PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Kid Caskey (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Ezekiel Hughes (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Both these guys have solid standup skills and neither is particularly fantastic on the ground, so let's hope for a nice standup war!

Caskey
vs
Hughes

198 cm
30
215 lbs
8 - 7 - 0

188 cm
24
215 lbs
4 - 4 - 0

Powerful takedowns
Excellent MT
Cardio machine

BJJ Purple Belt
Excellent boxer
Heavy handed

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the light heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 8 - 7 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Kid Caskey!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 4 - 4 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Ezekiel Hughes!
The judges for this bout are Frank Antenori, Timothy Bukovac and .

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Hughes throws a sloppy head kick and Caskey moves out of range easily.
As Hughes backs away, Caskey returns fire with a leg kick that just misses.
Caskey misses with a low kick.
Hughes looked like he wanted to counter with a punch but didn't throw it.
Caskey is looking to score with low kicks.
Some bone on bone action there as Hughes checks a low kick. Luckily it wasn't a particularly hard one.
Caskey stuffs the takedown.
Hughes tries a head kick but it misses.
Caskey chopping away at his opponent's legs.
Hughes motions for Caskey to come forward. Hughes throws a leg kick but it misses it's target.
Hughes looks to land a combination but Caskey avoids it well.
Caskey tried to counter with a leg kick but Hughes avoided it.
Caskey definitely looks more muscular than last time we saw him fight.
Hughes will need to tighten up his combinations if he doesn't want to gas himself out, swinging at thin air.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
A solid body kick from Hughes.
Caskey is looking to take this fight into the clinch.
Hughes is looking for the big counter here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hughes fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
A solid body kick from Caskey.

Caskey lands a big head kick that sends Hughes tumbling to the mat! Caskey takes a step backwards and waves Hughes back to his feet - he wants the finish!

It looks like Ezekiel Hughes has been cut.
Hughes throws a sloppy head kick and Caskey moves out of range easily.
Caskey appeared to be looking to counter that last move with a leg kick.
Hughes fakes high and shoots in for a takedown but Caskey avoids it really well and circles away.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Caskey thumps Hughes with a low kick.
Hughes fails with a takedown attempt.
Kid Caskey has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Ezekiel Hughes.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Caskey throws a decent looking leg kick but it doesn't land clean.

Caskey lands a big head kick that sends Hughes tumbling to the mat! Caskey takes a step backwards and waves Hughes back to his feet - he wants the finish!
The fight stays on the outside here - Caskey looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Hughes tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Hughes fails in his attempt to clinch.
Caskey throws a leg kick which misses Hughes's front leg but catches the back leg as Hughes tries to avoid it.
Hughes throws a series of punches but Caskey avoids them all with ease.
It appears Caskey was looking to counter with a kick there.
A head kick misses from Caskey.
Caskey has his head snapped back a nice jab. A little nod from Caskey there as he acknowledges the shot.
Caskey misses with a looping left.
Hughes is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Caskey.
Caskey thinks about countering with a body kick.
Caskey tries to work over Hughes's front leg with a kick but Hughes checks it.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
An inside leg kick from Hughes misses.
Caskey cracks the inside of Hughes's front leg.
Hughes checks a leg kick nicely.
Hughes looks like he wants to counter punch here.
Hughes throws a looping overhand right but Caskey ducks down to avoid it.
Hughes finds nothing but air with that leg kick attempt.
Caskey pivots, looking for a leg kick but Hughes is out of range and Caskey settles back down.
This fight brought to you by 5M nutrition - it's mmmmm tasty. Nice jab by Hughes.

It looks like Kid Caskey has been cut.
A punch lands to the side of Caskey 's head but he takes it in his stride.
Hughes dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Caskey. That did some damage!
Caskey takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.
Caskey lands a nice leg kick that just misses Hughes's sensitive parts.
Caskey moves into range and lands a nice body kick.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Hughes pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Kid Caskey is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Caskey tries to score with a leg kick but it misses it's target.
Caskey dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Hughes. That did some damage!
This has been an exciting period of action!
Hughes throws a nice outside leg kick.
An inside leg kick from Caskey misses.
Caskey wants to land a leg kick but Hughes is out of range.
Caskey misses with a head kick.
Caskey needs to keep his hands up - Hughes had a free shot at his head there.
Caskey will need to close the distance a bit before he attacks - that leg kick was thrown from too far away.
Caskey misses with a low kick.
Caskey walks forward and throws out a flicking leg kick. Hughes checks it nicely though, as he moves to the side.
Hughes tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Caskey showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Hughes.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Kid Caskey dominated that round.
Both fighters have cut men working on them during the interval.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action.

