PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Graham Masterton (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Rick Sampson (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Sampson comes into a darkened arena with his song building. "Off the Chain" by Serg Salinas kicks in, the lights come on and the crowd goes wild! What a showman! Graham Masterton has a significant reach advantage - let's see if he can make it count.

Masterton
vs
Sampson

201 cm
18
257 lbs
0 - 1 - 0

179 cm
32
252 lbs
0 - 17 - 0

Good wrestling
Brawler
Very strong

BJJ Blue Belt
Good kicks
Knockout power

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the heavyweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 0 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Graham Masterton!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 17 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Rick Sampson!
The judges for this bout are Timothy Bukovac, Jack Bonds and .

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Masterton stuffs a takedown. It's all about dictating where the fight takes place and Masterton wants it to stay on the feet.
Masterton loads up on a big right hand but Sampson slips the punch.
Masterton swinging wildly here.

Masterton closes the distance and clinches up, looking for a takedown. He shifts his weight and gets a nice trip into half guard.
Sampson looks winded!
Masterton content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Sampson has hold of Masterton's hands but Masterton slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
Sampson is looking to regain full guard. Not this time though.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Sampson is looking to control Masterton's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Sampson avoid being mounted?
Masterton is taking a breather. Sampson says something to him but it's hard to make out. Perhaps he's telling him to get on with it and actually do something.
Masterton is looking to advance position but Sampson won't allow it.
Masterton thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Sampson's head.
Neither fighter is being very active at the moment, with Masterton in particular looking to stall.
Sampson won't allow Masterton to pass to mount.
Masterton thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
The referee calls for the fighters to work.
Masterton throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.

Masterton decides to stand and escape the position.

That's two 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.

Masterton drives through with a really nice takedown into side control.

Sampson throws Masterton to one side and escapes!

Sampson tries to sprawl but Masterton drives through with a takedown into half guard.
Still in half guard, Masterton seems content to control.
Masterton lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.
Masterton content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.

Masterton decides to return to a standing position.
Sampson avoids the head kick by Masterton.

Masterton drives through with a really nice takedown into side control.
Masterton fails to land a wild elbow strike.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Masterton stands up and we're back to a striking position.

Masterton closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.
Masterton prevents Sampson from breaking the clinch.
Masterton has had enough of the clinch and is looking to separate.
Masterton stalling.
Masterton is trying to push Sampson away but Sampson has him pressed against the cage, so he's going nowhere.
Come on Masterton - let's have some action - none of this stalling nonsense.
Masterton tries to pull guard but can't drag his opponent to the mat. Sampson just stands there and leans against the cage.

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.
Masterton jumps guard but Sampson turns him against the cage and keeps the fight standing.
Masterton is looking to control Sampson's arms but Sampson gets an underhook and turns him. Now Masterton has his back to the cage.
Sampson stops a takedown attempt from Masterton.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Graham Masterton. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Masterton is working on a leg, looking for a takedown but Sampson is defending well.
Masterton is working for takedown but Sampson is calmly controlling the position for now.
Masterton has had enough of the clinch and is looking to separate.
Masterton working aggressively here.
A battle for position here, against the cage.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Graham Masterton dominated that round.
The referee calls time. The cornermen exit stage left and we're back to business.

Sampson will have to do better than that with his takedown attempts.

Masterton bobs and weaves into range and then changes levels and scores with a nice takedown into side control.

Masterton tries for an arm triangle. That looks pretty tight to me. Is this one over!?! Possibly, maybe, no Masterton has let go of the choke. Obviously it wasn't as tight as we thought!
Sampson seems a little lost for a moment, as Masterton dominates the positioning.
Masterton tries to advance to mount but Sampson denies him.
Masterton throws a knee to the body but it doesn't do much damage.
Masterton postures up a little and throws a couple of hammerfists but they don't connect properly.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Sampson is letting Masterton control him for a moment.
Sampson is breathing heavily.
Masterton looking to punish the body of his opponent here but Sampson is avoiding damage well.
Sampson is not in a great position here, taking some shots.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Sampson trying to remain calm as Masterton controls from the top position.

Masterton stands up and we're back to a striking position.
Masterton tries to clinch but Sampson is having none of it.
Masterton is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Sampson can do to turn this around?
Masterton dodges the punch combination from Sampson.
Masterton lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Sampson circles away quickly and effectively.

