PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Daniel Daniels (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Charles Pepper (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Well, I have no idea who's going to take this one!

Daniels
vs
Pepper

189 cm
20
191 lbs
3 - 1 - 1

188 cm
23
191 lbs
3 - 3 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Basic striking
Experienced

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Knockout power

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 3 - 1 - 1, fighting out of New York, Daniel Daniels!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 3 - 0, fighting out of New York, Charles Pepper!
The judges for this bout are Bruno Lombardi, David Schapiro and Anthony Taglia.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Daniels wants to clinch up but Pepper keeps it at a distance.
Pepper thows a left - swing and a miss!
Daniels circles away from the clinch attempt
and Daniels counters with a head kick.
Daniels fails with an attempt to clinch.
Pepper throws a front kick that sends Daniels stumbling back into the cage.
Daniels keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Pepper misses with a leg kick.
Pepper scores with a decent looking hook.
Pepper avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Pepper misses with a leg kick
and Daniels counters with a slapping leg kick.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Daniels fails in his attempt to clinch.
Pepper throws a head kick that misses and slips in the process. He scrambles back to his feet and the fighters circle.
Wow, both these guys are really going for it!
Pepper throws a wild combination but nothing lands.

Daniels darts in and clinches Pepper up against the cage.
Pepper is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Daniels tries to land knees in the clinch but Pepper avoids the damage to the body.
Pepper avoiding damage as Daniels throws knees to the body.
Daniels missing with knees to the body.
Daniels controlling the action here for a moment.
Pepper wants to get back to striking at distance but Daniels won't allow it.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Daniels comes over the top with an elbow. That landed flush.
Daniels scores with a knee to the head.
Daniels slows down the pace here.
Daniels is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.
Daniels throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Pepper blocks it with crossed arms.
Daniels tries to land a knee to the head but Pepper blocks with his arms.
Daniels misses with a knee strike.
Daniels is breathing heavily.
Pepper wants to get back to striking at distance but Daniels won't allow it.
Daniels throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.
Daniels tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Pepper tries to break the clinch but Daniels is controlling the position.
Pepper blocks an elbow strike.
Pepper wants to break the clinch but can't.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are hurling abuse towards the fighters... You can hardly blame them though because there isn't a lot going on in the fight.
Daniels creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
Daniels is trying to slow down the pace in the clinch, to catch his breath.
Pepper wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Daniels has him pressed against the cage.
Pepper wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Daniels keeps control of Pepper as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.

Pepper escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
Pepper keeps the fight on the outside.
Daniels tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Pepper paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Daniels takes a shot right to the bread basket.
Daniels is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Pepper throws out a loose jab but Daniels uses good head movement to avoid it.
Pepper throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Pepper swings for the body but Daniels moves out of range.
Pepper misses the shot to the body.
Pepper checks a leg kick.
A right-left combo lands from Pepper.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Pepper throws a low kick but Daniels avoids it.
Daniels keeps the fight on the outside.
Daniels moves in looking to clinch but Pepper pushes him off.
Pepper scores with a jab.
Pepper connects with a single shot there.
Daniels blocks the body kick.
Pepper circles away from the clinch attempt
and Pepper counters with a stiff right hand.

Daniels is rocked!
Pepper lands a nice looking body shot.
Pepper lets the fists fly and connects with a left straight followed by a right hook.
Jab, cross, leg kick. Nice combination by Pepper!
Pepper circles away from the clinch attempt.
Pepper fails to land with a series of punches.
Daniels slips a jab from Pepper.
Daniels scores with a one two! Pepper had his feet all tangled up there and couldn't avoid the strikes.
Daniels cracks the inside of Pepper's front leg.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Oooooooooooh, not good. A low kick from Pepper lands where it shouldn't have, right in the... well, you know what he did? He kicked him in the penis. He's injured, injured bad. The referee sends both fighters to their corners and Daniels has 5 minutes to recover. He's OK now though... a thumbs up from Daniels and we're back underway with a touch of gloves.

Daniels clinches up against the cage.
Pepper is looking to break free of the clinch but Daniels has double underhooks.
Pepper managing to block the knees to the body from Daniels.
Pepper can't break the clinch.
Daniels slowing the pace effectively.
Pepper using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Daniels has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Daniels lands a knee to the head.
Daniels looking to throw knees to the head but Pepper is blocking nicely.
Pepper can't break the clinch.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Daniels tries to land a knee to the head but Pepper blocks with his arms.
Daniels missing with knees to the body.
Pepper wants to get back to striking at distance but Daniels won't allow it.
Pepper being controlled against the cage.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

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

Pepper scores with the left hand. Daniels knows he should have avoided that one.
Daniels wants to clinch up but Pepper keeps it at a distance.

Daniels forces Pepper back against the cage and clinches.
A bit of stalling here from Daniels.
Pepper is trying to break free.
Daniels tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Daniels lands a knee to the body.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Daniels lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
Daniels throws an elbow but it's blocked.
Daniels with a knee to the head.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Daniels lands an elbow just above Pepper 's eye.
Pepper is trying to break the clinch but Daniels has him pressed against the cage.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A real battle for position is taking place between these two warriors.
Pepper dodges an elbow strike from Daniels.
Daniels tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Pepper wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
The pace really dropping off here, momentarily.
Daniels with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Pepper wants to strike at distance but he can't break free of the clinch.
Pepper is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.

