PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Bryce Schmidt (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Raiden Blue (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Raiden Blue acknowledges the crowd's support as he enters the cage.

Schmidt
vs
Blue

194 cm
18
140 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

159 cm
18
133 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Brawler
Cuts easily

BJJ Purple Belt
Brawler
Solid chin

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the bantamweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Bryce Schmidt!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Tokyo, Raiden Blue!
The judges for this bout are Taro Takaoka, Hirohito Nitta and Shigeki Sano.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Blue slaps away a takedown attempt from Schmidt, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Schmidt really does look like a pencil wearing a pair of gloves. Let's hope he has a gameplan to suit that ridiculous body shape.
Schmidt shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Blue as he jumps to the side.
Schmidt wants to clinch.
Schmidt looks frustrated there after his takedown attempt is stuffed easily.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Bryce Schmidt. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Blue fails with an attempt to clinch.
Schmidt will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.

Blue moves into range and clinches up with Schmidt.
Blue stalling against the cage.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Blue wants a takedown but no success here.

Schmidt successfully pulls guard.
Schmidt is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
Blue wants to stand but Schmidt is controlling his posture from full guard.
Schmidt is looking to stand up but Blue isn't so interested in that idea.
Blue throws a big elbow that misses.
Schmidt looking to control.
Schmidt looking to hit a scissor sweep but Blue is one step ahead there.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Blue lands a nice shot whilst sitting in his opponent's guard.
Schmidt is looking to stand up but Blue isn't so interested in that idea.
Blue controls from within his opponent's guard.

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

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Schmidt trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Schmidt trying to control the position from guard on top but Blue is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

Blue looking for submissions off his back, moving his hips, looking for an opening.
Blue seems keen to control Schmidt's posture.
The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
Blue wants to get back to his feet but Schmidt is in a dominant position and won't allow it.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Schmidt controlling from the top position.

Well, the referee has seen enough. Neither fighter is active enough on the ground so he's stood them back up.
Schmidt is looking to clinch.
Schmidt doesn't succeed with the takedown

and Blue counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
Blue is stalling here. Schmidt is in no mood to hang around though. He's locked up a kimura from the bottom! Blue seems to be keeping calm but he's forced to roll out of the hold and Schmidt has ended up in side control on the top. Nice work.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Schmidt tries to cartwheel into mount but he doesn't manage it.
Schmidt trying to control the action but Blue is working from the bottom.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Raiden Blue dominated that round.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Blue shoots in and gets a takedown into Schmidt's guard.
Schmidt controls Blue momentarily but Blue frees himself.
Blue wants to pass the guard but Schmidt is keeping the position.
Raiden Blue has got the better of the ground game so far.
Schmidt trying to control the position.
If this pace continues, the referee will definitely step in and force a standup.
Blue tries to stand but Schmidt is controlling from the bottom.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.

That's one minute gone in the round.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up, due to lack of activity on the part of Bryce Schmidt.
Blue tries to clinch but Schmidt moves out of range.
Schmidt is trying hard to land a takedown here. Blue sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Blue changes levels and looks for a double leg takedown. Schmidt tries to avoid it but Blue manages to keep hold of a leg and drag Schmidt to the ground. Schmidt escapes though and pops straight back up to his feet.
Schmidt circles away from the clinch attempt.
Schmidt moves to clinch but Blue breaks away
and Blue connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Schmidt tries to close the distance and clinch but Blue swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Schmidt shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Blue but Blue pushes him off and we're back to square one.
Nice takedown defense from Blue. No joy for Schmidt on that attempt.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Bryce Schmidt. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Blue throws a series of punches but Schmidt avoids them all with ease.
Blue wants to clinch.
Schmidt lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Blue circles away quickly and effectively.

Blue closes the distance and clinches.

Blue escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Schmidt goes for a double leg but Blue avoids the attempt and the two fighters end up clinched against the cage as Blue continues to drive forward.
Blue tries to score a body lock takedown but Schmidt shows good agility there to stay on his feet.
Schmidt manages to get underhooks and slows down the pace for a moment.
Schmidt tries for a takedown but Blue manages to get underhooks.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Blue has hold of one of Schmidt's legs. Schmidt is fighting the takedown attempt but Blue gets the trip and lands the takedown into guard.
Schmidt is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.
Blue is frustrating his opponent with some stalling tactics from top position.
Let's hope that Blue has the urge to step up the pace any second now because for the last 15 or 20 seconds he's just been holding on tight.
Schmidt keeping moving, preventing Blue from controlling successfully.

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Raiden Blue has forced the referee to step in and restart the fight on the feet.
Schmidt swinging wildly here.
Schmidt throws a head kick that misses.

Blue gets a double leg takedown into Schmidt's guard.
Blue preventing the sweep.
Blue is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Blue showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Blue trying to control but Schmidt is working from the bottom.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Raiden Blue showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! Ladies and gentlemen, this is the final round!

The fight moves into the clinch position.

Schmidt breaks the clinch.

Schmidt darts in and lands a nice takedown into half guard.

Schmidt seems to be looking for submissions.
Schmidt thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Blue's head.
Schmidt is thwarting Blue's attempts to control the position.

Schmidt is working for a kimura here but Blue manages to reverse the position and he's now in Schmidt's guard.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Blue tries to stand but Schmidt is controlling from the bottom.
Schmidt is looking to get back to his feet but can't, whilst Blue is controlling him.
Blue wants to control from the top but Schmidt keeps moving.
Schmidt has a closed guard, preventing Blue from standing up.
Blue is looking to work some ground and pound but Schmidt has wrist control.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Blue pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Schmidt is keeping the position for now.
Blue wants to control from the top but Schmidt keeps moving.

The ref stands the fighters back up, due to lack of action by Raiden Blue.
Blue shoots in but no luck this time.
Blue showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Schmidt.
Blue misses with a looping left.

Blue looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into side control! Oh, that's bad for Schmidt!

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Blue in side control, throwing shots but Schmidt defends.
Blue working the strikes but Schmidt uses the opportunity to regain half guard.
Schmidt moves his hips nicely and gets into full guard.
Blue is fighting to break Schmidt's control of his arms but Schmidt is doing a good job of controlling the position at the moment.
Schmidt trying to keep a closed guard but Blue is proving a slippery customer.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Schmidt throws a couple of shots from the bottom but they don't land.
Schmidt will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
Blue wants to stand but Schmidt is controlling his posture from full guard.
We may be looking at a referee standup if the pace doesn't pick up soon.
Schmidt is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fighter is doing enough on the ground.

Blue pushes Schmidt up against the cage in a clinch.
The crowd applaud the fighters efforts here as the round comes to an end.
Blue is trying to drag Schmidt to the mat but Schmidt just about manages to keep his footing. He used the cage to his advantage there.
Bryce Schmidt has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Raiden Blue is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
The fighters are pressed against the cage, as the pace of the fight slows.

And that's the end of the fight!
I would just about give that final round to Raiden Blue.
Well Blue 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 Taro Takaoka scores the fight 28:30
Judge Hirohito Nitta scores the fight 27:30
Judge Shigeki Sano scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Raiden Blue!
A relieved looking Raiden Blue thanked the fans for their support and gave the usual line about them being amazing. They seemed to believe that he actually meant it.