Masterton shoots in and gets a takedown into half guard. Masterton showed some decent athleticism there.
Masterton controlling the action here.
Sampson trying to hold on to Masterton's head to control him but Masterton postures up.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Masterton perhaps working for something from half guard, or maybe not. It looks like he's just sitting there.
Masterton scoring with strikes to the body and head.
Masterton controlling the action here.
Masterton thows a huge punch but Sampson dodges it nicely.

Masterton is looking for an arm triangle, whilst trying to pass to side control. Sampson doesn't seem that keen to cooperate though. No luck this time Masterton.
Sampson trying to hold on to Masterton's head to control him but Masterton postures up.

That's three minutes gone in the round.

Masterton is thinking about going for an arm triangle but he can't free his leg.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Masterton sitting and controlling from the half guard.
Sampson 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.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Masterton trying to pass the guard but Sampson defending well.

Masterton is looking for a kimura but he's never going to get it from there.
Still in half guard, Masterton seems content to control.
The referee wants the fighters to be more active or he's going to reset them on the feet.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
My god... these two guys really need to pick up the pace or everyone will leave to go get a beer.
Sampson scores with a nice one two combo and darts back out of range to avoid anything coming in the opposite direction.
Sampson lands with a two punch combination before moving back out of range.

Masterton looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into side control! Oh, that's bad for Sampson!
Sampson is working to avoid the ground and pound but Masterton connects with a decent elbow.
Sampson takes a couple of big shots there - the referee warns him that he has to defend himself better.

Masterton thinks about going for a far side armbar but bails out and retains the dominant position instead.
You can see the frustration on Sampson's face as Masterton controls the position.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.

Masterton stands up and we're back to a striking position.

Masterton shoots in with a lovely double leg takedown. Sampson manages to land in full guard to minimise the damage.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Graham Masterton dominated that second round.
That's time! Back to the action! This is the final round!

Masterton fakes a strike and closes the distance, dragging Sampson to the ground. Masterton is now in Sampson's guard.
Sampson controls Masterton momentarily but Masterton frees himself.
Masterton working some strikes from top position.
Masterton sitting in guard, not really doing much.
Sampson takes a big intake of breath there - he's definitely tired.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Sampson trying to control the position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Masterton stays in close to Sampson's body and controls the position.
We must be close to a standup if these guys don't pick up the pace.
Masterton trying to stand up but can't free himself from Sampson's guard.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.
Masterton throws a head kick but Sampson moves out of range.

Masterton gets a double leg takedown into Sampson's guard.
Sampson trying to control the position.
Sampson thows some rabbit punches from the bottom but they don't do any damage.
Masterton content to strike from guard, landing some decent shots.
Sampson controls Masterton momentarily but Masterton frees himself.
Masterton seems content to control from guard here. He's going to have to remain active though if he doesn't want to get stood back up.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Sampson not looking particularly offensive just at the moment.
Sampson has a closed guard, preventing Masterton from standing up.
The referee is pacing around the two fighters - he looks like he's thinking about a standup.

Masterton gets to his feet - Sampson follows without any prompting.

Masterton gets a double leg takedown into Sampson's guard.
Masterton is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.
Masterton trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Masterton wants to get up but he can't break Sampson's closed guard. He needs to be careful trying to break the legs open, as he's open to submissions here.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Masterton is looking to work some ground and pound but Sampson has wrist control.
Masterton not doing a lot at the moment. He'll have to show some more aggression or the fight will get stood up.
Sampson looking to hit a scissor sweep but Masterton is one step ahead there.
Masterton engaging in some classic timewasting tactics.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Masterton tries a head kick but it misses.

Masterton drops down and drives through with a powerful takedown into guard.
Sampson is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
Masterton seems content to control from guard here. He's going to have to remain active though if he doesn't want to get stood back up.
Sampson is trying to keep Masterton in close.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Masterton wants to stand but Sampson is controlling his posture from full guard.
Rick Sampson has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Sampson is trying to control the position but Masterton postures up.
Hammerfist, elbow! yells Masterton's corner. There ya go! There ya go!

Masterton stands up from Sampson's guard - Masterton perhaps looking for a knockout.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!

Masterton closes the distance and looks for a trip takedown... aaaand he's got it - Masterton lands in his opponent's guard.
Graham Masterton is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Masterton slows down the pace of the fight for a moment. He'll need to remain active if he doesn't want to see the fight stood back up.

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

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Graham Masterton!
Graham Masterton decided to go for the less than humble approach in his post fight interview, telling everyone how he is going to conquer the world. The crowd seemed to like it when really that sort of approach could have gone either way.