Hughes avoids a low kick by using good footwork.
Hughes avoids a kick to the body.
Caskey looking to land some kicks to the body here.
Hughes is trying to counter with his kicks.
Danga de danga de dang - Hughes scores with a four punch combination!
Hughes tries to clinch
and Caskey counters with a leg kick.
Caskey tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Hughes does a little shimmy and throws a leg kick. The leg kick missed by a considerable margin though, making him look a little bit silly for doing the shimmy.
Caskey turns his hip over beautifully as he lands a nice leg kick.
Hughes throws the kick towards the body but Caskey avoids it.
Caskey was looking to counter that move with a punch but didn't quite pull the trigger.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hughes pulls out of a head kick attempt.
Caskey is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Hughes can do to turn this around?
Hughes misses with a few strikes there.
Hughes takes a head kick and keeps coming.
Hughes throws a body kick but he was well out of range there.
Ezekiel Hughes seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A nice leg kick lands there from Caskey.
Hughes shoots in for a takedown but doesn't get it.
Both these guys seem content to just stand up and trade with eachother but Hughes might want to think about changing up his gameplan a bit because over the course of the fight, Caskey has got the better of the exchanges.
Hughes throws a head kick that misses

and Caskey decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Hughes's guard.
Caskey wants to control from the top but Hughes keeps moving.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Hughes wants to control the position but Caskey says "no thanks buddy" and passes to half guard.
Hughes is trying to maintain the position but Caskey is very close to passing his half guard.
Hughes felt the need to train up his defensive grappling in the buildup to the fight. Presumably he was expecting to be in a difficult position like this, so let's see if he can get out of it.
Hughes is refusing to be controlled, as Caskey sits in half guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Caskey looks over to his corner - he wants some instructions but his corner are not responding.
The referee is asking the fighters to pick up the pace.
Hughes moves his hips nicely and gets into full guard.
Caskey stands up and looks to throw the legs aside to pass to side control. Hughes swivels though and keeps the full guard.
You can see that Hughes has visibly slowed down as a result of the leg kicks
Caskey wants to control from the top but Hughes keeps moving.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Caskey misses with a right hand
and Hughes counters with a good low kick that Caskey was not able to check.
Hughes's leg has a nasty welt from taking a succession of leg kicks. That must be slowing him down.
Hughes chopped to the floor by a nice leg kick but he springs right back up before Caskey can pounce on him.

Hughes darts in and clinches Caskey up against the cage.
Hughes gets through Caskey's defenses to land a nice punch to the side of the head.

The fighters are starting to perspire pretty heavily.
Caskey pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Hughes fakes a head shot and lands one to the body.
Hughes misses with a half-hearted attempt at a head kick.
Hughes misses with a body shot.
Caskey goes for a spinning back kick but it misses.
Caskey throws a front kick that sends Hughes stumbling back into the cage.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Caskey avoids a punch combination nicely.
As Hughes backs away, Caskey returns fire with a leg kick that just misses.
Caskey with a nice looking leg kick. You could hear that one land in a back row.
Caskey avoids the body shot from Hughes.
A bone on bone clash there as Caskey blocks the leg kick.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Hughes looks to land a left hand but Caskey moved out of range nicely.
Caskey avoids the head kick by Hughes.
Caskey tries a head kick but it misses.
Hughes thinks about the counter body kick.
Caskey ducks right into an uppercut from Hughes.
Hughes connects with a lovely jab that went straight through the gap between Caskey's hands.
Caskey drops his hands and takes a jab to the jaw for his troubles.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close second round but Ezekiel Hughes will probably get the nod - 10:9.
Both fighters have cut men working on them during the interval.
Well, the break between rounds is over. Let's get back to the scrappin! This is the final round!

