PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a featherweight MMA rules bout between Fransino Tirta (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Alex Alvarez (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Both fighters look fresh as a daisy as they make their way towards the cage.

Tirta
vs
Alvarez

166 cm
23
145 lbs
5 - 5 - 0

165 cm
22
146 lbs
4 - 3 - 0

Abu Dhabi Champ
World class MT
Experienced

Excellent grappler
Excellent MT
Granite chin

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 5 - 5 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Fransino Tirta!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 4 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Amsterdam, Alex Alvarez!
The judges for this bout are Sosuke Kotani, Shigeki Fujiwara and Yuuki Gou.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Tirta takes a body punch that cleary hurt but he's trying not to show any weakness.
Alvarez lunges in with an uppercut that skims his opponent's chin.

Alvarez shoots in for a takedown! He's got it and he's managed to land in side control! That's better than Alvarez was expecting from the takedown attempt, I'm sure!
Alvarez in side control, trying to ground and pound but not landing this time.
Alvarez tries to land with some ground and pound but misses.
Alvarez trying to control the position but Tirta is working away.
Tirta tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Tirta sneaks a leg under to get back to half guard.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Alvarez thows a huge punch but Tirta dodges it nicely.
Tirta is concentrating on defense, preventing Alvarez from advancing position.
Tirta wants to control the action here but instead Alvarez manages to pass to full mount!
Tirta is in a horrible position here, under a barrage of strikes, he's managing to avoid any damage.
Tirta is desperately trying to get back to half guard.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Tirta has been talking about how he's improved his wrestling in the run up to the fight so let's see if that's enough to sway the balance.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Tirta wants to control but Alvarez is having none of it.

Alvarez is in full mount, looking to secure a guillotine but Tirta is surviving well by controlling Alvarez's body position as best he can.
Alvarez looking to finish with strikes here!
Tirta stops Alvarez from taking his back. Still, being mounted isn't any better.
Alvarez putting on the heat here with some good ground and pound!
Tirta is trying desperately to improve position.
Tirta tries to lock up and control but Alvarez gives him a forearm to the face and pushes him away.
Alvarez landing strikes from the mount.
Alvarez punching from mount but Tirta doing a good job of avoiding damage.
Tirta is in all sorts of trouble here.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Alvarez looks like he's working for a submission but he's not found anything just yet.
Tirta wants to hold on but Alvarez pushes him away.
Tirta bucks up and manages to get a nice reversal! He's in guard on the top - nicely done!
Our spies down at at WHATprivate inform us that Alvarez has really been working on his submissions in the buildup to this fight. Will it pay off?
Tirta stopping the sweep attempt from Alvarez.
Alvarez controls Tirta momentarily but Tirta frees himself.
Tirta stopping the sweep attempt from Alvarez.
Alvarez looking to control.
Alvarez looking for a sweep. Not yet Alvarez, not yet.
Alvarez keeping full guard, as Tirta tries to pass.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Tirta drops back, looking for a kneebar! Alvarez looks panicked! The fighters roll across the mat, one looking to finish, one looking to escape. Alvarez looks to have wriggled free... Yes, he's got his leg free and he's dived into side control! Good work there from Alvarez!

Alvarez advances nicely into full mount.
Tirta tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Tirta holding onto his opponent's waist for dear life, as Alvarez tries to land some strikes to get him to release his grip.

Alvarez working to secure an arm triangle but it's not happening for him just yet.
Tirta tries to hold on but Alvarez pushes him away.
Tirta is looking to improve his position but Alvarez isn't that keen on the idea.
Alvarez trying to control but he's not successful this time.
Alvarez throwing strikes here but Tirta is writhing around nicely and avoiding any serious damage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Tirta is working to get back to half guard.
Tirta wriggling around on the bottom manages to avoid the strikes thrown by Alvarez.
Alvarez throwing sloppy strikes here. Perhaps if he tightened up his striking from such a dominant position, he'd be able to finish easier.
Tirta gets back to half guard.
Alvarez throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Tirta is not content to let Alvarez control the position.

Tirta looking for submissions from an awkward position here.
Alvarez throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
The fighters are battling for position here. Tirta manages to regain full guard. Nice work.
Alvarez with a flurry of punches that miss.
Alvarez wants to control from the top but Tirta keeps moving.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Alex Alvarez dominated that round.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action!

