PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a heavyweight MMA rules bout between Butch Hoffman (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Ivan Drago (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Hoffman comes to the cage accompanied by Judas Priest - Painkiller. Drago has chosen Drago as his entrance music. Fingers crossed for an exciting fight - I'm sure both fighters are looking for a nice under the table bonus!

Hoffman
vs
Drago

203 cm
25
245 lbs
5 - 2 - 0

200 cm
27
265 lbs
10 - 6 - 0

Great wrestler
World class boxer
Granite chin

Good wrestler
World class boxer
Good gas tank

AnonymouS

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 5 - 2 - 0, fighting out of Helsinki, Butch Hoffman!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 10 - 6 - 0, fighting out of New York, Ivan Drago!
The judges for this bout are Eddie Farnsworth, Alyssa Summers and Jonathan Paton.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!

Hoffman closes the distance and presses his opponent up against the cage.
Hoffman lands a right hand.
Drago can't break the clinch.
Hoffman is looking for a takedown up against the cage. Drago gets underhooks though and prevents the takedown attempt.
Hoffman misses with a hook to the ribs.
Hoffman tries to throw a body punch but Drago avoids it by throwing Hoffman back against the cage.
Drago wants to get back to striking at distance but Hoffman won't allow it.
Drago tries to circle away but Hoffman has him pinned against the cage.
With the fighters clinched against the cage, Hoffman creates a bit of distance for himself and scores with a nice uppercut.

Drago pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Hoffman misses with a body shot.
Hoffman misses with a hook. Drago ducked under it nicely.
Hoffman fails with a takedown attempt from distance.
Hoffman throws a lazy body kick
and Drago counters with a straight right hand.
Butch Hoffman seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Drago jabbing away but nothing is landing.

Hoffman gets to the clinch - let's see what his plan is here.
Drago wants to break the clinch but can't.
Drago is looking to break free of the clinch but Hoffman has double underhooks.
An uppercut on the inside fails to land for Hoffman.
Hoffman keeps control of Drago as he tries to wriggle out of the double underhooks.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hoffman trying to land knees to the body.
Hoffman goes for a body shot but it's blocked.
Drago looks like he'd prefer to be striking at range right now.
Hoffman tries to land knees in the clinch but Drago avoids the damage to the body.
Hoffman goes for a body shot but it's blocked.

Drago breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Hoffman misses with a body shot.
Hoffman misses with a jab to the body
enabling Drago to counter with a crisp jab.
Drago throws a shot from downtown. Hoffman moves away and avoids it.
Hoffman is trying to close the distance and clinch up, after that failed offence from Drago.
Hoffman tries to clinch up.
Drago looks like he wants to counter punch here.
Hoffman throws a sloppy head kick and Drago moves out of range easily.
Drago is loading up here, looking for a big counter of his own.
Hoffman misses the body punch
and Drago connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Drago ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Hoffman moves away.

Hoffman moves into range and clinches up with Drago.
Hoffman tries to score a body lock takedown but Drago shows good agility there to stay on his feet.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Butch Hoffman. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Drago managing to block the knees to the body from Hoffman.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Hoffman prevents Drago from breaking the clinch.

Drago breaks from the clinch.
Hoffman thows a body kick. Drago tries to catch it but that hurt him.
Drago moves out of range as Hoffman strikes.
Hoffman throws a lazy body kick
and Drago counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
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!
Hoffman blocks a jab.
Hoffman fakes a head punch and goes low to the body. Nicely done.
Hoffman showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Drago.
Hoffman misses the shot to the body.
A little jabbing left from Drago on the counter but it doesn't find it's target.

Drago gets tackled into the cage by Hoffman. Hoffman maintains the clinch.
A left hand lands to the body for Hoffman.

Drago manages to break the clinch.
Hoffman lands with a nice body kick.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hoffman moving in and out of range nicely, whilst landing the scoring shot.

