PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a bantamweight MMA rules bout between Walter Rothko (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Isaiah Ferguson (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Walter Rothko has the better chin. Will he look to stand and bang today?

Rothko
vs
Ferguson

178 cm
33
147 lbs
12 - 22 - 0

165 cm
29
145 lbs
13 - 6 - 0

BJJ Brown Belt
Great elbows
Experienced

Good takedowns
Basic striking
Knockout power

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the bantamweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 12 - 22 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Walter Rothko !
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 13 - 6 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Isaiah Ferguson!
The judges for this bout are Daniel Franklin, Frank Dennis and Alan Glass.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Ferguson has his takedown stuffed

and Rothko holds on and brings the fighters into a clinch.
Rothko will no doubt start fighting again in a minute but for now he's just having a little rest, leaning Ferguson up against the cage.

Rothko works for the underhooks and manages to get a trip takedown into guard.

Rothko gets to his feet and steps away from his opponent.
Ferguson is trying hard to land a takedown here. Rothko sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Ferguson shoots in but Rothko avoids the takedown attempt easily.
Walter Rothko has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Isaiah Ferguson.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Rothko gets a takedown into half guard.
Rothko will need to keep those long limbs tucked in whilst he's on the ground, to prevent any submissions.
The referee calls for the fighters to work.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Rothko thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Ferguson's head.
Rothko has freed up his trapped foot and advances to mount.
Ferguson is in a horrible position here, under a barrage of strikes, he's managing to avoid any damage.

Rothko is standing up out of mount! Strange tactic there - he must really want this one on the feet!
Ferguson tries to drive through with a takedown attempt but Rothko defends well and Ferguson ends up having to push Rothko into the cage where they will battle it out in the clinch.
Ferguson has his takedown stuffed

and Rothko counters by moving into the clinch.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Ferguson is fighting off a takedown attempt but Rothko is just too persistent for him and manages to trip Ferguson to the mat. Ferguson regains guard as soon as the fighters hit the mat.
Rothko engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.
Ferguson keeping moving, preventing Rothko from controlling successfully.
Rothko slows down the pace of the fight, as he sits in guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Rothko works a leg free and moves into half guard.
Rothko stalling.
Rothko not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are hurling abuse towards the fighters... You can hardly blame them though because there isn't a lot going on in the fight.
Rothko seems content to maintain position for now, rather than mounting any offense.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.

Ferguson tries to keep at a distance but Rothko has taken the fight into the clinch.
Rothko content to slow the pace in the clinch.
Rothko lands a body punch in the clinch.
Ferguson jumps guard but Rothko stands there with Ferguson around his waist. Ferguson gives up and drops back to his feet. We remain in the clinch.
Ferguson jumps guard but his hands slip and he falls flat on his back. Well, he's made himself look a right mug there, as Rothko walks away with a smile on his face. Ferguson gets slowly back to his feet and shakes his head.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Ferguson is trying hard to land a takedown here. Rothko sprawls well and keeps this one on the feet.
Ferguson tries to drive through with a takedown attempt but Rothko defends well and Ferguson ends up having to push Rothko into the cage where they will battle it out in the clinch.
Rothko is looking to counter with a shot to the body.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

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

Ferguson tries to shoot in for a takedown. He's got hold of a leg but Rothko swivels and escapes.
Ferguson tries for a takedown but Rothko sees it coming a mile off and avoids it easily.

Rothko shoots in for a takedown and gets it.
Rothko works his way into full mount!
Rothko scoring with some good ground and pound from mount here. Will he manage to finish Ferguson?
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Rothko thuds his fist into the canvas! Oooouch!
Rothko is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Ferguson can do to turn this around?
Ferguson is in a horrible position here, under a barrage of strikes, he's managing to avoid any damage.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Rothko controlling the position easily from mount.
Rothko moves to the back.
Rothko keeps control of the position easily here as Ferguson tries to buck him off.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.
A lull in the action here.
Rothko controlling from the back.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Even with his hooks in, Rothko manages to miss with strikes from the back.
Rothko tries to keep control of the position but Ferguson is staying busy.
Rothko has the hooks sunk in and you can see the will to fight slowly draining out of Ferguson's body.
Rothko thows a huge left but connects with the canvas and not his opponent.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are showing their displeasure at the lack of action as loud boos ring out around the arena.
Rothko punches the canvas rather than the man.
Rothko has been looking to land a fair amount of strikes on the ground. He might be looking to soften his opponent up in order to work for a submission.

Rothko is working for the rear naked choke. He has one arm under the chin but Ferguson has hold of the other arm. A bit of a stalemate here.
Ferguson wants to escape the position.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Rothko is controlling the position but Ferguson somehow manages to roll and ends up with half guard.
Rothko not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Walter Rothko dominated that second round.
That's time! Back to the action! Ladies and gentlemen, this is the final round!

Nice takedown defense from Rothko . No joy for Ferguson on that attempt.
Nice takedown defense from Rothko . No joy for Ferguson on that attempt.
Ferguson shoots in looking for a double leg takedown. Rothko defends it nicely.
It looked like Rothko was looking amped, ready to throw a big counter but didn't commit.
Walter Rothko has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Isaiah Ferguson.
Ferguson dives in and grabs Rothko 's left leg, looking for a takedown. Rothko pushes down on Ferguson's head and hops out.

Rothko gets the takedown into side control.

Rothko stands up and beckons Ferguson to his feet.
Ferguson with a lazy takedown attempt

and Rothko counters into the clinch. Nicely done.
Rothko is stalling here. The referee will be looking to step in if he doesn't pick up the pace.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.

Rothko has double underhooks and is working for a body lock takedown. He's got it. The fighters land in half guard but Ferguson regains guard immediately.
Ferguson keeping moving, preventing Rothko from controlling successfully.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Rothko is going to have to think about doing something other than just controlling because Ferguson is managing to avoid having the position dictated to him.

Ferguson is working for submissions here. He's thrown up his legs looking for a triangle but Rothko frees his head nicely. Oh but Ferguson has switched to an armbar! Rothko is tapping furiously! Lovely submission there!

Ladies and gentlemen, after 1:41 of round 3, we have a winner by way of Submission (Triangle Armbar). Isaiah Ferguson!
As Isaiah Ferguson got his breath back, he grabbed the microphone and managed to blurt out the following: im definatly #comingbackstronger'.