Tirta keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Alvarez misses with a hook

and Tirta holds on and brings the fighters into a clinch.
A short left from Alvarez.
Alvarez misses with a body punch.
Tirta blocking some punches.
Alvarez throws a head punch that misses.
Tirta is trying to stall.
Alvarez tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Alvarez takes an elbow to the forehead.
Alvarez misses with a punch on the inside.
Alvarez tries a body shot but Tirta blocks it.
Alvarez avoids a wild elbow strike from Tirta.
Nice elbow from Tirta.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Alvarez lands a short shot on the inside that snaps the head of Tirta backwards.
Tirta lands an elbow inside.
Tirta lands a nice elbow from the clinch.
Alvarez tries to land a shot to the body but it's blocked.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Alvarez misses with a short punch on the inside.
Tirta is working Alvarez over against the cage.
Tirta scores with an uppercut up the middle.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Alvarez lands a right hand.
Alvarez swings away with an uppercut that misses.
The two fighters are working to gain dominance in the clinch.
Tirta blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Tirta.
Tirta throws a blind hook that connects with the side of Alvarezs head.
Tirta blocks a body shot from Alvarez.
Tirta comes over the top with an elbow. That landed flush.
Tirta throws an elbow that misses.
Alvarez swings wildly with an uppercut but Tirta uses good head movement to avoid it.
Tirta blocks an uppercut.
Tirta blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Alvarez throws a head punch that misses.
A nice right hand lands inside from Alvarez.
Tirta is leaning against Alvarez and scores with a nice uppercut to the body.
Alvarez misses with a short punch on the inside.
Tirta comes over the top with an elbow. That landed flush.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Alvarez has a couple of punches blocked by Tirta.
Alvarez swings away with an uppercut that misses.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Tirta throws an elbow but it misses.
Alvarez lands punches inside but they're not really causing much damage.
Tirta pushes off and fires off an elbow that misses, before clinching up again, against the cage.
Alvarez tries to land a knee to the head but misses.
Still in the clinch, Tirta scores with a nice short uppercut.
Alvarez has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Tirta blocks an uppercut.
A shot in the inside from Tirta.
Alvarez takes a shot to the head.
Tirta works for underhooks and lands a body shot in the process.
A quick uppercut on the inside from Tirta.
Tirta goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Alvarez tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Alvarez blocks an elbow strike.
Alvarez lands a body shot in the clinch.
Tirta lands a nice elbow from the clinch.
Good anti-grappling being displayed by Alvarez as Tirta tries to tie him up.
Tirta blocking some punches.
Tirta looking to stall.
Tirta lands a nice elbow from the clinch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Alvarez lands a body punch.
Tirta misses with a punch to the body.
Tirta gets an overhook and lands an elbow to the side of the head.
Tirta tries to work over Alvarez's body with a swooping hook but it only glances the target.
Tirta misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Alvarez blocks an elbow strike from Tirta.
Alvarez working aggressively here.
Tirta gets through Alvarez's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.
Come on Tirta - let's have some action - none of this stalling nonsense.
Alvarez misses with a punch on the inside.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Alvarez.
Alvarez misses with a shot to the kidneys.
Tirta blocks an uppercut.
Tirta doesn't land with the attempted body shot.
Tirta is working hard here but doesn't seem to be able to control effectively, up against the cage.
A right hook to the body lands for Tirta.
Tirta throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Alvarez fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Alvarez swings wildly with an uppercut but Tirta uses good head movement to avoid it.
Tirta lands an elbow just above Alvarez 's eye.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Alvarez.
Tirta pushes off an throws an elbow but Alvarez leans to the side and avoids it. We're back to clinching against the cage.
Tirta blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Alvarez misses with the head strike.
Tirta prevents a body shot from Alvarez.
Tirta throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.
Tirta misses with an elbow over the top.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Tirta trying to control the position but instead, Alvarez has worked for underhooks and has pushed Tirta into the cage.
Tirta throws an elbow but it misses.
Tirta lands a nice elbow.
Tirta blocks a couple of punches on the inside.
Tirta prevents a body shot from Alvarez.
Tirta pushes off and fires off an elbow that misses, before clinching up again, against the cage.
Alvarez working aggressively here.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Fransino Tirta dominated that second round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business. This is the final round!

