PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a light heavyweight MMA rules bout between Jamal Barnett (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Caio Rodrigues (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). The key to victory for Jamal Barnett has got to be keeping the fight on the feet.

Barnett
vs
Rodrigues

207 cm
19
214 lbs
1 - 3 - 0

200 cm
18
210 lbs
0 - 0 - 0

BJJ Blue Belt
Counter fighter
Cuts easily

BJJ Blue Belt
Brawler
Solid chin

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 1 - 3 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Jamal Barnett!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 0 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Caio Rodrigues!
The judges for this bout are Frank Dennis, Cecil Peabody and George Francis.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Rodrigues gets a takedown into half guard.
Rodrigues is keeping good posture, landing some ground and pound.
Still in half guard, Rodrigues seems content to control.
Rodrigues wants to stand up but Barnett has a hold of him and won't allow it.
Ground and pound from Rodrigues.
Rodrigues takes advantage of the dominant position to land a couple of big hammer fists.
Barnett really does look like a pencil wearing a pair of gloves. Let's hope he has a gameplan to suit that ridiculous body shape.
Rodrigues seems content to maintain position for now, rather than mounting any offense.

Rodrigues is looking for a kimura but Barnett is holding onto that half guard position, so it's hard for Rodrigues to get the leverage.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Rodrigues content to sit in half guard and control for a moment.
Barnett wants to control but Rodrigues is keeping busy and won't allow it.
Rodrigues has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Barnett is trying to get back to full guard.
Barnett is trying to defend against the ground and pound but Rodrigues scores with a couple of nice shots.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Rodrigues is figuring out what he wants to do next.
Rodrigues looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Barnett with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Rodrigues prevents Barnett from improving his position.
Rodrigues stalling.
Barnett is trying to control but can't.
Rodrigues frees up his trapped foot and advances to mount.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Rodrigues is going oldschool here, as he tries to force Barnett to tap using a forearm choke. This isn't 1993 though, so Barnett shrugs it off.
Rodrigues looking to control and managing it successfully.
Rodrigues lands an elbow that was bordering on illegal but the referee lets it go with a warning.
Barnett is working to get back to half guard.

Rodrigues with some aggressive grappling here. He's looking for submissions here, rather than waiting for the opportunity to counter.
Barnett tries to reverse the position but Rodrigues maintains control.
Rodrigues controlling his opponent.
Barnett is desperately trying to get back to half guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Rodrigues looking to control and managing it successfully.
Rodrigues fails to advance to Barnett's back.

Rodrigues is going oldschool here, as he tries to force Barnett to tap using a forearm choke. This isn't 1993 though, so Barnett shrugs it off.

Rodrigues has control of Barnett's right arm, working for a kimura. It's a bit of a token attempt though and Barnett regains control of the situation pretty easily.
Rodrigues blocks Barnett's feeble attempts to strike from the bottom.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Well. There's a bit of a lull in the action here and the crowd are starting to get restless.
Barnett takes a big shot to the head but keeps on trying to improve his position.
Rodrigues takes a little breather and maintains the position. The referee will be looking for him to stay active from such a dominant position though.
Barnett is squirming around, avoiding Rodrigues's attempts to control the action.
Barnett bucks up and manages to get a nice reversal! He's in guard on the top - nicely done!
Rodrigues working a defensive guard here.
Barnett is fighting to break Rodrigues's control of his arms but Rodrigues is doing a good job of controlling the position at the moment.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Barnett working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Caio Rodrigues dominated that round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action!

Rodrigues has Barnett up against the cage in a clinch.
Barnett is looking to take this one to the mat.
Rodrigues blocks a knee to the body. He'll have a nicely bruised forearm in the morning.

Rodrigues jumps guard and drags Barnett to the mat. He's obviously going to be looking for submissions off his back.
Rodrigues wants to sweep here but Barnett controlling him for the moment.

Barnett avoids a guillotine attempt easily.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Barnett throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Rodrigues works some decent striking defense from the bottom.
Rodrigues looking for a sweep. Not yet Rodrigues, not yet.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Barnett throws a strike but Rodrigues rolls with it and manages to sweep. Now he's in guard on top.

Rodrigues sitting in guard, not really doing much.
Hammerfist, elbow! yells Rodrigues's corner. There ya go! There ya go!

Barnett is looking for a triangle but Rodrigues pushes his legs off easily.

Rodrigues decides to stand up and beckons his opponent to follow.

