PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Tim Ernst (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Kelsey Curtis (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Ernst comes to the cage accompanied by http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjVvhDwFnJk. Kelsey Curtis has the power to score a knockout today if he connects clean with Tim Ernst's chin.

Ernst
vs
Curtis

180 cm
31
157 lbs
17 - 14 - 1

171 cm
30
155 lbs
12 - 10 - 1

Good wrestling
Dangerous knees
Very quick

BJJ Red Belt
Counter fighter
Powerful

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the featherweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 17 - 14 - 1, fighting out of New York, Tim Ernst!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 12 - 10 - 1, fighting out of Sydney, Kelsey Curtis!
The judges for this bout are Phil Schofield, Chris Edwards and James Atkins.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Curtis throws a left and a right that both miss

and Ernst decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Curtis's guard.
Ernst 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.
Curtis pulls Ernst in close to prevent any damage.
Ernst is looking to stand up but Curtis won't let him.
Ernst looking to pass the guard.
Curtis looking for a sweep. Not yet Curtis, not yet.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Curtis bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Ernst's guard.
Curtis postures up.
Ernst looking to control the pace of the fight rather than finish it.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up, due to lack of activity on the part of Tim Ernst.
Ernst throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
No luck for Curtis with that takedown attempt.
Ernst has been talking about how he's improved his wrestling in the run up to the fight so let's see if that's enough to sway the balance.

Ernst rushes Curtis and presses him up against the cage.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Curtis is fighting off a takedown attempt but Ernst is just too persistent for him and manages to trip Curtis to the mat. Curtis regains guard as soon as the fighters hit the mat.
Ernst wants to control from the top but Curtis keeps moving.
Curtis pulls Ernst in close to his closed guard and prevents Ernst from doing any damage or advancing position.
Curtis wants to sweep but no luck.
Curtis is still trying to improve position.
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!
Ernst stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Curtis swivels though and keeps the full guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
The referee claps his hands together and tells the fighters to work.
Ernst's corner is telling him to maintain position.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up, due to lack of activity on the part of Tim Ernst.

Curtis changes levels and drives through with a really nice takedown into side control. Ernst looks really pissed at himself for not defending that better.
Curtis working away.
Curtis throwing strikes but missing, from side control.
Ernst struggling a bit here.

Curtis wants to work for a kimura but he's foiled early by Ernst, who protects the arm well.
Ernst can't do much from the bottom here.
Ernst takes a couple of big shots there - the referee warns him that he has to defend himself better.
Ernst struggling a bit here.
Ernst takes a nasty elbow to the side of the head.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Ernst gets back to half guard.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Ernst has hold of Curtis's hands but Curtis slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
Curtis throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Ernst is controlling Curtis's position as best he can from this difficult position.
Ernst is looking for a sweep. Curtis is wise to his cunning plan and keeps the top position.

Curtis is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.
Ernst keeps control of the position for the meantime.
Ernst has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up, due to lack of activity on the part of Tim Ernst.
Ernst misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Tim Ernst dominated that round.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin!

Horrible takedown by Curtis or perhaps it was just good defense by Ernst which made him look bad.
Ernst scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
Ernst scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
Ernst defends well against a solid takedown attempt from Curtis.
Ernst swings for the body but Curtis moves out of range.
Curtis takes one on the button.
Nice jab there from Ernst.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Curtis 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.
Ernst controls Curtis momentarily but Curtis frees himself.
Curtis has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.
Curtis stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Ernst swivels though and keeps the full guard.
Curtis loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Tim Ernst overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Ernst pulls Curtis in to control the position.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up, due to lack of activity on the part of Tim Ernst.
Curtis tries to shoot in for a takedown. He's got hold of a leg but Ernst swivels and escapes.
Tim Ernst has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Kelsey Curtis.
Ernst loads up on a big right hand but Curtis slips the punch.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Ernst moves away from the strike by Curtis.
Curtis with a poor takedown
and Ernst counters with a right hand to the body.
Curtis dives in for a single leg takedown but Ernst sprawls and the fighters end up clinched against the cage.
Ernst is stalling here. The referee will be looking to step in if he doesn't pick up the pace.

Ernst's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Curtis misses with a takedown attempt
and Ernst counters with a nice uppercut.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Curtis dodges the punch combination from Ernst.
Ernst throws a hook to the side of Curtis's head but Curtis sees it coming and ducks under it beautifully.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Curtis shoots and misses
enabling Ernst to counter with a crisp jab.
Curtis throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Ernst's waist but Ernst gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Curtis off to one side.
No joy there for Curtis, who threw a few shots but didn't land.
Curtis displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Ernst throws out the jab.
Ernst digs a good body shot into Curtis's ribs.
Curtis shoots in for a takedown but Ernst shows good takedown defense.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Curtis with a lazy takedown attempt
and Ernst counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
Curtis is breathing heavily.
Curtis bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Ernst scores with a crisp jab that stopped Curtis in his tracks.
Kelsey Curtis seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Ernst throws a right and a left that both miss.
Ernst connects with a slap. Keep your fist closed son.
Curtis has tried to improve his agility in the runup to this fight.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Curtis throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Ernst.

Ernst gets taken down but at least he's managed to land in guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Tim Ernst dominated that second round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action! This is the final round!

Ernst wants to clinch.
Curtis shoots for a double leg takedown but Ernst sprawls well. He's pushed Curtis's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Curtis shoots in but doesn't get the takedown
and Ernst counters with a left and a right that stings Curtis.
Both fighters are looking to counter, which isn't making for the most exciting fight in the world.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Ernst fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Ernst throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Curtis sees it coming and avoids it easily.
Curtis throws a right and a left that both miss.
Curtis throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Curtis looks for a takedown but Ernst sprawls well.
Tim Ernst has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Kelsey Curtis.
Curtis throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Ernst's waist but Ernst gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Curtis off to one side.
Curtis takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Ernst misses with a looping right.
Ernst misses the shot to the body.
Ernst fails in his attempt to clinch.

Curtis dives in and scores a takedown into Ernst's guard.
Curtis throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Curtis won't allow Ernst to sweep him here.
Ernst manages to land a sweep and now he's in mount on top!
Ernst wants to control the pace but Curtis is squirming around nicely.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Ernst content just to control the position here.
Kelsey Curtis has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Tim Ernst is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Ernst trying to control but he's not successful this time.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are getting on the fighters' backs, as the pace has dropped off in the last minute or so.
Curtis is working to get back to half guard.
Ernst looking to control but Curtis is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.
Curtis really trying hard to get back to half guard here.

And that's the end of the fight!
Tim Ernst showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Ernst has outscored his opponent in every aspect of the fight today. Only a scarily incompetent judge or two will keep him from a well deserved win... 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 Phil Schofield scores the fight 30:27
Judge Chris Edwards scores the fight 30:27
Judge James Atkins scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Tim Ernst!
Tim Ernst seemed lost for words in his post fight interview but he remembered to thank his fans and directed everyone to his website.