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PBP Commentary |
Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Cael Sanderson (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Gabriel Whitaker (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Sanderson comes to the cage accompanied by Not Affraid- Eminem. Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!
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| 183 cm
23
191 lbs
4 - 1 - 0 |
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185 cm
26
184 lbs
10 - 5 - 0 |
Good wrestling
Brawler
Very quick |
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Good wrestler
Counter fighter
Powerful |
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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
4 - 1 - 0, fighting out of New York, Cael Sanderson!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of
10 - 5 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Gabriel Whitaker!
The judges for this bout are , Timothy Bukovac and Jack Bonds.
The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Whitaker keeps the fight standing with a nice sprawl.
Sanderson misses with a hook to the body
and Whitaker counters with a nice double leg into side control. Sanderson won't be happy with that.
Whitaker tries for a kimura. Not really close to a finish though.
Whitaker wants to work for a kimura but he's foiled early by Sanderson, who protects the arm well.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Whitaker is trying to get an arm triangle but Sanderson is defending well.
Sanderson is looking for a sweep.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Whitaker is looking to finish here, going for an Americana. Sanderson knows the correct defense though, so he's OK.
Whitaker grinds an elbow into Sanderson's temple.
Whitaker working the strikes but Sanderson uses the opportunity to regain half guard.
Whitaker has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.
Whitaker is looking for a kimura here.
Whitaker seems to be looking for submissions.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Whitaker sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Sanderson defending well though.
Sanderson is looking to improve his position.
Whitaker missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
Sanderson wants to control but Whitaker is keeping busy and won't allow it.
Whitaker is working for a submission of some sort.
Whitaker is thinking about going for an arm triangle but he can't free his leg.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Whitaker is working for a kimura here but Sanderson manages to reverse the position and he's now in Whitaker's guard.
Sanderson avoids a guillotine attempt easily.
Whitaker looking for submissions from the bottom here. Moving his hips around, possibly looking for an armbar.
Whitaker has his foot on Sanderson's thigh. He's trying to push off and get in position for a triangle, I think. Sanderson works his way back into a safe position though.
Sanderson has to be careful here, sitting in the guard of a superior BJJ player.
Whitaker is looking for a guillotine. You can't force these things though and Sanderson defends well.
Sanderson trying to control the position from guard on top but Whitaker is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Sanderson showing good wrestling skills to control the position.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Whitaker keeping moving, preventing Sanderson from controlling successfully.
Whitaker looks to be working for a triangle here. Oh, it looks like he might have it! Sanderson has picked Whitaker up and slammed him! Whitaker can't keep hold of the triangle and Sanderson manages to pass to side control!
Whitaker is moving his hips around well on the bottom and has managed to get back to half guard.
Sanderson passes the half guard and he's now in mount! Big trouble for Whitaker!
Whitaker is trying to escape the mount.
Sanderson trying to control but Whitaker is having none of it.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Sanderson content just to control the position here.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.
Gabriel Whitaker dominated that round.
That's the end of the interval. I'm sure that seemed a lot quicker than a minute for our two fighters! Back to the action.
Sanderson misses with a shot to the body
and Whitaker counters with a shoot takedown. Sanderson fights it but they end up in guard.
Whitaker postures up as if he's going to throw some strikes but drops back for an ankle! Sanderson is in big trouble! He looks ready to tap! But no, he's escaped and dives on top of Whitaker, into his guard.
Whitaker is throwing his legs up, looking for submissions. Sanderson is aware though and is defending well.
Whitaker keeping full guard, as Sanderson tries to pass.
Sanderson postures up and lands some nice ground and pound.
Gabriel Whitaker has got the better of the ground game so far.
Sanderson has decided he wants to stand but the closed guard of Whitaker is proving hard to escape from.
Whitaker isolates an arm and boxes in a triangle. Sanderson stacks Whitaker 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 Sanderson!
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Sanderson stands up and beckons Whitaker to his feet.
Sanderson misses with a double jab
and Whitaker counters with a single leg into guard. Sanderson didn't expect that.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Sanderson wants to sweep here but Whitaker controlling him for the moment.
Whitaker drops back, looking for a kneebar! Sanderson looks panicked! The fighters roll across the mat, one looking to finish, one looking to escape. Sanderson looks to have wriggled free... Yes, he's got his leg free and he's dived into side control! Good work there from Sanderson!
Whitaker is positioning himself to get back to half guard.
Sanderson is looking to take a break and control but Whitaker is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Whitaker manages to work his way to half guard, despite Sanderson's best efforts.
Sanderson trying to control from half guard but Whitaker is working away.
Sanderson performing his best blanket impression for a moment.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Whitaker looking to work for a kimura from the bottom.
Sanderson moves into side control, avoiding a weak kimura attempt from Whitaker.
Sanderson blocks the strikes from Whitaker.
Whitaker is moving his hips around well on the bottom and has managed to get back to half guard.
Sanderson tries to stand but his hand is stuck under Whitaker.
Whitaker looking to work for a kimura from the bottom.
Sanderson wants to stand up but Whitaker is controlling the position.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sanderson missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
Sanderson blocks the strikes from Whitaker.
Sanderson works his foot free and advances to mount.
Whitaker is desperately trying to improve his position but Sanderson has a good base and remains in mount.
Sanderson looking to finish Whitaker with some ground and pound. This is bad for Whitaker!
Sanderson looking to control but Whitaker is working nicely, looking to advance position himself.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Whitaker throwing punches from his back but nothing is landing.
Sanderson trying to control but he's not successful this time.