Rodrigues gets a takedown into half guard.
Rodrigues controlling the action here.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Rodrigues is sneakily working for an arm triangle but Barnett sees it coming and defends easily.
Rodrigues trying to mount his opponent but Barnett defends it.
Rodrigues has been the more effective fighter overall so far.
Rodrigues content to control rather than advance.
Rodrigues trying to pass the guard but Barnett defending well.
Still in half guard, Rodrigues seems content to control.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Rodrigues looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Barnett with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Rodrigues is trying to get back to his feet now but his leg is trapped.
Barnett is not content to let Rodrigues control the position.
Barnett trying to hold on to Rodrigues's head to control him but Rodrigues postures up.
Rodrigues working Barnett over with strikes.
Rodrigues controlling the action here.
Barnett wants to get back to full guard.

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.
Barnett gets back to full guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Rodrigues trying to pass the guard but can't manage it just yet.
Barnett throwing some rather feeble looking strikes off his back.
Rodrigues controls the pace of the fight for a moment.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.

Rodrigues gets the takedown into side control.
Rodrigues is breathing heavily.
Barnett is looking for a sweep.
Rodrigues wants to stand but Barnett is controlling his arm.
Barnett tries to improve position but can't.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Rodrigues landing strikes.
Rodrigues tries to get to his feet but he's trapped momentarily.
Barnett tries to bench press Rodrigues off him but Rodrigues keeps the position.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Caio Rodrigues showed his class in that round. I'd imagine he'll take it on all the scorecards.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action! Ladies and gentlemen, this is the final round!

Rodrigues stuffs the takedown.
Rodrigues throws a nice looking combination but Barnett bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
It looked like Barnett was looking amped, ready to throw a big counter but didn't commit.
Barnett circles away from the clinch attempt.
As Rodrigues tries to get set, Barnett tries to push him back and clinch up but Rodrigues manages to avoid the attempt.

Rodrigues looking to score a takedown here. Barnett is defending well but Rodrigues drives through and ends up in Barnett's guard.
Rodrigues controlling from the top position.
Rodrigues slips nicely into half guard.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Barnett is trying to get back to full guard.
Rodrigues seems to be taking a bit of a break to think of his next move. He lands a short punch in the meantime.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Rodrigues seems content to maintain position for now, rather than mounting any offense.
Barnett tries to get to full guard but Rodrigues has control of the leg.
Rodrigues is figuring out what he wants to do next.

Barnett is looking to sinch up a guillotine here but Rodrigues pulls his head out easily.

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.
Rodrigues is just sitting in half guard, waiting for something to happen.
Rodrigues tries to stand but can't do so whilst Barnett controls his leg.
Barnett is looking to control Rodrigues's leg but it's slowly edging free. Can Barnett avoid being mounted?
We must be close to a standup if these guys don't pick up the pace.
Rodrigues looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Barnett with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Rodrigues is trying to get back to his feet now but his leg is trapped.
Barnett tries to get to full guard but Rodrigues has control of the leg.
Still in half guard, Rodrigues seems content to control.

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.

Rodrigues shoots in for a takedown! He's got it and he's managed to land in side control! That's better than Rodrigues was expecting from the takedown attempt, I'm sure!
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Rodrigues is moving around in side control but his primary objective seems to be to maintain the position.
Rodrigues gets to mount! Barnett was on the offensive and wasn't defending properly.
Barnett is in all sorts of trouble here.
Rodrigues controlling his opponent.

Rodrigues jumps to side control looking for an arm triangle but Barnett manages to avoid the submission attempt.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Barnett tries to get back to half guard but can't.
Rodrigues wants to stand but Barnett has his arm trapped.

Rodrigues tries for a kimura but Barnett is defending well.
Barnett tries to buck Rodrigues off but Rodrigues is having none of it.
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Rodrigues cracks Barnett with a big right hand but Barnett just smiles back at him and invites him to have another go.
Jamal Barnett has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Caio Rodrigues is fighting for a decision - hopefully he's judged it right and he's actually winning the fight.
Caio Rodrigues has got the better of the ground game so far.
Barnett being controlled for a moment.

And that's the end of the fight!
Caio Rodrigues comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
Well Rodrigues 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 Frank Dennis scores the fight 27:30
Judge Cecil Peabody scores the fight 27:30
Judge George Francis scores the fight 27:30

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Caio Rodrigues!