PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a lightweight MMA rules bout between Dylan Diaz (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Phil Laak (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Diaz kept the crowd waiting but all that was forgotten when his ring entrance music started. The incomparable musical genius that is Lamb of God - To The End. These two fighters really are very evenly matched on the feet - it will be fascinating to see who can assert themselves in that aspect of the fight.

Diaz
vs
Laak

182 cm
36
164 lbs
29 - 19 - 0

172 cm
33
167 lbs
11 - 7 - 1

Good wrestling
World class MT
Cardio machine

Good wrestler
World class MT
Good gas tank

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the lightweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 29 - 19 - 0, fighting out of Amsterdam, Dylan Diaz!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 11 - 7 - 1, fighting out of Amsterdam, Phil Laak!
The judges for this bout are Daniel Blasius, Saam Ante and Wagner Zegers.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Diaz slips a jab from Laak.
Diaz avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Diaz tries to score with a low kick but Laak moves his leg out of the way.
Laak is looking to clinch.
Diaz pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Diaz pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Laak tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Diaz paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Diaz has been working on his boxing with his coaches at Vale Tudo Elite Sparring in the buildup to the fight.
Diaz throws a front kick aimed at Laak's knee but Laak avoids it well.
Laak will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.

Laak clinches up against the cage.
Laak misses with some punches.
Laak comes over the top with an elbow. That landed flush.
Laak misses with a knee strike.
Diaz misses with a shot to the kidneys.
A short uppercut from Laak.
Diaz is trying to break the clinch but Laak is controlling him.
Laak blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Diaz misses with a short punch on the inside.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Diaz lands an elbow that stopped Laak in his tracks for a moment.
Laak scores with a knee to the head.

It looks like Dylan Diaz has been cut.
Diaz blocks a body shot from Laak.
Laak is working Diaz over against the cage.
Diaz prevents a body shot from Laak.
Diaz wants to break free but Laak has control.
Diaz takes a shot to the head.
Laak lands a left hand.
Laak has a couple of punches blocked by Diaz.
Laak throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Diaz blocks it with crossed arms.
Laak lands a shoulder strike.
Diaz wants to get back to striking at distance but Laak won't allow it.
Laak tries a body shot but Diaz blocks it.
Laak landing knees to the body. They look like they could hurt.
Laak stalling against the cage.
Diaz's head jolts backwards as he takes an uppercut right on the button!
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
A short right from Diaz.

Diaz breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Laak fails with an attempt to clinch.
Diaz lands the left hand.
Laak tries to clinch but Diaz is having none of it.
Laak tries to clinch
and Diaz counters with a head kick. That will keep Laak thinking before he tries any more sloppy attacks!
Laak doesn't react quick enough there as he takes a shot to the body.
Phil Laak seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Diaz lands with a right hand.
Diaz lands a vicious shot with the stealth of a sniper and the strength of a viper. Are vipers that strong? I can think of lots of things that are stronger than a viper - not many rhyme with sniper though.
Laak is looking to land body kicks.
The fight stays on the outside here - Laak looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Laak tries to close the distance and clinch but Diaz swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.

Laak fakes with an overhand right and moves in to clinch with Diaz, pushing him back against the cage.
Diaz lands on the inside with an uppercut.
Diaz lands with a good tight uppercut to the head.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Diaz tries to work over Laak's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
A short uppercut from Diaz.
Diaz swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Laak has a couple of punches blocked by Diaz.
Diaz lands with a short punch from the clinch.

Diaz pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.

Laak pushes Diaz up against the cage in a clinch.
Diaz misses with a punch on the inside.
Diaz pushes Laak back against the cage and lands a hook to the side of the head.
Diaz tries to break the clinch but Laak is controlling the position.
Laak throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Diaz blocks it with crossed arms.
Laak comes over the top with an elbow. That landed flush.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Laak prevents Diaz from breaking the clinch.
Diaz throws a punch but it's blocked by Laak.
Diaz lands with a short head shot on the inside.
Laak tries to land a knee to the body but he is off balance and Diaz avoids it.

Laak breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Diaz throws a leg kick which misses Laak's front leg but catches the back leg as Laak tries to avoid it.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Diaz looks to land a right hand but Laak moved out of range.
Diaz lands a front kick.
Diaz swats away the attempt to clinch by Laak.
Diaz throws a leg kick but Laak checks it.
Laak misses with the combination.

Laak clinches up with Diaz and pushes him back against the cage.
Laak blocks a body shot from Diaz.
Diaz wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Laak has him pressed against the cage.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Diaz.
The crowd are going absolutely nuts as the round comes to an end - what a fantastic round of action!
Diaz gets through Laak's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Diaz.

Laak breaks from the clinch.
Laak wants to clinch
and Diaz counters with an outside leg kick.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Dylan Diaz dominated that round.
The cut man is working on Dylan Diaz's cut.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action.

Diaz lands with a straight right. Laak didn't see that one coming.
Laak tries to grapple but his opponent circles
and Diaz counters with a body kick that stops Laak in his tracks momentarily.
Laak throws a nice looking combination but Diaz bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
Laak throws a low kick but it's checked well by Diaz.
Nice takedown defense from Diaz. No joy for Laak on that attempt.
Diaz dodges the punch combination from Laak.
Diaz pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Diaz throws a big shot that misses.
Diaz keeps the fight on the outside.
Diaz looks to throw the jab but Laak is out of range.
Laak closes the distance looking to clinch
and Diaz counters with a stiff right hand.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Laak throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Laak fails to land with a series of punches.
Diaz connects with an inside leg kick.
Laak closes the distance looking to clinch
and Diaz counters with a nice body kick.
Laak shuffles to his left behind two crisp jabs. Diaz eats them both and turns towards Laak to reposition himself and eats a stinging right hand-left hook combo.
A leg kick checked by Diaz.
Laak slips under a jab.
Diaz throws a sloppy head kick and Laak moves out of range easily.
Laak wants to clinch.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Laak avoids the head kick by Diaz.
Laak has a takedown stuffed.
Diaz throws an off balance right hand

and Laak counters into the clinch. Nicely done.
Diaz has had enough of the clinch but Laak keeps him there for the moment.
A head punch on the inside from Diaz fails to land.
Laak effectively controlling the action here.
Diaz lands a hook that snaps the head of Laak backwards.

