PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Joao Paulo Filho (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Chan Sung Aoki (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Well, the cameraman is lingering on a pretty young lady for a bit too long there. Keep your eyes on the prize buddy or you'll miss the fighter intros!

Paulo Filho
vs
Sung Aoki

165 cm
21
146 lbs
3 - 3 - 0

181 cm
21
160 lbs
5 - 3 - 0

Good wrestling
Excellent boxer
Granite chin

Excellent grappler
Good low kicks
Good gas tank

Modern Wear Apparel
REAR NAKED CHOKE NUTRITION

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the featherweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 3 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Amsterdam, Joao Paulo Filho!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 5 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, Chan Sung Aoki!
The judges for this bout are James Ackerman, Andrew Berry and Phil Schofield.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Aoki closes the distance and clinches.
Filho swings away with an uppercut that misses.

Aoki breaks from the clinch.
Filho takes a step back and watches a body kick go sailing past his mid section.
Aoki thuds a mid kick into his opponent's body. That will wear on Filho if he has to take too many more of those.
Filho looks to land a right hand but Aoki moved out of range.
Aoki swings away with a counter right hand but no contact made.
Aoki stuffs the takedown attempt from Filho. Filho gets slowly back to his feet.
Aoki keeps the fight on the outside.
Aoki looks to land a combination but Filho avoids it well.
Aoki throws a body kick despite being completely out of range
and Filho counters with a quick right hand to the jaw.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Filho throws a leg kick
letting Aoki counter with a right hand.
Joao Paulo Filho seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Filho shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Aoki as he avoids it easily.
Filho misses with a looping right.
Filho digs a good hook to Aoki's body.
Filho throws a leg kick but Aoki checks it.
Aoki changes levels for a counter takedown but doesn't follow through with his attempt.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Aoki blocks a leg kick.
We've been hearing reports that Filho has been drilling takedowns in recent sessions so let's see if that has an impact on the result of this fight.
Filho throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
and Aoki connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Filho ducks under a wild hook from Aoki.
Filho moves in looking to clinch but Aoki pushes him off.
Filho throws a body punch but Aoki moves out of range.
Aoki avoids the body shot from Filho.
Aoki thinks about the counter body kick.
Filho catches Aoki with a nice straight right. He seems pissed - ooooh, it's on now! On like donkey kong!
Aoki keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Filho.
Aoki getting the better of the striking in that exchange.
Filho walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. Aoki checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.

Aoki clinches.
Filho lands a hook to the body. It's hard to tell if that hurt Aoki or not.
Filho tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
Filho misses with a short punch on the inside.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Filho misses with a punch on the inside.
Filho scores with a shoulder strike.
Filho misses with a punch on the inside.

Aoki breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Aoki tries to land a front kick but Filho steps back. That was a bit too telegraphed.
Filho tries to counter by moving into the clinch but Aoki manages to circle out of the way.
Aoki looks to land a body kick but Filho moved away.
Filho throws the kick towards the body but Aoki avoids it.
Aoki throws a body punch but Filho moves out of range.
Filho smiles there as he lands a nice right hand right on the button.
Filho takes a kick to the body and keeps moving.
Chan Sung Aoki is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Aoki throws a sloppy head kick and Filho moves out of range easily.
Filho thows a left - swing and a miss!
Filho is looking to score with low kicks.
Filho smiles there as he lands a nice right hand right on the button.
Aoki defending well as Filho loads up on a big left hand.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Aoki closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Filho.
Filho throws a punch but it's blocked by Aoki.
Filho blocks a body shot from Aoki.
Aoki fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Aoki working some nice short punches in the clinch.
Aoki blocking some punches.
Filho throws a punch but it's blocked by Aoki.
Filho working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
Aoki fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Filho swings wildly with an uppercut but Aoki uses good head movement to avoid it.
Aoki misses with a punch on the inside.
Filho blocks an uppercut.
Filho swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Filho lands a hook that snaps the head of Aoki backwards.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Filho blocking some punches.
A head punch on the inside from Filho fails to land.
Filho tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Aoki's elbow.
Filho throws a vicious knee straight up the middle but Aoki blocks it with crossed arms.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Filho.
Aoki blocks an uppercut.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Filho blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
A head punch on the inside from Filho fails to land.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Aoki.
Filho misses with some punches.
Aoki blocking some punches.
Filho lands a right uppercut that snaps the head of Aoki backwards.
Filho throws a punch but it's blocked by Aoki.
Aoki misses with a punch on the inside.
A short uppercut from Aoki.
Aoki working aggressively here.
Filho tries to throw a body punch but Aoki avoids it by throwing Filho back against the cage.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Joao Paulo Filho will probably get the nod.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Filho takes a push kick to the midsection and stumbles backwards.
Filho takes a shot right to the liver - Bas would have been proud of that punch.
Aoki on the wrong end of a decent looking cross there.
Filho on the wrong end of a kick to the body.
Aoki throws a lazy uppercut
and Filho counters with a lovely straight right hand!

It looks like Chan Sung Aoki has been cut.
Filho tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Aoki paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Aoki moves out of range of the strikes.
Aoki throws a head kick that connects with a bit of head and a bit of hand.
Aoki scores with a jab. Filho acknowledges it with a nod of the head.
Filho stuns Aoki with a nice body shot, before stepping back out of range.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Filho tries for a takedown but Aoki circles away easily

and Aoki counters by moving into the clinch.
Joao Paulo Filho has scored more points in the clinch so far.
Aoki misses with some punches.
We are yet to see a takedown attempt from Aoki in the fight. On paper you would think he is the more dominant ground fighter so let's see if these unusual tactics pay off.
Filho misses with the head strike.

