PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Matt Tilberg (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and James Braddock (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). James Braddock acknowledges the crowd's support as he enters the cage.

Tilberg
vs
Braddock

185 cm
20
177 lbs
0 - 1 - 0

183 cm
18
170 lbs
0 - 2 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Intelligent

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter striker
Determined

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the welterweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 1 - 0, fighting out of New York, Matt Tilberg!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 2 - 0, fighting out of New York, James Braddock!
The judges for this bout are Anthony Taglia, Franklyn Lucas and Alyssa Summers.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Tilberg feints and as Braddock raises his hands in defense, Tilberg changes levels and drives through with a takedown into guard.
Braddock working a defensive guard here.

Braddock has his feet on Tilberg's hips. He pushes off and gets to his feet. Nice work.

Tilberg shoots in for a takedown and gets it. Oh and he's advanced to full mount straight away.
Braddock wants to hold on but Tilberg pushes him away.
Tilberg wants to control the pace but Braddock is squirming around nicely.
Braddock wants to use the cage to get back to his feet here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Braddock is looking to improve his position but Tilberg isn't that keen on the idea.
Braddock is persisting with the attempt to improve his position.
Tilberg sitting in mount, just looking to control for the moment.
Braddock slips a leg in and gets back to half guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are showing their displeasure at the lack of action as loud boos ring out around the arena.
Tilberg wants to control but Braddock is keeping him busy.
Tilberg passes the half guard and he's now in mount! Big trouble for Braddock!
Braddock takes a big shot to the head but keeps on trying to improve his position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Braddock is trying to stand.
Tilberg controlling the position easily from mount.
Braddock is squirming around, avoiding Tilberg's attempts to control the action.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Neither fighter has done anything of merit for a good minute or two here and the crowd are not happy about it.
Braddock tries to lock up and control but Tilberg gives him a forearm to the face and pushes him away.
Tilberg trying to control but Braddock is having none of it.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.

Tilberg is working on an americana here. Ooh, that looks pretty nasty! Nope, Braddock has managed to escape the submission attempt.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

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

Braddock tries to keep at a distance but Tilberg has taken the fight into the clinch.
Braddock has a body lock and is looking for a takedown. Tilberg is bouncing around trying to prevent the takedown and somehow he has indeed managed to stay on his feet.

Tilberg jumps into guard, dragging Braddock to the mat.

Braddock decides to stand up and beckons his opponent to follow.
Tilberg shoots for a double leg takedown but Braddock sprawls well. He's pushed Tilberg's face into the mat and manages to get back to his feet relatively easily.
Braddock keeps the fight on the outside.

Excellent takedown into side control there by Tilberg.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Braddock is sneaking out the side here. He's bucked Tilberg off and has taken his back!
Braddock is hanging on to Tilberg's back as he tries to escape.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Braddock lands with a couple of good shots - one to the side of the head and one questionable shot that could be viewed as to the back of the head but the referee lets it go.
So, who will make the next big move? In this position it could be crucial.
Tilberg covers up after that shot from Braddock.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.
Tilberg just trying to survive but Braddock is wriggling into a better position, looking to finish.
You can see the frustration on Tilberg's face… He knows he is in trouble unless he improves his position sooner rather than later.
Tilberg prevents Braddock from getting a body triangle.

Braddock is staying calm and holding on to the back position, whilst working on a rear naked choke. Tilberg is defending well though. Braddock let's go of the attempt for now.
Tilberg tries to break free.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Braddock is trying to stick to Tilberg's back but Tilberg is turning into Braddock. He's managed to reverse the position - now he's in Braddock's guard. Polite applause from the crowd in appreciation of some nice Jiu Jitsu by Tilberg.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Braddock avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Tilberg looking to pass the guard.

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fight is doing enough on the ground.
Braddock tries for a takedown but Tilberg sees it coming a mile off and avoids it easily.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.
Tilberg throws a combination. Braddock tries to block but a couple of punches get through.
Tilberg misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.

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

Tilberg is working for a kimura but Braddock is defending it quite comfortably.
Tilberg trying to pass the guard but Braddock defending well.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Matt Tilberg 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!

Tilberg shoots and misses

and Braddock counters with a driving takedown into guard. Nice work there by Braddock.
Braddock throws a strike but Tilberg rolls with it and manages to sweep. Now he's in guard on top.
Braddock looking for a sweep. Not yet Braddock, not yet.
Tilberg trying to control the position from guard on top but Braddock is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

Tilberg decides he's had enough of playing guard and decides to stand. Come on Braddock, up you get!

That's one minute gone in the round.
Braddock walks into a jab.

Tilberg scores a takedown into full mount!
Matt Tilberg overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Braddock tries to hold on but Tilberg pushes him away.
Tilberg thuds his fist into the canvas! Oooouch!
Braddock is trying desperately to improve position.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Braddock wants to control but Tilberg is having none of it.
Tilberg looking to control and managing it successfully.
Tilberg has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Braddock's corner are shouting for him to stand up but that's bad cornering - how is he meant to stand up when he's mounted? He should be looking to improve his position on the ground before trying to stand back up.
Braddock is working to get back to half guard.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.
Braddock takes a big shot to the head but keeps on trying to improve his position.
Tilberg tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.
Braddock is looking to get to half guard.
James Braddock has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Tilberg takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.

And that's the end of the fight!
That was a close round. You could make an argument for either fighter but I would give it to Matt Tilberg.
Well Tilberg 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 Anthony Taglia scores the fight 30:27
Judge Franklyn Lucas scores the fight 30:27
Judge Alyssa Summers scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Matt Tilberg!