PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Robert Van Winkle (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Vic Thory (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Thory has chosen It's a fight as his entrance music. Vic Thory told me before the fight that he's been watching a lot of DVDs so let's see if that helps him in this one! I can't wait to find out!

Van Winkle
vs
Thory

189 cm
31
197 lbs
22 - 10 - 0

188 cm
24
193 lbs
16 - 5 - 0

Great wrestler
Excellent boxer
Insanely flexible

Good wrestler
Excellent boxer
Granite chin

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 22 - 10 - 0, fighting out of New York, Robert Van Winkle!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 16 - 5 - 0, fighting out of New York, Vic Thory!
The judges for this bout are David Schapiro, Anthony Taglia and Joseph Jones.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Van Winkle closes the distance, clinches up and gets a nice trip takedown into side control. Very smooth.
We've had a lack of effective grappling in the last minute or so, which could well see a referee standup.
Van Winkle looking to punish the body of his opponent here but Thory is avoiding damage well.
Thory wants to control but Van Winkle postures up.
Thory is positioning himself to get back to half guard.
Thory managing to avoid any damage from the strikes thrown by Van Winkle.

Van Winkle wants to work for a kimura but he's foiled early by Thory, who protects the arm well.
Thory is not content to let Van Winkle control the position.
Van Winkle misses with the ground and pound.
Van Winkle wants to control but Thory is keeping him busy.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Thory is looking to regain half guard here but Van Winkle keeps moving and retains side control.
Thory is persisting with the attempt to improve his position.
Van Winkle postures up a little and throws a couple of hammerfists but they don't connect properly.

Van Winkle working hard here to secure a kimura but he's not really in the right position for it.
Van Winkle trying to control the position but Thory is working away.
Van Winkle misses with an attempted head punch from side control.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Van Winkle wants to control but Thory is keeping him busy.
Thory tries to bench press Van Winkle off him but Van Winkle keeps the position.
Van Winkle scores with a couple of short elbows.
Thory is not in a great position here, taking some shots.
Van Winkle is putting a hurting on Thory here, landing some big shots from side control.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Thory tries to improve position but can't.
Thory felt the need to train up his defensive grappling in the buildup to the fight. Presumably he was expecting to be in a difficult position like this, so let's see if he can get out of it.
Thory wants to control but Van Winkle postures up.

Van Winkle wants to work for a kimura but he's foiled early by Thory, who protects the arm well.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Thory tries to buck Van Winkle off but Van Winkle is having none of it.
Thory is not content to let Van Winkle control the position.
Thory is looking for a sweep.
Van Winkle working the ground and pound but Thory is defending the strikes.
Van Winkle controlling from side mount.
The ground and pound from Van Winkle seems to be hitting the mat more than his opponent.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Thory taking a bit of punishment here - Van Winkle scoring with strikes.
Thory is sneaking out the side here. He's bucked Van Winkle off and has taken his back!
Thory throws strikes from the back but Van Winkle rolls nicely and manages to end up in full guard. Nice work by Van Winkle.
Van Winkle is adopting a defensive guard.
Van Winkle not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
Van Winkle looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Thory trying to control the position from guard on top but Van Winkle is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Van Winkle is trying to keep Thory in close.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Robert Van Winkle dominated that round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Thory looking to throw a kick but he's pulled out of it.
Van Winkle throws a low kick but it's checked well by Thory.
Thory misses with a body shot.
Van Winkle uses good head movement to avoid the hook from Thory.
Thory with a body punch. A glancing blow.
Van Winkle shoots in for a takedown but doesn't get it.
Thory scores with a nice head shot.
Thory works the jab nicely.
Thory takes a swing at Van Winkle's ribcage but misses.
A slow jab from Thory misses its intended target.
Van Winkle swats away the attempt to clinch by Thory.
Van Winkle fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Thory misses with an uppercut. Van Winkle saw that one coming.
Van Winkle fakes with the hands and throws a leg kick but Thory is out of range.
Van Winkle ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
A big right from Thory misses.
Thory looks to land a left hand but Van Winkle moved out of range nicely.
Thory misses with a hook. Van Winkle ducked under it nicely.
Thory feints a straight left to the body, then turns around with a flashy move and hits Van Winkles jaw with a dramatic spinning back fist!
Van Winkle with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.

Thory has taken the fight to the clinch.