It looks like Ivan Drago has been cut.

Hoffman moves into the clinch successfully.

Drago pushes off and circles away, back to the middle of the mat.
Hoffman tries to clinch up but Drago circles away and keeps his distance.
Hoffman ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Hoffman throws a jab when Drago was well out of range.
Drago looked like he wanted to counter with a punch but didn't throw it.
Drago circles away from the clinch attempt
and Drago counters with a lovely straight right hand!
Hoffman uses decent footwork to sidestep a right hand from Drago.
Hoffman scores with a jab to the jaw of his opponent.
Drago thuds his right hand into Hoffman's forehead from close range. That could be painful for both fighters.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Jab from Hoffman.
Hoffman swings and misses with a shot to the body
letting Drago counter with a right hand.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Hoffman uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Drago.
Hoffman wants to take advantage of his opponent's missed offense by moving into the clinch.
Hoffman throws a right and a left that both miss.
Hoffman lands with a kick to the ribs.
Drago avoids a kick to the body.
Drago cracks Hoffman with a nice right hand that draws applause from the crowd.
Hoffman tries to clinch there but Drago circles away.
Drago throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Drago circles away from the clinch attempt
and Drago cracks him with a counter punch right on the button.
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 Butch Hoffman will probably get the nod.
The cut man is working on Ivan Drago's cut.
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.

Hoffman tries to clinch but Drago is having none of it.
Hoffman scores with a hook.
Drago swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
The fight stays on the outside here - Hoffman looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Drago avoids the clinch attempt nicely.
Drago walks into a stiff left hand from Hoffman.
Drago staying out of range there.
Hoffman wants to clinch
and Drago counters with a straight right hand.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hoffman fails with an attempt to clinch.
And an attempted straight right on the counter from Drago! But no joy.
Hoffman tries to land a front kick but Drago steps back. That was a bit too telegraphed.

Nice combo by Hoffman! Oh, that's hurt him - Drago falls to the canvas and Hoffman follows him into side control.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Hoffman wants to lay and pray for a moment but Drago keeps working.
Drago is trying to control Hoffman's posture but Hoffman avoids it.
Drago managing to avoid any damage from the strikes thrown by Hoffman.
Drago tries to get back to half guard but can't.
We've been hearing that Hoffman has been drilling a lot of ground and pound in training, so let's see if he get the finish.
Hoffman connects with a decent looking elbow from side control that caused Drago some visible discomfort.
Hoffman wants to lay and pray for a moment but Drago keeps working.
Drago takes a nasty elbow to the side of the head.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The referee tells the fighters to keep busy.
The fighters are starting to get a bit slippery now, which will make submissions a bit more difficult.
Drago is not content to let Hoffman control the position.
Hoffman scoring with punches from side control.
Drago really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Hoffman. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.
Hoffman working the strikes but Drago uses the opportunity to regain half guard.
Hoffman looks over to his corner - he wants some instructions but his corner are not responding.
Hoffman seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Drago does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.
Hoffman working Drago over with strikes.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Hoffman is figuring out what he wants to do next.
Hoffman throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Hoffman prevents Drago from improving his position.
Hoffman not landing any meaningful shots this time.
Hoffman thows a huge punch but Drago dodges it nicely.
Hoffman is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Drago can do to turn this around?
Hoffman is trying to control the action in half guard but Drago is working away on the bottom, looking perhaps to get back to full guard.
Hoffman 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.
Drago trying to hold on to Hoffman's head to control him but Hoffman postures up.
Hoffman working some ground and pound from close in. He's looking to maintain this position and strike for a while by the looks of things... although he'll probably advance to full mount in a minute now I've said that.
Drago avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Hoffman.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Drago keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Hoffman not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Drago is trying to stand.
If this pace continues, the referee will definitely step in and force a standup.
Hoffman throwing shots but Drago is blocking nicely.
Hoffman missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
Hoffman stalling.

