent hook, which struck Deep on the side of the head.
Sakuraba fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Sakuraba takes a step towards his opponent and connects with a left hand, before circling away.
Sakuraba fakes a jab and scores with a low kick.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Deep scores with a jab to the jaw.

And that's the end of the fight!
Kazushi Sakuraba comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Sakuraba 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 Bruno Hogan scores the fight 27:30
Judge Winston Howard scores the fight 27:30
Judge Donatello Bradman scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Kazushi Sakuraba!
Kazushi Sakuraba thanked the fans post fight for their support.