PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Clyde Blankenship (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Cristiano Pereira (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). We have two fighters making their debuts here, so let's see who comes out of this one with their first professional victory.

Blankenship
vs
Pereira

157 cm
24
193 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

182 cm
25
190 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter fighter
Cuts easily

BJJ White Belt
Excellent MT
Enjoys gardening

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 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Clyde Blankenship!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Cristiano Pereira!
The judges for this bout are Thiago Cunha, Paulo Santos and Daniel Cesar.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Pereira closes the distance and gets a trip takedown into side control. Blankenship quickly recovers to half guard.
The referee is asking the fighters to pick up the pace.
Blankenship punching from the bottom.

Blankenship has managed to escape just enough to sneak back to his feet but Pereira is on him like a limpet, forcing Blankenship back against the cage.
Blankenship is trying to work for a single leg takedown but Pereira pulls him back up using the underhooks.

Pereira pulls guard.
Blankenship working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of Pereira's head.
Blankenship missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Pereira preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Blankenship stopping the sweep attempt from Pereira.
Blankenship connects with a couple of short punches.
Blankenship postures up in Pereira's guard and throws a big left but Pereira blocks it.
Pereira looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Blankenship really is a fat lump.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Blankenship missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Blankenship loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Blankenship keeps in close for a moment and lands a decent shot to the side of Pereira's head.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Blankenship throws a big elbow that misses.
Pereira is trying to control the position but Blankenship postures up.
Blankenship throwing strikes but missing.
Blankenship throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Blankenship with a flurry of punches that miss.
Blankenship stopping the sweep attempt from Pereira.
Pereira really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Blankenship. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Blankenship is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
Blankenship lands a nice shot whilst sitting in his opponent's guard.
Blankenship stopping the sweep attempt from Pereira.
Blankenship is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Blankenship is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
Blankenship 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.
Blankenship loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Blankenship working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Blankenship scores with a decent looking elbow strike.
Blankenship scores with a decent looking elbow strike.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Blankenship loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Blankenship is in close to Pereira's body, working some short punches and elbows.
Blankenship loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Blankenship throws a big elbow that misses.
Blankenship landing with the ground and pound.
Blankenship landing some decent shots from guard.
Blankenship postures up and scores with a shot to the body and a follow up elbow to the head.
Blankenship throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Pereira working the defensive guard well to avoid strikes from Blankenship.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Blankenship throws a big elbow that misses.
Blankenship trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Pereira looking to control.
Blankenship is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
Blankenship landing some decent shots from guard.
Blankenship landing with the ground and pound.
Pereira looks winded!
Blankenship loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Blankenship throwing strikes but missing.
Blankenship cracks Pereira with a solid left hand.
Blankenship missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Blankenship might be looking to lock onto one of his opponent's long limbs for a submission, whilst we're on the ground.
Blankenship stops Pereira from standing up.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Blankenship loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Blankenship chips away with some ground and pound.
Blankenship keeps in close for a moment and lands a decent shot to the side of Pereira's head.
Blankenship works over Pereira with some ground and pound from guard.
Blankenship throwing strikes but missing.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Blankenship throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Pereira works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Blankenship is working Pereira over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.
Blankenship stopping the sweep attempt from Pereira.
Pereira avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Blankenship postures up and lands a big shot to Pereira's brow.
Blankenship throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Clyde Blankenship dominated that round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Pereira manages to get an easy takedown there - catching Blankenship on his heels. He'll look to pass Blankenship's guard now, I'm sure.
Blankenship is controlling Pereira's posture.
Blankenship has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.

Blankenship is scooting his butt against the cage and has managed to get back to his feet. Pereira presses him back against the cage, presumably looking to take the fight back to the mat.
Pereira tries to circle away but Blankenship has him pinned against the cage.

Pereira is trying to trip Blankenship. He has hold of a leg but Blankenship is hopping around, keeping his balance for the moment. Pereira persists though and gets the takedown into guard.
Blankenship is doing well to control the posture of his opponent and prevent any damage.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!