The referee has stepped in and called for a break in the action. We'll restart on the feet.
Hoffman misses with a straight left.
A lazy body kick from Hoffman
and Drago counters with a shot to the ribs. That looked like it hurt.
Hoffman lands with a good body shot.
Hoffman with a poor takedown
enabling Drago to counter with a crisp jab.
A looping hook to the body misses from Hoffman. Drago does a little dance to reset his feet.
Hoffman looks to clinch
letting Drago counter with a right hand.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Butch Hoffman dominated that second round.
The cut man is working on Ivan Drago's cut.
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. This is the final round!

Hoffman lands a high kick!
The fight stays on the outside here - Hoffman looks like he's thinking about clinching though.
Hoffman swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Hoffman connects with a lovely jab that went straight through the gap between Drago's hands.
Hoffman looks for a takedown but Drago sprawls well.
Hoffman takes a punch to the jaw and another one to the bread basket.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Hoffman steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Drago.
Drago lands a nice shot that snaps Hoffman's head back.
Donk. Hoffman catches Drago right on the button with a cross.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Drago takes a solid shot to the body. That one hurt him but he's trying not to show it.
Hoffman digs a good body shot into Drago's ribs.
Decent striking displayed by Drago there.
Butch Hoffman is winning the standup battle so far.
Hoffman defending well as Drago loads up on a big left hand.

Hoffman cracks Drago with a big right hand and Drago goes down!

Drago is rocked!
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Drago wants to stand and escape but Hoffman is having none of it.
Drago is still in real trouble! Can Hoffman finish him?
Hoffman working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Drago seems to have recovered his senses.
Hoffman working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Hoffman landing with the ground and pound.
Hoffman with a flurry of punches that miss.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Hoffman controlling from the top position.
Hoffman lands a couple of digs.
Hoffman postures up.
Hoffman trying to control the position from guard on top but Drago is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Hoffman throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Hoffman working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Hoffman content to stall in guard here.
Hammerfist, elbow! yells Hoffman's corner. There ya go! There ya go!

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Drago avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Drago avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Drago looking to hit a scissor sweep but Hoffman is one step ahead there.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.
Drago bobs and weaves well there to avoid the strikes.
Hoffman closes the distance looking to clinch
and Drago counters with a straight right hand.
Hoffman steps to the side to avoid the strikes from Drago.
Hoffman wants to clinch
and Drago connects with a straight left hand counter down the middle.
Hoffman throws a leg kick but Drago sees it coming and checks it nicely.
And an attempted straight right on the counter from Drago! But no joy.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Hoffman takes a swing at Drago's ribcage but misses.
Hoffman tries to close the distance and clinch up but Drago swats him away and circles back towards the center.
Drago is looking for the big counter here.
A jab from Drago misses.
Hoffman goes for a spinning back kick but it misses.
And an attempted straight right on the counter from Drago! But no joy.
Drago lands a lovely overhand right.
Hoffman slips a jab from Drago.
Hoffman tries to clinch but is not successful on this occasion.
Hoffman just misses with a punch to the body.
A big left from Hoffman misses.
Drago swings away with a counter right hand but no contact made.
Drago circles away from the clinch attempt.
Ivan Drago has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Butch Hoffman is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Hoffman fails with an attempt to clinch.

And that's the end of the fight!
Butch Hoffman showed his dominance in that final round.
Well Hoffman has outscored his opponent in every aspect of the fight today. Only a scarily incompetent judge or two will keep him from a well deserved win... 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 Eddie Farnsworth scores the fight 30:27
Judge Alyssa Summers scores the fight 30:27
Judge Jonathan Paton scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Butch Hoffman!
After the fight, Butch Hoffman was humble in paying tribute to his opponent but made it clear he wants to go on to bigger and better things. It seemed to go down well with the crowd who cheered him loudly.
Ivan Drago was interviewed post fight and said '"He's not human, he's like a piece of iron."'.