That's one minute gone in the round.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Filho.
Filho lands an uppercut.
A short body shot lands from Filho as the two fighters clinch.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Aoki.
Filho swings wildly with an uppercut but Aoki uses good head movement to avoid it.
Aoki throws a blind hook that connects with the side of Filhos head.
Filho working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
A short body shot lands from Aoki as the two fighters clinch.
Filho misses with a punch on the inside.
Aoki tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Filho misses with a short punch on the inside.
Aoki scores with a shoulder strike.
Filho lands on the inside with an uppercut.
Aoki blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
A right hand to the body from Filho.
Aoki blocks an uppercut.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Filho throws a punch but it's blocked by Aoki.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Aoki misses with a hook from the clinch.

Aoki's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.

Filho manages to get an easy takedown there - catching Aoki on his heels. He'll look to pass Aoki's guard now, I'm sure.
Filho pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Aoki is keeping the position for now.
Filho passes into half guard.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Filho uses his free foot to push down on Aoki's thigh. Eventually he works his other foot free and he's advanced to mount - this is trouble for Aoki.
Aoki tries to hold on but Filho postures up.
Filho trying to control but he's not successful this time.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Filho avoids the attempt from Aoki to control.
Aoki is looking to improve his position but Filho isn't that keen on the idea.
Aoki blocking the ground and pound.
Aoki wriggling around on the bottom manages to avoid the strikes thrown by Filho.
Aoki holding onto his opponent's waist for dear life, as Filho tries to land some strikes to get him to release his grip.
Aoki is in a horrible position here, under a barrage of strikes, he's managing to avoid any damage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Filho misses with some ground and pound and Aoki recovers position to half guard.

Filho seems to be working for a kimura but Aoki defends the submission attempt.
Aoki manages to get to full guard.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Filho accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
Filho stands and throws Aoki's legs to the side, diving into side control.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Joao Paulo Filho dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Chan Sung Aoki'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. This is the final round!

Good work by Aoki as he checks the leg kick.
Filho misses with a lunging right hand
and Aoki counters with a low kick, right behind Filho 's knee.
Filho throws a series of punches but Aoki avoids them all with ease.
A left lands for Aoki.
Jab by Filho.
Aoki pivots as if he's going to throw a leg kick but stops half way.
It looked like Filho wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.
Aoki's hands are dropping dangerously low here and Filho connects clean with a right hook that sends him down to one knee! Aoki scrambles back to his feet.

Aoki has Filho up against the cage in a clinch.
Aoki pushes Filho back against the cage and unloads with a body punch.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Aoki presses Filho against the cage and delivers a mid-strength body shot.
Filho throws a punch but it's blocked by Aoki.
Filho misses with the head strike.
Filho misses with a hook from the clinch.
Aoki misses with a hook from the clinch.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A head punch on the inside from Filho fails to land.
Filho misses with a hook to the ribs.
Aoki digs a right hand underneath Filho's ribcage. Filho let out a lung full of air as it connected.
Filho swings wildly with an uppercut but Aoki uses good head movement to avoid it.
Filho lands a nice uppercut.
Aoki scores with a shoulder strike.
Filho prevents a body shot from Aoki.
Aoki blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
An uppercut to the body lands inside from Filho.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Aoki.
Aoki lands a shoulder strike.
Aoki has a couple of punches blocked by Filho.
Aoki blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Filho working aggressively here.
Filho throws a punch but it's blocked by Aoki.
Chan Sung Aoki has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Filho blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Filho swings wildly with an uppercut but Aoki uses good head movement to avoid it.
Filho swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Filho fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Filho tries a body shot but Aoki blocks it.
Aoki goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
A short uppercut from Aoki.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Aoki misses with a shot to the kidneys.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Filho.
Aoki scores with a shoulder strike.
Filho tries a body shot but Aoki blocks it.
Filho has a couple of punches blocked by Aoki.
Aoki blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Filho tried to land a shot to the body but connects with Aoki's elbow.
Aoki blocking some punches.
Aoki swings away with an uppercut that misses.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Filho tries a body shot but Aoki blocks it.
A nice right hand lands inside from Filho.
Aoki misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Filho has a couple of punches blocked by Aoki.
Aoki cracks Filho with a nice body shot.
Filho misses with some punches.
Aoki can't find room to land a body shot as Filho controls the action.
Aoki misses with the head strike.
Filho blocks a body shot from Aoki.
A body shot lands from Aoki.
Aoki misses with a short punch on the inside.
A shot in the inside from Aoki.
Aoki prevents a body shot from Filho.
Filho throws a head punch that misses.
Filho tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Aoki lands a hook to the side of the head.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A short right from Filho.
Filho swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Filho swings away with an uppercut that misses.
Aoki scores with a shot to the side of Filho's head.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Aoki blocks an uppercut.
A head punch on the inside from Aoki fails to land.
Aoki blocks an uppercut.
Filho lands with a short shot to the head.
Aoki swings wildly with an uppercut but Filho uses good head movement to avoid it.
Filho swings wildly with an uppercut but Aoki uses good head movement to avoid it.
Filho misses with a punch on the inside.
Filho working on landing some head shots here - that one got through nicely.
A left hand lands to the body for Aoki.
Aoki prevents a body shot from Filho.

And that's the end of the fight!
I would just about give that final round to Chan Sung Aoki.
I think Filho 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 James Ackerman scores the fight 30:27
Judge Andrew Berry scores the fight 30:28
Judge Phil Schofield scores the fight 30:28

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Joao Paulo Filho!
Joao Paulo Filho spent the whole post fight interview bigging himself up. It didn't go down that well with the fans after a while as they thought it was a bit arrogant.