PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Kelvin Tatum (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Abdullah Zaire (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). I'm sure you'll be fascinated to know that I was talking to some pointless Z list celebrity before the fight and he thought that Abdullah Zaire was going to win. Let's see if he was right.

Tatum
vs
Zaire

183 cm
22
225 lbs
5 - 1 - 0

183 cm
22
198 lbs
3 - 1 - 0

BJJ Brown Belt
Solid boxing
Very strong

Good wrestler
Good low kicks
Good gas tank

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 5 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Kelvin Tatum!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 3 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Los Angeles, Abdullah Zaire!
The judges for this bout are Wesley Smith, Alan Glass and Stewart Dunkirk.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Tatum checks a low kick. Bone on bone - not my idea of a good time.
Tatum misses with a body shot. Nice footwork from Zaire.
Zaire misses with the body kick
and Tatum makes him pay by landing a nice hook to the body before moving out of range.
Tatum lands a lovely overhand right.
Zaire wants to slow Tatum down by chopping away at his legs.
Tatum was looking to counter that last move with a shot to the body but he didn't commit.
Zaire throws a wild body kick that Tatum sees coming a mile off.
Good leg kick by Zaire there. It's the ones that make that thud noise that hurt and that was an almighty thud.
Tatum seems to be moving with more speed, compared to his last bout. He must have been working on that in the gym.
Zaire chopping away at his opponent's legs.
Zaire wants to slow Tatum down by chopping away at his legs.
A lazy left from Tatum finds it's target.
Zaire throws a chopping leg kick but Tatum manages to avoid taking any serious damage.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Tatum has a nice red mark on his side after a thudding body kick by Zaire.
Zaire ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Tatum throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Zaire lands a leg kick that knocks Tatum off balance momentarily.

That's one minute gone in the round.
A head kick by Zaire misses
and Tatum counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Tatum wings a very wild body shot but it does the job and lands to the midsection.
Abdullah Zaire seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Zaire thuds a mid kick into his opponent's body. That will wear on Tatum if he has to take too many more of those.
Tatum uses good head movement to avoid the hook from Zaire.
Tatum was looking to counter that move with a punch but didn't quite pull the trigger.
Zaire lets loose with a powerful body kick. Tatum will feel that in the morning.
Tatum defending well as Zaire loads up on a big left hand.
It looked like Tatum wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.
Zaire misses with a body shot.
Zaire tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. Tatum manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
Tatum throws a body kick but he wasn't in range.
Tatum throws a body shot but no joy.
Zaire throws a body kick that misses.
Zaire lands with a nice body kick.
Zaire keeps Tatum at a distance using the push kick.
Ouch! a nice leg kick from Zaire, right into the meat.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Tatum looks to land a left hand but Zaire moved out of range nicely.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Tatum pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Zaire fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Tatum manages to avoid it.
Tatum scores with a sloppy punch to the body. Not much technique there but it did the business.
A swing and a miss from Zaire.

Zaire clinches with his opponent.
Tatum swings wildly with an uppercut but Zaire uses good head movement to avoid it.
A head punch on the inside from Tatum fails to land.
The fighters are pressed against the cage, as the pace of the fight slows.

Zaire breaks the clinch and we're back to striking at distance.
Zaire throws a low kick but Tatum avoids it.
Tatum fakes the leg kick and cracks Zaire in the body.
Tatum throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Tatum throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
Zaire dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Tatum. That did some damage!
Zaire is pinned up against the cage taking some big shots here. The referee is looking closely deciding whether he should stop the fight.
Zaire has done a lot of speed work in the buildup to this fight.
A head kick misses from Tatum.
Zaire cracks the inside of Tatum's front leg.
Zaire misses with a head kick.
Tatum slips under a jab.
Zaire walks straight into a jab right on the nose. That one stung - he's blinking and trying to clear his head.
Tatum throws a shot from downtown. Zaire moves away and avoids it.
Tatum takes a swing at Zaire's ribcage but misses.
Zaire misses with a low kick.
Tatum is looking to counter punch.
Zaire looks to land a body kick but Tatum moved away.
Tatum lands a straight punch to the body, keeping Zaire at a distance.
Tatum rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Zaire moves out of range and avoids them all easily.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Tatum waving his hands out in front of him, looking to distract Zaire.
Zaire moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Zaire throws a low kick but his opponent is out of range.
Tatum is the aggressor but that punch slipped nicely by Zaire.
Zaire throws a lazy body kick
and Tatum counters with a nice uppercut.
Tatum misses with a wild body shot.
Tatum swings for the body but Zaire moves out of range.
Zaire throws a body shot but no joy.
Tatum swings for the body but Zaire moves out of range.
Zaire throws a low kick but his opponent is out of range.
A slow jab from Tatum misses its intended target.
Tatum throws a right and a left that Zaire avoids nicely.
Tatum misses the body punch
and Zaire counters with a thumping low kick.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close round but I would say that Kelvin Tatum will probably get the nod.
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.

