PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a welterweight MMA rules bout between Orion Contras (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Helson Gracie (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Gracie has chosen My Life as his entrance music. I'm sure you'll be fascinated to know that I was talking to some pointless Z list celebrity before the fight and he thought that Helson Gracie was going to win. Let's see if he was right.

Contras
vs
Gracie

187 cm
26
178 lbs
5 - 9 - 0

175 cm
27
182 lbs
8 - 4 - 0

Good wrestling
Solid boxing
Insanely flexible

Good wrestler
Basic striking
Powerful

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the welterweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 5 - 9 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Orion Contras!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 8 - 4 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Helson Gracie!
The judges for this bout are , Jack Bonds and Timothy Bukovac.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Contras tries to close the distance and clinch up against the cage but Gracie paws at him with a jab and circles away.
Contras closes the distance and clinches up with Gracie, looking for a takedown. Contras pushes Gracie against the cage but Gracie circles to the side and manages to break the clinch.
A punch combination from Contras misses.
Gracie misses with a takedown attempt - Contras sprawls well and throws a nice strike on the way out which just misses.
Gracie takes a body punch but keeps moving.
Gracie tries to clinch
and Contras counters with a nice body shot.
Contras shoots in but no luck this time.
Gracie misses with a hook. Contras ducked under it nicely.
Contras shoots in and drives through. Gracie sprawls well.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Orion Contras. That's going to take a lot out of him.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Contras avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Contras appears to be looking for a big counter.
Helson Gracie seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Contras dips to his left and cracks Gracie with an uppercut!
Gracie fails with a takedown attempt.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Gracie misses with a wild combination.
A low kick from Gracie misses
and Contras counters with a left to the body.
Contras's corner calls for a 1, 2 combination and Contras duly obliges.
Gracie misses with a takedown attempt
and Contras counters with a three punch combo that has Gracie backing up. Gracie nods at Contras to acknowledge the strikes.
Gracie rushes in with a sloppy looking punch
and Contras counters with a lovely shot to the body.

Contras shoots in from a long way out. He's driving through with the takedown attempt and he eventually gets it, landing in Gracie's guard.
This is a great period of action - very entertaining stuff!
Contras wants to control from the top but Gracie keeps moving.
Contras stops Gracie from standing up.
Contras has to be careful here, sitting in the guard of a superior BJJ player.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Contras stopping the sweep attempt from Gracie.
Contras sitting in guard here, content to control.

Gracie looking for subs off his back but Contras has passed one foot through into half guard.
Gracie wants to improve his position but Contras is controlling well.
Contras takes a deep breath and rests his weight momentarily on top of his opponent, to control the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Gracie tries to roll over but Contras keeps him under control.
Gracie is staying active underneath Contras, who seems content to just control the action from this position.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Gracie shapes like he's going to throw a leg kick but settles back down.
Contras was looking to counter that last move with a shot to the body but he didn't commit.
Gracie tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Contras was well out of range. Poor timing from Gracie.

Gracie moves into the clinch.

Contras is fighting off a takedown attempt but Gracie is just too persistent for him and manages to trip Contras to the mat. Contras regains guard as soon as the fighters hit the mat.
Contras will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
Gracie trying to control but Contras is working from the bottom.

Contras is working actively off his back, looking to secure an arm or perhaps work for a triangle.

Contras is active off his back here, looking for submissions.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Contras wants to stand but Gracie is controlling the position.
Contras keeping full guard, as Gracie tries to pass.
Gracie is persisting with the attempt to improve his position.
Gracie wants to control from the top but Contras keeps moving.
Contras is trying to keep Gracie in close.

Contras looking for submissions from the bottom here. Moving his hips around, possibly looking for an armbar.
Gracie advances to half guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Orion Contras dominated that round.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action!

Gracie misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
Contras throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Gracie's waist but Gracie gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Contras off to one side.
Gracie looks for a takedown but Contras sprawls well.
The fight stays on the outside here - Gracie looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Contras shoots in for a takedown but Gracie shows good takedown defense there and keeps this one on the feet.
Gracie tries to close the distance and clinch but Contras swats him to one side with an open hand palm strike and circles away.
Contras tries to bum rush Gracie with a series of wild strikes but Gracie uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Gracie misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Contras.
Contras fails with an attempt to clinch.
Orion Contras is winning the standup battle so far.

Gracie has taken the fight to the clinch.
Gracie displaying some good clinch control by pressing Contras up against the cage.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Contras letting Gracie take a breather here.

Gracie works for the underhooks and manages to get a trip takedown into guard.
Gracie won't allow Contras to sweep him here.
Contras controls Gracie momentarily but Gracie frees himself.