Whitaker is looking to get to half guard.
Whitaker keeps trying to improve his position.
Sanderson is landing with some decent strikes but Whitaker is trying to advance his position so the referee is letting the fight continue.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Sanderson tucks in and makes sure he doesn't lose the dominant position.
Whitaker is in all sorts of trouble here.
Sanderson wants to control the pace but Whitaker is squirming around nicely.
Sanderson looking to finish Whitaker with some ground and pound. This is bad for Whitaker!
Sanderson fakes a shot to the body and cracks his opponent in the head. Nice ground and pound there!
Whitaker regains half guard.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Sanderson blocks the strikes from Whitaker.
Whitaker actively working from the bottom here.
Sanderson is trying to control. Whitaker wants to improve his position but can't escape this time.
Both fighters have adopted an aggressive gameplan on the ground!
Sanderson seems to have lost interest with the ground game and is thinking about standing back up.
Whitaker wants to get back to full guard.
Whitaker is looking to sinch up a guillotine here but Sanderson pulls his head out easily.
The referee walks around the fighters to get a better view of the action. Sanderson lands a nice short elbow.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.
Cael Sanderson dominated that second round.
The minute break is over - no more time for sponges and pep talks - back to the action! Let's get this one finished - here comes the final round!
A leg kick checked by Whitaker.
Whitaker drops down looking to force a counter takedown but Sanderson defends it well.
Horrible takedown attempt by Sanderson or perhaps it was just good defense by Whitaker, which made it look bad.
The sound of bone on bone echoes around the arena as Whitaker checks a leg kick.
And Whitaker tries to counter it with a takedown but Sanderson pushes his down on his head and steps out.
Sanderson seems to be moving with more speed, compared to his last bout. He must have been working on that in the gym.
Sanderson tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Whitaker was well out of range. Poor timing from Sanderson.
Sanderson misses with a wild body shot.
Whitaker is definitely looking for the counter takedowns here.
Sanderson swinging wildly here.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Sanderson throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
and Whitaker counters with a shoot takedown into half guard.
Sanderson gets back to full guard.
Sanderson avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
That's one minute gone in the round.
Whitaker drops back for a leg but he's not going to get it - he lets go and Sanderson dives on top into guard.
Sanderson decides he's had enough of playing guard and decides to stand. Come on Whitaker, up you get!
Sanderson misses the shot to the body.
Whitaker bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Sanderson throws a left and a right that both miss
and Whitaker counters with a single leg into guard. Sanderson didn't expect that.
Whitaker drops back for a leg but he's not going to get it - he lets go and Sanderson dives on top into guard.
Whitaker has his foot on Sanderson's thigh. He's trying to push off and get in position for a triangle, I think. Sanderson works his way back into a safe position though.
Sanderson chips away with some ground and pound.
Whitaker is working actively off his back, looking to secure an arm or perhaps work for a triangle.
That's two minutes gone in the round.
Sanderson has decided he wants to stand but the closed guard of Whitaker is proving hard to escape from.
Sanderson decides to stand up and beckons his opponent to follow.
Sanderson throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Sanderson looks for a takedown here. Will he get it? Whitaker is fending him off so far but Sanderson persists. Nope, Whitaker circles away and we're back to standing.
Sanderson misses with a combination
and Whitaker counters with a takedown into side control.
Whitaker goes for an armbar here - this could be all over! But no, Sanderson has escaped beautifully and is now on top in side control! Oh, that's unlucky for Whitaker but great work by Sanderson.
Sanderson scores with a couple of nice shots to the head there. The referee takes a look at Whitaker to see if he's OK.
Sanderson decides to take the fight back to the feet.
Sanderson swings wildly with a couple of big hooks
so Whitaker counters with a double leg into guard. Good agility.
That's three minutes gone in the round.
Sanderson utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Sanderson preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.
Whitaker drops back for a leg but he's not going to get it - he lets go and Sanderson dives on top into guard.
Sanderson trying to control the position from guard on top but Whitaker is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Sanderson is looking to work some ground and pound but Whitaker has wrist control.
Sanderson wants to control from the top but Whitaker keeps moving.
Sanderson tries to stand but Whitaker is controlling from the bottom.
Whitaker looking for submissions off his back, moving his hips, looking for an opening.
Whitaker looking for submissions from the bottom here. Moving his hips around, possibly looking for an armbar.
That's four minutes gone in the round.
Sanderson trying to control but Whitaker is working from the bottom.
Whitaker wants to sweep here but Sanderson controlling him for the moment.
Sanderson slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.
Sanderson postures up and lands some nice ground and pound.
Sanderson scoring with some ground and pound.
Sanderson stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Whitaker swivels though and keeps the full guard.
Whitaker looking for submissions off his back, moving his hips, looking for an opening.
Whitaker keeping moving, preventing Sanderson from controlling successfully.
And that's the end of the fight!
I would just about give that final round to Gabriel Whitaker.
I think Whitaker 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 Percy O'Donnell scores the fight 29:28
Judge Timothy Bukovac scores the fight 28:29
Judge Jack Bonds scores the fight 29:28
In favor of your winner, by split decision... Cael Sanderson!
A relieved looking Cael Sanderson thanked the fans for their support and gave the usual line about them being amazing. They seemed to believe that he actually meant it.
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| S |
C
A |
G |
S |
C
B |
G |
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S |
C |
G |
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energy
A | B |
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hype
A | B |
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pop
A | B |
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mgr
A | B |
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FIGHT
RATING
39% |
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