Zaire blocks a jab.
Zaire staying out of range there.
Zaire avoids a lazy jab quite easily.
Zaire lands with a thumping leg kick.
Tatum takes a nice looking leg kick right on the meat of his thigh there.
Zaire attempts a low kick but it misses it's target.
Tatum was looking to counter that move with a punch but didn't quite pull the trigger.
Zaire steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Tatum.
Zaire throws a leg kick which misses Tatum's front leg but catches the back leg as Tatum tries to avoid it.
Tatum lands a lovely overhand right.
Zaire misses with a body shot.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
A big left from Tatum misses.
Tatum missing with a left hand there. Zaire was out of range so wasted energy throwing that one.
Tatum keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Zaire.
Tatum takes a body kick right on the floating rib. Ouchie.
Tatum jabs Zaire right on the nose. Zaire blinks but takes it well.

That's one minute gone in the round.

Zaire has taken the fight to the clinch.
A head punch blocked on the inside by Tatum.
Tatum swings wildly with an uppercut but Zaire uses good head movement to avoid it.

Zaire breaks the clinch.
Tatum uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Zaire.
Tatum is looking to counter with a shot to the body.
Kelvin Tatum is winning the standup battle so far.
Zaire jabs. That one connects to the head of his opponent.
Good work by Tatum as he checks the leg kick.
Zaire lands a leg kick that knocks Tatum off balance momentarily.
A telegraphed right hand from Tatum misses the target.
Zaire delivers a nice body kick.
Zaire uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Tatum.
Zaire tries to work over Tatum's front leg with a kick but Tatum checks it.
Zaire avoids a lazy jab quite easily.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Zaire lands a nice leg kick that just misses Tatum's sensitive parts.
Zaire looks to score with a jab to the body but Tatum is just out of range.
Zaire throws a body kick that misses.
It looked like Tatum wanted to counter with a hook but didn't fully commit.
Tatum just misses with a punch to the body.
Tatum just misses with a punch to the body.
Zaire looking to throw a kick but he's pulled out of it.
Zaire keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Tatum.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Tatum tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Tatum pivots as if he's going to throw a leg kick but stops half way.

Zaire darts in and clinches Tatum up against the cage.
Zaire fails to land with a short punch on the inside.
Zaire blocks an uppercut.
Tatum looking to stall.
Tatum has a couple of punches blocked by Zaire.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Zaire misses the knee to the body. Nice hip positioning from Tatum.
Tatum trying to control the position but instead, Zaire has worked for underhooks and has pushed Tatum into the cage.
Zaire misses with a body punch.
Tatum struggles to land a body shot inside as Zaire controls his hands.

Zaire pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Zaire misses with a body kick.
Tatum swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Tatum walks forward, straight into a front kick from Zaire.
Zaire tries to score with a low kick but Tatum moves his leg out of the way.
Zaire lands a leg kick and bounces back out of range.
A nice inside leg kick there by Zaire. That's going to slow Tatum down.
A head kick by Zaire misses
letting Tatum counter with a right hand.
Zaire keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Tatum.
Tatum loads up on a big right hand but Zaire slips the punch.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Zaire darts in and out, connecting with a jab.
Zaire throws a sloppy head kick and Tatum moves out of range easily.
A little feinted left hand from Tatum on the counter but he doesn't commit to it.
Zaire comes forward and lands a shot to the body, then darts back out of range.
Tatum connects with a hook to the side of his opponent's head.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Zaire dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Tatum. That did some damage!
Tatum tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Zaire was well out of range. Poor timing from Tatum.
Tatum ducks under a wild hook from Zaire.
Tatum misses with a hook. Zaire ducked under it nicely.
Zaire ducks under a wild hook from Tatum.
Zaire tries a quick counter leg kick but Tatum is wise to it.
Tatum just misses with a punch to the body.
Zaire lands a nice leg kick that just misses Tatum's sensitive parts.
Tatum cracks a nice hook into Zaire's ribs.
Zaire swings for the body but Tatum moves out of range.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Abdullah Zaire showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
OK. That's time! The bell goes and we're back to the action. This is the final round!

Zaire throws a leg kick but he was too far away and it doesn't land.
Tatum will be looking to protect his midsection after taking some solid kicks to the body.
Zaire lands a leg kick that knocks Tatum off balance momentarily.