Alvarez keeps the fight standing with a nice sprawl.
Alvarez with the counter takedown but Tirta avoids it easily.
Alvarez fails with a rather predictable takedown attempt.
Alvarez throws a leg kick but Tirta checks it.
Tirta throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Alvarez's waist but Alvarez gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Tirta off to one side.
Alvarez walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. Tirta checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.
Alvarez throws a leg kick that is checked

and Tirta counters with a single leg into guard. Alvarez didn't expect that.
Tirta tries to free his leg and advance position but Alvarez is retaining full guard.
Alvarez controls Tirta momentarily but Tirta frees himself.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Tirta preventing the sweep.
Tirta looking to pass the guard.
Alvarez is doing well to control the posture of his opponent and prevent any damage.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Tirta trying to control but Alvarez is working from the bottom.
Tirta is going to have to think about doing something other than just controlling because Alvarez is managing to avoid having the position dictated to him.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Alvarez is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Nice uppercut there from Alvarez.
Alvarez keeps the fight on the outside.
Tirta tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. Alvarez manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
Alvarez misses with a looping left.
Alvarez lands the left hand.
Tirta misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Fransino Tirta. That's going to take a lot out of him.

Alvarez has managed to clinch.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Alvarez dodges an elbow strike from Tirta.
Tirta works for underhooks and lands a body shot in the process.
Tirta comes over the top with an elbow. That landed flush.
Alvarez can't find room to land a body shot as Tirta controls the action.
Tirta pushes off and fires off an elbow that misses, before clinching up again, against the cage.
Alvarez blocks a body shot from Tirta.
Alvarez lands a nice uppercut.
Tirta blocks a punch to the side of the head.
Alvarez takes an elbow to the temple.
Tirta lands an elbow inside.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Alvarez takes an elbow to the temple.
Tirta blocks a body shot from Alvarez.
Alvarez lands with a short punch from the clinch.
Fransino Tirta has scored more points in the clinch so far.
Alvarez lands on the inside with an uppercut.
Tirta misses with an elbow over the top.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Tirta creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.
A bit of stalling here from Tirta.
A short body shot lands from Tirta as the two fighters clinch.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Tirta lands an elbow inside that Alvarez shrugs off.
Tirta lands an elbow that stopped Alvarez in his tracks for a moment.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Alvarez.
A nice right hand lands inside from Alvarez.
Alvarez throws a hook to the body. More of an arm punch but it's all scoring with the judges.
Tirta tries a body shot but Alvarez blocks it.
Tirta is trying to stall.
Alvarez throws a head punch that misses.
Alvarez blocks an elbow strike from Tirta.
Tirta lands an elbow inside.
Alvarez trying to land knees to the body.
Tirta lands a glancing elbow in the clinch.
A short right from Tirta on the inside.
Alvarez avoids a wild elbow strike from Tirta.
Tirta working some nice short punches in the clinch.
Alvarez misses with a punch to the body.
Alvarez lands a body punch.
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!
Tirta throws an elbow but it's blocked.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Tirta takes a shot to the head.
Alvarez throws a punch but it's blocked by Tirta.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Alvarez.
Both guys are working to get underhooks.
Alvarez lands a body punch.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Alvarez.
Tirta throws a nice elbow but it doesn't land.
Alvarez misses with a hook from the clinch.
Tirta blocking some punches.
Alvarez can't find room to land a body shot as Tirta controls the action.
Alvarez tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Alvarez misses with the head strike.
Tirta working aggressively here.
Tirta creates a bit of distance and throws an elbow that only just misses.
A short right hand to the side of the head by Alvarez.
Tirta misses with a shot to the kidneys.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Alvarez.
Alvarez scores with a hook to the body.
Tirta blocks an uppercut.

And that's the end of the fight!
I would just about give that final round to Alex Alvarez.
I think Alvarez has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. 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 Sosuke Kotani scores the fight 29:28
Judge Shigeki Fujiwara scores the fight 28:29
Judge Yuuki Gou scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by split decision... Alex Alvarez!
After the fight, Alex Alvarez was humble in paying tribute to his opponent but made it clear he wants to go on to bigger and better things. It seemed to go down well with the crowd who cheered him loudly.