PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between James Rush (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Ramon Valdez (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Both these guys have really solid chins. Will we see a standup war or will they both decide that a knockout is unlikely and try to win the fight elsewhere?

Rush
vs
Valdez

181 cm
25
201 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

195 cm
23
215 lbs
5 - 1 - 0

Good wrestling
Counter fighter
Very quick

BJJ White Belt
Great elbows
Granite chin

Arcticus

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the light heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of London, James Rush!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 5 - 1 - 0, fighting out of London, Ramon Valdez!
The judges for this bout are James Ackerman, James Atkins and Andrew Berry.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
A looping hook to the body misses from Rush. Valdez does a little dance to reset his feet.
Valdez throws a front kick aimed at Rush's knee but Rush avoids it well.
Rush scores with a jab.
Rush slips in close and lands a nice hook before moving back out of range.

Rush gets a clinch.
Valdez throws an elbow that misses.

Rush pulls guard effortlessly.
Valdez wants to get up but he can't break Rush's closed guard. He needs to be careful trying to break the legs open, as he's open to submissions here.
Rush looking to control the pace of the fight rather than finish it.
Valdez stopping the sweep attempt from Rush.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Rush is working hard here to advance position.
Rush on his back here. We all know that wrestlers don't like being on their back so let's see if Rush tries to get out of the position.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Rush lands the left hand.
Valdez throws a low kick but it's checked well by Rush.
Valdez's coach down at Soul Supremacy - UK was telling us pre-fight that they have been working on Valdez's balance. Obviously they view that as a key factor in the outcome of this fight.
Valdez throws a wild body kick that Rush sees coming a mile off.
Rush uses good footwork to get in and out, landing a nice hook.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Valdez tried to score with a low kick but Rush checks it.

Rush scores with a takedown into Valdez's guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Rush advances to half guard.
Rush is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.

It looks like Ramon Valdez has been cut.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Rush with a momentary lay and pray from half guard.
Rush is pressing down on Valdez's thigh, looking to free his foot. Valdez is holding on for now.
Rush seems to be taking a bit of a break to think of his next move. He lands a short punch in the meantime.
Rush throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Rush working Valdez over with strikes.
Rush lands strikes from half guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Rush sitting and controlling from the half guard.
Valdez trying to control here.
Valdez avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Rush.
The referee walks around the fighters to get a better view of the action. Rush lands a nice short elbow.
Rush thows a huge punch but Valdez dodges it nicely.
Rush thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Valdez's head.
The referee walks around the fighters to get a better view of the action. Rush lands a nice short elbow.
Rush sitting and controlling from the half guard.
Valdez tries to kick Rush off but Rush keeps his base steady and stays in half guard.
Rush controlling the action here.
Rush 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 four minutes gone in the round.
Rush looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Valdez with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Rush working over Valdez with some ground and pound. Valdez looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
Valdez blocking the ground and pound attempt from Rush.
Rush is controlling the pace.
Rush working over Valdez with some ground and pound. Valdez looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Rush connects with a nice short shot to Valdez's temple.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Still in half guard, Rush seems content to control.
Rush moves into full mount! Valdez won't be happy about that!
Valdez is working to get back to half guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

James Rush dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Ramon Valdez's cut.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action!

Rush dives in and scores a takedown into Valdez's guard.
James Rush overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Rush sitting in guard here, content to control.
Rush is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
Rush lands a couple of decent looking shots.
Rush is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
Rush throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Rush stopping the sweep attempt from Valdez.
Rush lands a couple of digs.
Rush pushes down on Valdez's leg and manages to get into half guard.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Valdez tries to get to full guard but Rush has control of the leg.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Rush lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.
Rush trying to control the action but Valdez is working from the bottom.
Rush thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Valdez's head.
Rush is looking to take a break and control but Valdez is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Valdez is trying to defend against the ground and pound but Rush scores with a couple of nice shots.
Still in half guard, Rush seems content to control.
Valdez taking some punishment here, with Rush in his half guard.
Rush lands with a punch from half guard.
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Rush connects with a nice short shot to Valdez's temple.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Rush is nestled in close to Valdez, controlling him well. He's worked in a nice elbow to the side of the head as well, for good measure.
Rush sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Valdez defending well though.
Rush is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Valdez can do to turn this around?

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Rush looks to score some points with some ground and pound.
Valdez is breathing heavily.
Rush working the head and body with strikes.
Rush working some ground and pound from close in. He's looking to maintain this position and strike for a while by the looks of things... although he'll probably advance to full mount in a minute now I've said that.
Rush working the head and body with strikes.

Valdez is rocked!
Rush is looking to pass the guard... He's managed it - he's now in full mount!
Rush breaks from Valdez's wrist control and lands an elbow.
Valdez is still in real trouble! Can Rush finish him?
Rush postures up and throws a couple of big shots that have Valdez in real trouble here! The ref calls for Valdez to improve his position which he doesn't do, so the referee has no choice but to end the fight due to the strikes!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 2:48 of round 2, we have a winner by way of TKO (Strikes). James Rush!
James Rush thanked the fans post fight for their support.