Hughes lands a really nice looking cross but Caskey seems unphased.
Caskey looks to land a body kick but Hughes moved away.
Caskey throws the kick towards the body but Hughes avoids it.
Hughes appears to be waiting to throw a counter punch to the body.
Hughes connects with an inside leg kick.
Caskey moves his head to the side to avoid a jab but walks straight into a cross.
Caskey throws a low kick but his opponent is out of range.
Caskey fakes with a right hand and throws a good leg kick, right into the thigh. That had to hurt Hughes.
Hughes fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Caskey feinted there with a counter leg kick.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hughes scores with a shot to the body.
Caskey throws a lazy uppercut
and Hughes counters with an outside leg kick.
Hughes throws a head kick but Caskey moves out of range.
Caskey is looking to score with low kicks.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Caskey wants to slow Hughes down by chopping away at his legs.
Hughes throws a leg kick which misses Caskey's front leg but catches the back leg as Caskey tries to avoid it.
Hughes throws a lazy head kick
and Caskey counters with a slapping leg kick.
Caskey goes for a spinning back kick but it misses.
Caskey misses with a body kick.
Kid Caskey is winning the standup battle so far.
Caskey displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Hughes throws out the jab.
Caskey lands with a nice low kick. That'll leave a bruise.
Like a baseball bat into the meat of his leg there - nice leg kick by Hughes.
Hughes feints and then cracks Caskey's leading leg with a nice low kick. He's obviously looking to slow Caskey down.
Hughes attempts a leg kick but it's missed by a good margin.
Hughes avoids a low kick by using good footwork.
An inside leg kick from Caskey misses.
Hughes swings away with a counter right hand but no contact made.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Hughes throws a lazy uppercut
and Caskey counters with a thumping low kick.
Hughes takes a nasty kick to the mid section... That should keep him thinking. Does he try and block and risk a head kick landing?
Hughes takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
Caskey cracks Hughes with a nice right hand that draws applause from the crowd.
Hughes looks to land a combination but Caskey avoids it well.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Caskey throws a half hearted mid kick.
Hughes fakes and then throws a beautiful body shot. Caskey looks a bit winded and takes a step backwards to take a breath.
Hughes tries to check a leg kick but that clearly hurt him.
A nice inside leg kick there by Hughes. That's going to slow Caskey down.
Caskey misses with a low kick.
Hughes looks like he wants to counter punch here.
Hughes lunges at Caskey with a hook that half lands and is half blocked by Caskey's hand.
Hughes avoids the head kick by Caskey.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hughes checks a low kick from Caskey.
Despite the aggression on Hughes's face he doesn't fully commit to the counter.
Hughes shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Caskey but Caskey pushes him off and we're back to square one.
Caskey tries to work over Hughes's front leg with a kick but Hughes checks it.
Hughes lands a nice hook to Caskey's body. Caskey takes it in his stride and looks to land his own strikes.
Caskey scores with a spinning back kick!
A solid leg kick lands there for Caskey.
Caskey on the receiving end of a decent leg kick there by Hughes. Hughes obviously looking to wear him down.
Ezekiel Hughes is looking to throw some combinations by the looks of things.
Caskey looks to land a body kick but Hughes moved away.
A right-left combo lands from Hughes.
Hughes looks for a takedown here. Will he get it? Caskey is fending him off so far but Hughes persists. Nope, Caskey circles away and we're back to standing.

Caskey closes the distance and clinches.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Hughes tries to pull guard but Caskey forces him back to his feet, against the cage.
Kid Caskey has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Ezekiel Hughes.
The pace really dropping off here, momentarily.

Hughes escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.
A low kick from Hughes misses
enabling Caskey to counter with a crisp jab.

That has opened up Ezekiel Hughes's cut even more.
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!
Caskey scores with a slapping inside leg kick.
Hughes has his front leg slapped to the side - a nice low kick landing there from Caskey.
Caskey takes a really solid shot there but just smiles back and shrugs his shoulders.
A combination from Hughes does no damage.

And that's the end of the fight!
That was a close round. You could make an argument for either fighter but I would give it to Kid Caskey.
I think Caskey 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 Frank Antenori scores the fight 28:29
Judge Timothy Bukovac scores the fight 29:29
Judge Percy O'Donnell scores the fight 30:29

The fight is ruled a draw!