Zaire gets a clinch.
Zaire stalling against the cage.
Tatum tries a shoulder strike but it doesn't do any damage.
Zaire blocking some punches.
Tatum lands a body punch.
Tatum trying to stall but Zaire improves his position.

Zaire breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Zaire avoids the body shot from Tatum.
The step up in weight doesn't seem to be a problem for Zaire. He's performing admirably here against the bigger man.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Tatum takes a swing at Zaire's ribcage but misses.
Tatum swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
The fighters circling - Tatum throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
A looping hook to the body misses from Zaire. Tatum does a little dance to reset his feet.
Zaire lands a leg kick. The shin dug right into the meat of the thigh.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Zaire throws a body kick that sends a sickening thudding noise reverberating around the arena.
Zaire ducks under a wild hook from Tatum.
Zaire raises up his leg as if looking to counter with a high kick.
Tatum misses the body punch
and Zaire counters with a nice kick to the body.
Zaire connects with a leg kick. Tatum looked like he was expecting something else and didn't defend it.
Tatum fakes with the hands and throws a leg kick but Zaire is out of range.
Tatum misses with a body shot.
Tatum is hobbling a little on that front leg after taking quite a few leg kicks so far in this fight.
Zaire scores with a slapping inside leg kick.
Zaire tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. Tatum manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
Zaire misses with a body kick.
Tatum throws an overhand right that lands on Zaire's shoulder, as Zaire tries to avoid the shot.
Zaire looks like he wants to counter punch here.
Tatum takes a swing at Zaire's ribcage but misses.
Zaire misses with a kick to the body
and he gets countered with a snapping leg kick.
Zaire looks to throw a body kick
and Tatum counters with a stiff right hand.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Zaire turns his hip over beautifully as he lands a nice leg kick.
Zaire pivots as if he's going to throw a leg kick but stops half way.
Tatum scores with a jab to the head.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Tatum connects with a hook to the side of his opponent's head.
Tatum throws a body punch but Zaire moves out of range.
Zaire wings a very wild body shot but it does the job and lands to the midsection.
Zaire lands a front kick.
Zaire tries a switch kick but it misses it's target.
Tatum throws a body shot but no joy.
Zaire buckles his opponent's knee momentarily with a nice leg kick.
Tatum jabs Zaire right on the nose. Zaire blinks but takes it well.
Zaire keeping a good distance there, avoiding the body shot.
Tatum tries to bum rush Zaire with a series of wild strikes but Zaire uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Tatum's legs have taken a beating and he's really slowing down as a result.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Zaire throws a right hand that misses
and Tatum makes him pay by landing a nice hook to the body before moving out of range.
Tatum uses good head movement to avoid the hook from Zaire.
Zaire cracks the inside of Tatum's front leg.
Zaire thumps Tatum with a low kick.
Tatum misses with a hook. Zaire ducked under it nicely.
Tatum backing away here, and Zaire unleashes a leg kick that just misses.
An inside leg kick lands from Zaire.
Zaire bobs and weaves and then throws a good body kick.
Tatum on the wrong end of a kick to the body.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Tatum throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Zaire misses with a wild body shot.
Tatum walks forward, straight into a front kick from Zaire.
Zaire bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Zaire throws a leg kick
and Tatum counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Tatum steps to his left, right into the path of a big body kick from Zaire. That one must have hurt.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Zaire lands a leg kick. The shin dug right into the meat of the thigh.
Zaire scores with a slapping inside leg kick.
Tatum throws a monster uppercut resembling something out of street fighter but it doesn't land.
Zaire throws a sloppy head kick and Tatum moves out of range easily.
Tatum is looking to counter with a shot to the body.
Tatum loads up on a big right hand but Zaire slips the punch.
Zaire ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Zaire dances in quickly and lands a nice inside leg kick on Tatum. That did some damage!
Tatum throws a looping overhand right but Zaire ducks down to avoid it.
Zaire tries a quick counter leg kick but Tatum is wise to it.
A looping hook to the body misses from Tatum. Zaire does a little dance to reset his feet.
Tatum scores with a decent looking hook.
Zaire fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Tatum manages to avoid it.

And that's the end of the fight!
I would just about give that final round to Abdullah Zaire.
Well Zaire has outworked and out performed his opponent in all aspects of the game today. He was simply too good and the decision should be no more than a formality. 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 Wesley Smith scores the fight 28:29
Judge Alan Glass scores the fight 28:29
Judge Stewart Dunkirk scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Abdullah Zaire!
A relieved looking Abdullah Zaire thanked the fans for their support and gave the usual line about them being amazing. They seemed to believe that he actually meant it.