Diaz escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Diaz tries to score with a low kick but Laak moves his leg out of the way.
Dylan Diaz is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Laak looks to clinch
and Laak takes a counter punch right on the button for his troubles.
Laak checks a low kick from Diaz.
Diaz is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Laak.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
A combination from Laak does no damage.

Laak closes the distance and pushes Diaz back into the cage.

Diaz manages to break the clinch.
Dylan Diaz is winning the standup battle so far.
Diaz with a hook.
Diaz looking to throw a kick but he's pulled out of it.
Laak wants to clinch up but Diaz keeps it at a distance.
A slow jab from Diaz misses its intended target.
Laak feints a jab promting Diaz to slip. Laak then demonstrates his capabilities by jabbing again. Diaz slips again and ducks right into an uppercut.

Laak has closed the distance and engaged Diaz in a clinch.
Diaz scores with an uppercut up the middle.
Diaz goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Diaz throws an elbow but it misses.
Laak lands a left hand.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The fans in attendance giving it up for the two fighters, who have really let it all hang out in the last minute or so!
Diaz struggles to land a body shot inside as Laak controls his hands.

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

Laak instigates a clinch.
A right hook to the body lands for Diaz.
A short right from Diaz.
Diaz misses with a hook to the ribs.
Diaz has a couple of punches blocked by Laak.
Laak working aggressively here.
Laak connects with a knee to the head.
Laak trying to land knees to the body.
Laak makes some space for himself and lands an uppercut.
Diaz misses with a punch to the body.
Dylan Diaz has scored more points in the clinch so far.
Laak throws a head punch that misses.
Laak creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.

Diaz's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.
Laak tries to clinch but Diaz moves out of range.
The fighters circling - Diaz throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Diaz missing with a left hand there. Laak was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that Dylan Diaz will probably get the nod.
The cut man is working on Dylan Diaz's cut.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business. This is the final round!

Laak ducks under a wild hook from Diaz.
Nice body punch from Laak.
Diaz circles away from the clinch attempt.
Laak tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Phil Laak is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
A head kick misses from Diaz.
Diaz circles away from the clinch attempt.
Diaz throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Diaz thows a leg kick but Laak checks it
and Laak counters with a solid body kick.
Laak is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Laak tries to clinch up
and Diaz counters with a big head kick but Laak shrugs it off.
Diaz tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Laak ducks under a wild hook from Diaz.

Laak pushes Diaz up against the cage in a clinch.
Diaz misses with a hook from the clinch.
Laak stays in close to his opponent and throws a right hand to the body.
Nice body punch from Laak - that landed with a thud.
Laak lands a left hand.

Laak breaks from the clinch.
A combination from Laak does no damage.
Laak fails with a takedown attempt from distance.
A punch combination from Laak misses.
Laak moves to clinch but Diaz breaks away
and Diaz counters with a low kick, right behind Laak 's knee.
Laak misses with a body punch
and Diaz counters with a leg kick that reverborates around the arena.
Laak misses with a low kick.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Diaz lands with a shot to the body.
Laak misses with a combination
and Diaz makes him pay by landing a thudding low kick.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Diaz keeps the fight on the outside.
Diaz keeps the fight on the outside.
A telegraphed right hand from Diaz misses the target.

The fight moves into the clinch position.
Diaz blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
A short right from Diaz on the inside.
Diaz misses with a hook from the clinch.
Diaz is trying to work out of this bad position, with his back against the cage.
Laak stays in close to his opponent and throws a right hand to the body.
Laak is trying to wear down his opponent with knees to the body.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Diaz misses with a punch on the inside.
Laak lands with a good tight uppercut to the head.
Laak blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Diaz wants to push off and get back to the center of the mat but Laak has him pressed against the cage.
Laak misses with a punch to the body.
Diaz blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.
Diaz looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Laak tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Diaz's elbow.
Laak keeps the fight in the clinch, despite Diaz's efforts to push away.
Laak lands with a left to the head.
Laak throws a knee to the head but misses.
Laak with the Thai clinch. He's looking to land a big knee but he's not managed it this time.
Laak misses with a punch on the inside.
Laak lands a nice shot to the body.
Laak misses with some punches.
Laak tries to work over Diaz's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Laak lands a knee to the head there! That was nasty!

That's four minutes gone in the round.

Diaz manages to break the clinch.
Diaz swats away the attempt to clinch by Laak.
Laak tries a head kick but it misses.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
A right-left combo lands from Laak.
A head kick from Diaz lands but Laak takes it in his stride.
Phil Laak has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Diaz misses with a few strikes there.
Diaz lands a vicious shot with the stealth of a sniper and the strength of a viper. Are vipers that strong? I can think of lots of things that are stronger than a viper - not many rhyme with sniper though.
Diaz avoids a punch combination nicely.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.

Laak clinches with his opponent.
Laak has Diaz pressed against the cage, preventing Diaz from circling away and getting back to striking at range.
Laak stalls.

And that's the end of the fight!
Phil Laak comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Diaz has won this one but let's see what the judges have to say. 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 Daniel Blasius scores the fight 29:28
Judge Saam Ante scores the fight 29:28
Judge Wagner Zegers scores the fight 29:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Dylan Diaz!