Pepper breaks from the clinch.
Daniels tries to clinch but Pepper moves away
and Pepper connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Daniels wants to clinch but Pepper slips to the side
and Pepper counters with an inside leg kick.
Daniels throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
and Pepper counters with a nice body shot.
Pepper connects with a hook to the side of his opponent's head.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Pepper lands a jab to the nose.
Pepper misses with a shot to the body
and Daniels counters with a head kick.
Daniel Daniels seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
The fight stays on the outside here - Daniels looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Daniel Daniels is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Pepper doesn't manage to clinch there - Daniels circles away.
Pepper fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Daniels manages to avoid it.
The fight stays on the outside here - Daniels looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Daniels tries to clinch up
letting Pepper counter with a right hand.

The fighters are going at a pretty good pace and they're both starting to sweat now.
Daniels fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with Pepper, pushing him back against the cage.
Daniels landing some nice looking knees to the body.
Come on Daniels - let's have some action - none of this stalling nonsense.
Pepper wants to break the clinch but can't.
Daniels creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Pepper's defenses.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Daniels lands a nice knee to the body.
Daniels misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Pepper.
Pepper avoids the elbow strike from Daniels, against the cage.
Daniels tries a knee to the head but Pepper blocks it.
Daniels misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Pepper.
Daniels keeps control of Pepper as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.
Pepper jumps guard but Daniels stands there with Pepper around his waist. Pepper gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
Daniels with an attempt at a knee that misses.
Daniels keeps control of Pepper as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.
Daniels unloads a knee to the mid-section. Pepper lets out a prehistoric sounding urrrrgh.
Daniels is looking to control Pepper's arms but Pepper gets an underhook and turns him. Now Daniels has his back to the cage.
Daniels prevents Pepper from breaking the clinch.
Daniels throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Pepper blocks it with crossed arms.
Daniels lands a knee to the body.

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.
Pepper looking to stall.
Daniels lands a nice elbow from the clinch.
Pepper can't break the clinch.
The two fighters are working to gain dominance in the clinch.
Pepper tries to break the clinch but Daniels is controlling the position.
Nice elbow from Daniels.
Daniels pressing his opponent against the cage.
Daniels tries a knee to the head but Pepper blocks it.
Daniels misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Pepper.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Daniels trying to control the position but instead, Pepper has worked for underhooks and has pushed Daniels into the cage.
Pepper avoiding damage as Daniels throws knees to the body.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close second round but Charles Pepper will probably get the nod - 10:9.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action! This is the final round!

Pepper throws a hook but Daniels blocks it.
Charles Pepper seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Daniels circles away from the clinch attempt.
Daniels is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
The fight stays on the outside here - Daniels looks like he's thinking about clinching though.

The fight moves into the clinch position.
Daniels throws a knee to the head but misses.
Daniels trying to land knees to the body.
Daniels lands a knee to the body.
Pepper wants to break free but Daniels has control.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Daniels lands a knee to the body.
Daniels lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
Daniels misses with a knee strike.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Daniels creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
Daniels throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Daniels lands a knee to the body.
Pepper dodges an elbow strike from Daniels.
Daniels misses with a knee to the head.
Pepper is looking to break free of the clinch but Daniels has double underhooks.
The fighters are pressed against the cage, as the pace of the fight slows.
Pepper wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Daniels creates a bit of space for himself and sneaks an elbow through Pepper's defenses.
With the two fighters working up against the cage, Daniels just misses with a elbow thrown towards Pepper's brow.
Pepper blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Daniels is trying to maintain a safe position but Pepper gets an underhook and turns Daniels into the cage.
Pepper is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Pepper taking a break, stalling in the clinch.
Pepper is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Pepper blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.

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.
Knees in the clinch landing for Daniels.
Daniels crunches a lovely knee into Pepper's ribcage.
Pepper wants to get back to striking at distance but Daniels won't allow it.
Daniels looking to throw knees to the head but Pepper is blocking nicely.
Pepper blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Daniels creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
Pepper managing to block the knees to the body from Daniels.
Both fighters working to control the clinch.
Daniels lands an elbow that stopped Pepper in his tracks for a moment.
Daniels keeps control of Pepper as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.
Pepper takes a knee right on the jaw!
Daniels unloads a knee to the mid-section. Pepper lets out a prehistoric sounding urrrrgh.
Daniels landing some nice looking knees to the body.
Daniels stalling the fight.
The crowd are getting pretty annoyed with Daniels for his constant stalling in the clinch and are voicing their displeasure.

Pepper breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
A nice leg kick lands there from Daniels.
Pepper throws out a powerful jab.
Daniels moves into range and throws a lovely three punch combination.
Daniels tries to clinch but Pepper is having none of it.
Daniels tries to close the distance and clinch but Pepper swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.

Daniels forces Pepper back against the cage and clinches.
Daniels manages to get underhooks and slows down the pace for a moment.
Pepper wants to break free. God knows he wants to breaaaak freeee.
Daniels leaning against his opponent.

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.
Pepper tries to stall but Daniels uses the opportunity to gain a better position.
Pepper blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Daniels lands an elbow inside that Pepper shrugs off.
Pepper is trying to break the clinch but Daniels has him pressed against the cage.
Daniels lands a knee to the head there! That was nasty!
Daniels holding his opponent close, against the cage.
Pepper wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Daniels has him pressed against the cage.
Daniels throws a knee to the head but misses.
Daniels stalling the fight.
Daniels throws an elbow but it misses.
Daniel Daniels has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Daniels using the Thai plumb to throw knees but Pepper has his back arched nicely, preventing the strike.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Daniels tries a knee to the head but Pepper blocks it.
Daniels is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Pepper is keeping busy.
Daniels missing with knees to the body.
Charles Pepper is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Daniels throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.

And that's the end of the fight!
Daniel Daniels showed his dominance in that final round.
I think Pepper has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. 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 Lombardi scores the fight 28:29
Judge David Schapiro scores the fight 28:29
Judge Anthony Taglia scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Charles Pepper!