Van Winkle breaks from the clinch.
A low kick from Thory misses

so Van Winkle counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Van Winkle wants to control from the top but Thory keeps moving.
Van Winkle has been looking to land a fair amount of strikes on the ground. He might be looking to soften his opponent up in order to work for a submission.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Van Winkle throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Thory works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Van Winkle working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of Thory's head.
Van Winkle pushing down on Thory's thigh, trying to pass to half guard. He's managed it... Nice work.
Thory wants to get back to full guard.
Thory keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Thory keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Thory is trying to get back to full guard.
Van Winkle trying to control the action but Thory is working from the bottom.
Van Winkle trying to control from Thory's half guard. Thory has other ideas though and has regained full guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Van Winkle throws a big elbow that misses.
Van Winkle passes into half guard.
Thory tries to get to full guard but Van Winkle has control of the leg.
Van Winkle missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
Robert Van Winkle overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Van Winkle works his foot free and advances to mount.
Thory tries to lock up and control but Van Winkle gives him a forearm to the face and pushes him away.
Van Winkle looking to finish Thory with some ground and pound. This is bad for Thory!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Thory wriggling around on the bottom manages to avoid the strikes thrown by Van Winkle.
Thory working to try and regain half guard.
Thory takes a big shot to the head but keeps on trying to improve his position.
Thory tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Van Winkle looking to finish Thory with some ground and pound. This is bad for Thory!
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Van Winkle working the ground and pound effectively.
Van Winkle thowing shots but they're missing.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Van Winkle trying to control but he's not successful this time.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Robert Van Winkle dominated that second round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. Ladies and gentlemen, this is the final round!

Van Winkle misses with an uppercut
enabling Thory to counter with a crisp jab.
Thory throws a hook but Van Winkle blocks it.
Thory connects with a body shot.
Van Winkle uses some good footwork to avoid the body shot by Thory.
Vic Thory seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Van Winkle attempts a low kick but it misses it's target.
The fighters circling - Thory throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Van Winkle misses with a left hand
and Thory counters with a nice jab to the body that keeps Van Winkle thinking.
Van Winkle throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
and Thory counters with a right hand to the body.
Van Winkle throws an overhand right that lands on Thory's shoulder, as Thory tries to avoid the shot.
Van Winkle slips a straight right by Thory.
A big right from Thory misses.
Van Winkle avoids the body shot from Thory.
Thory comes forward and lands a shot to the body, then darts back out of range.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Van Winkle slaps away a takedown attempt from Thory, before circling back to the center of the mat.
Thory bobs and weaves and unloads with a good uppercut.
Van Winkle lands a nice leg kick that just misses Thory's sensitive parts.
Van Winkle's hands are dropping dangerously low here and Thory connects clean with a right hook that sends him down to one knee! Van Winkle scrambles back to his feet.
Van Winkle fakes with the hands and throws a leg kick but Thory is out of range.
Van Winkle throws a big shot that misses.
Thory tries to bum rush Van Winkle with a series of wild strikes but Van Winkle uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Nice body punch from Thory.
A looping hook to the body misses from Thory. Van Winkle does a little dance to reset his feet.
Van Winkle takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.
Van Winkle misses with a hook.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Thory tests Van Winkle's chin there with a solid looking shot.
Thory swings widly with a right hand

and Van Winkle counters with a nice single leg takedown and he's in Thory's guard now.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Van Winkle wants to pass the guard but Thory is keeping the position.
Thory is trying to keep Van Winkle in close.
Van Winkle throwing strikes from guard but Thory blocks nicely.
Thory can't do much from the bottom at the moment, as Van Winkle controls the pace.
Van Winkle keeps in close for a moment and lands a decent shot to the side of Thory's head.
Thory tries to land a sweep but no joy.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Van Winkle accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
Thory tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Van Winkle content to stall in guard here.
Van Winkle trying to control the position from guard on top but Thory is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
The referee wants the fighters to be more active or he's going to reset them on the feet.

Robert Van Winkle has forced the referee to step in and bring the fight back to the feet.
Thory lands a nice shot to the body.
Thory misses with an uppercut

so Van Winkle counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.
Van Winkle distracts Thory with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.
Vic Thory has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Thory looking to control.
Van Winkle trying to control the position from guard on top but Thory is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Van Winkle is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Van Winkle accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Van Winkle 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.

The ref stands the fighters back up because Robert Van Winkle just wasn't active enough.
A jab from Thory does it's job there.

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 Robert Van Winkle.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Van Winkle, winning every round. Will the judges agree? They are the ones who matter, even if they are often depressingly incompetent. 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 David Schapiro scores the fight 30:27
Judge Anthony Taglia scores the fight 30:27
Judge Joseph Jones scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Robert Van Winkle!
Jumping up and down and very excited, Robert Van Winkle waved his t-shirt featuring Milwaukee's Best 160 's logo in front of the cameras.