Contras isolates an arm and boxes in a triangle. Gracie stacks Contras on his neck as he steps over and passes to the side. He's now in a much more dominant position where he can look to do some serious damage. Nice move by Gracie!
Contras is sneaking out the side here. He's bucked Gracie off and has taken his back!

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Contras is controlling his opponent, waiting for an opportunity to finish.
Contras has the hooks in. Gracie is trying to push off one leg but he has to do so cautiously to avoid being submitted.
Helson Gracie has got the better of the ground game so far.
Gracie is trying to get back to his feet but Contras has full control of the position and if anything, Gracie has just worked his way into a worse spot.
Gracie wants to escape the position.

Contras is working for the rear naked choke. He has one arm under the chin but Gracie has hold of the other arm. A bit of a stalemate here.
Contras is riding his opponent, not letting Gracie buck him off.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Contras is working really hard to secure the rear naked choke. Gracie defends successfully for a significant amount of time. Both fighters are looking very determined.
Contras controlling the position well here. Gracie rolled but Contras kept the hooks locked in and stayed in the dominant position.
Contras gets his hands free as Gracie looks to control.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.
Gracie is in bad spot here.
Gracie is trying to get back to his feet but Contras has full control of the position and if anything, Gracie has just worked his way into a worse spot.

Contras patiently working for the choke. Which fighter will keep their nerve here?
Gracie tries to escape the position.
Gracie is still trying to improve position.
Good control from Contras.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Orion Contras dominated that second round.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action! Ladies and gentlemen, this is the final round!

Gracie looks for a takedown but Contras sprawls well.
Contras is looking to counter with a shot to the body.
Contras swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.

Gracie has closed the distance and engaged Contras in a clinch.
Gracie has Contras pushed against the cage.
Gracie throws an elbow but it's blocked.
Contras tries to score a body lock takedown but Gracie shows good agility there to stay on his feet.

Contras manages to break the clinch.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Gracie goes for a double leg but Contras avoids the attempt and the two fighters end up clinched against the cage as Contras continues to drive forward.
Gracie throws a lazy body kick
and Contras counters with a two punch combo.
Gracie keeps the fight standing with a nice sprawl.
Gracie lands with an overhand left.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Gracie gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily
and Contras counters with a nice jab to the body that keeps Gracie thinking.
Orion Contras has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Helson Gracie.
Contras misses with a few strikes there.
Gracie throws the left hand but Contras avoids the punch easily.
Contras appears to be looking for a counter punch to the body.
Gracie shoots in but doesn't get the takedown
and Contras counters with a left to the body.
Contras throws a right and a left that both miss.
Gracie looks to throw the jab but Contras is out of range.
Contras sizes up Gracie with a pawing jab and scores with a straight right down the middle.
Contras lands with a hook. Gracie tried to avoid it but it clipped the top of his head.

Contras shoots in and scores a nice double leg takedown into half guard.
Contras prevents Gracie from standing back up.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Gracie wants to get back to full guard.
Contras is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Gracie can do to turn this around?
This has been an exciting period of action!
Gracie wants to get back to his feet.
Contras is trying to control the action in half guard but Gracie is working away on the bottom, looking perhaps to get back to full guard.
Helson Gracie has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Gracie moves into full guard.

Gracie has an active guard here but Contras has managed to pass into half guard.

Contras is trying a forearm choke… I don't think that's going to do much at this level of the game.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Gracie wants to control but Contras passes into side.
Gracie is trying to get back to his feet.
Gracie looks to move to half guard but instead Contras has passed into mount! Damn!

Contras is standing up out of mount! Strange tactic there - he must really want this one on the feet!

That's four minutes gone in the round.
There's not a lot going on here and the crowd are letting the fighters know they're not willing to tolerate a lack of action.
Contras throws a series of strikes that have Gracie backpedaling.
Orion Contras is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Gracie fails with a takedown attempt.
Gracie misses the shot to the body.
A clash of legs there as Contras blocks the low kick.
Contras went nuts there looking for a big combo counter but none of the flurry connected.
Gracie throws a leg kick
and Contras makes him pay by landing a nice hook to the body before moving out of range.
Contras moves out of range of the body kick from Gracie.
Good leg kick by Contras there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.
Contras goes to the watering hole and comes back with a big thumbs up from the judges as he scores a three punch combo.
Contras connects with a body shot that sends Gracie's belly button to the back.
Contras ducks under a wild hook from Gracie.

And that's the end of the fight!
Orion Contras showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Contras, 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 Percy O'Donnell scores the fight 30:27
Judge Jack Bonds scores the fight 30:27
Judge Timothy Bukovac scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Orion Contras!