Blankenship has scooted to the edge of the canvas and used the cage to get back to his feet. Pereira has stuck on his opponent and is forcing him back against the cage.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Pereira manages to pull guard.
Blankenship in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
Pereira trying to strike from the bottom but really, it's not the best position to be doing that from!
Pereira is breathing heavily.
Blankenship stands up over Pereira, holding his feet. He dives back in and lands a decent shot to the head.
Pereira throwing some rather feeble looking strikes off his back.
Blankenship is in close to Pereira's body, working some short punches and elbows.
Pereira 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.
Pereira is trying to keep Blankenship in close.
Blankenship working in close now, lands a nice elbow to the side of Pereira's head.
Blankenship working from the guard for now, landing some ground and pound.
Pereira utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Blankenship throws a big right hand that misses.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Blankenship accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Blankenship is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
Blankenship with a flurry of punches that miss.
Blankenship cracks Pereira with a solid left hand.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Blankenship scoring with punches to the head and body.
Blankenship lands a couple of elbows.
Blankenship throws a big elbow that misses.
Blankenship scoring with punches to the head and body.
Pereira preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Blankenship postures up in Pereira's guard and throws a big left but Pereira blocks it.
Blankenship loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
Blankenship with a nice head shot there.
Blankenship in full guard, throwing the ground and pound. No damage this time.
Pereira wants to sweep here but Blankenship controlling him for the moment.
Blankenship with a nice head shot there.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Pereira looking to sweep here. No luck so far.
Clyde Blankenship overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Blankenship postures up and lands some nice ground and pound.
Pereira doesn't do any damage with a couple of strikes from the bottom.
Blankenship scoring with some ground and pound.
Blankenship chips away with some ground and pound.
Blankenship is working Pereira over from the guard. He should look to pass the guard and do a little more damage with these strikes.
Blankenship distracts Pereira with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.
Blankenship landing some decent shots from guard.
Blankenship trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Blankenship distracts Pereira with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.
Blankenship with a flurry of punches that miss.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Pereira looking for a sweep. Not yet Pereira, not yet.
Blankenship postures up in Pereira's guard and throws a big left but Pereira blocks it.
Blankenship is sitting in guard, working some ground and pound.
Blankenship scores with a decent looking elbow strike.
Pereira not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Pereira 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.
Blankenship landing with the ground and pound.
Blankenship scores with a decent looking elbow strike.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Pereira is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Blankenship is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
Blankenship content to strike from guard, landing some decent shots.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Clyde Blankenship dominated that second round.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! This is the final round!

Pereira looks for a takedown. He's got it. We're now in half guard.
Blankenship trying to control here.
Blankenship is doing well to avoid being mounted. He's controlling the position at the moment.
Pereira seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Blankenship does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.
Blankenship is controlling Pereira's position as best he can from this difficult position.
Pereira takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up, due to lack of activity on the part of Clyde Blankenship.

Pereira fakes a strike and closes the distance, dragging Blankenship to the ground. Pereira is now in Blankenship's guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Blankenship looking to control the pace of the fight rather than finish it.
Pereira must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.

Blankenship manages to wriggle out and sneak his way back up to his feet, so the fighters are now clinched up against the cage.
Blankenship avoiding damage as Pereira throws knees to the body.

Pereira has moved round to his opponent's back and is looking for a suplex! Oh snap! He's tossed Blankenship clear over his head and slammed him to the mat!
Blankenship trying to control but not successfully.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Blankenship manages to get to his feet, escaping the difficult position.
Blankenship takes a head kick and keeps coming.
Clyde Blankenship is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!

Blankenship changes levels and drives through with a really nice takedown into side control. Pereira looks really pissed at himself for not defending that better.
Pereira can't do much from the bottom here.

Blankenship thinks about going for a far side armbar but bails out and retains the dominant position instead.
Blankenship scores with punches from side control.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Pereira is trying to control Blankenship's posture but Blankenship avoids it.

Blankenship tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.

Blankenship tries for an arm triangle. That looks pretty tight to me. Is this one over!?! Possibly, maybe, no Blankenship has let go of the choke. Obviously it wasn't as tight as we thought!
Pereira is not in a great position here, taking some shots.
Blankenship is putting a hurting on Pereira here, landing some big shots from side control.
Blankenship lands a nice forearm strike.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The ground and pound from Blankenship seems to be hitting the mat more than his opponent.

Blankenship is looking for a kimura. He might have it! No, Pereira has escaped the position, nice work there.

Blankenship is looking to finish here, going for an Americana. Pereira knows the correct defense though, so he's OK.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!

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

Blankenship is looking to finish here, going for an Americana. Pereira knows the correct defense though, so he's OK.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.

Blankenship working hard here to secure a kimura but he's not really in the right position for it.

And that's the end of the fight!
Clyde Blankenship showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Blankenship, 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 Thiago Cunha scores the fight 30:27
Judge Paulo Santos scores the fight 30:27
Judge Daniel Cesar scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Clyde Blankenship!