PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Derek Patterson (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Jason Shepherd (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Shepherd has chosen Radioactive by Imagine Dragons Ft. Kendrick Lamar as his entrance music. Derek Patterson had real problems making weight for this fight. After initially coming in at 186.5lbs, he had two hours to make the official fight weight. He made it but it will have taken a lot out of him to cut those extra few pounds. The crowd giving both fighters a great reception on their way into the arena. That's good to see.

Patterson
vs
Shepherd

179 cm
20
199 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

193 cm
20
185 lbs
4 - 7 - 0

Good wrestling
Solid boxing
Granite chin

BJJ Blue Belt
Decent boxing
Knockout power

Victory! Sports Nutrition

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the middleweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Montreal, Derek Patterson!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 4 - 7 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Jason Shepherd !
The judges for this bout are Edson Gomes, Paulo Santos and Felipe Paraventi.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Shepherd looks for a takedown but Patterson sprawls well.

Shepherd gets caught napping as Patterson dives in and scores a takedown. Shepherd manages to retain guard.
Patterson works a leg free and moves into half guard.
Shepherd taking some punishment here, with Patterson in his half guard.
Patterson missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
Shepherd is looking to improve his position.
Patterson 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.
Patterson looks to score some points with some ground and pound.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Shepherd on the receiving end of some nice ground and pound.
The fighters are battling for position here. Shepherd manages to regain full guard. Nice work.
Shepherd utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Shepherd is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.
Shepherd really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Patterson. If he can't get it back to his feet, it's only a matter of time before he'll be tapping out.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Patterson throws a big right hand that misses.
Shepherd avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Patterson trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Shepherd working a defensive guard here.
Shepherd is pulling down on Patterson's head. It's preventing any offense from Patterson, at least for the moment.
Patterson throws a big elbow that misses.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Patterson accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.
We get told so often about how wrestlers don't like to be on their backs. Let's see if Shepherd can do anything to dispel that myth.
Patterson with a flurry of punches that miss.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
Shepherd working a defensive guard here.
The referee must be thinking about standing these guys back up.
Patterson throws a big right hand that misses.
Patterson trying to control but Shepherd is working from the bottom.

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

Shepherd closes the distance and pushes Patterson back into the cage.

Patterson is trying to trip Shepherd . He has hold of a leg but Shepherd is hopping around, keeping his balance for the moment. Patterson persists though and gets the takedown into guard.
Patterson throwing strikes from guard but Shepherd blocks nicely.
Patterson loading up with the ground and pound but he's missing more than he's landing in this flurry.
There's a bit of a scramble here and now Shepherd is on top in guard.

Patterson controlling the position.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Shepherd trying to control the position from guard on top but Patterson is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Patterson might be looking to lock onto one of his opponent's long limbs for a submission, whilst we're on the ground.
Shepherd missing there with some ground and pound from the guard.
Patterson tries to land a sweep but no joy.
Patterson throwing strikes off his back to little effect.
Shepherd looking to pass the guard.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Patterson is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.
A big thud reverberates around the arena there as Shepherd accidentally thumps the mat. Hopefully he's not broken his hand.

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.
Patterson pulls Shepherd in close to prevent any damage.
Shepherd won't allow Patterson to sweep him here.

The referee has decided to stand the fighters back up, so we'll restart on the feet.
Patterson misses with a takedown

and Shepherd counters by moving into the clinch. Good anticipation by Shepherd .
Shepherd misses with an elbow over the top.
Shepherd gets underhooks to prevent Patterson's takedown attempt.
Patterson definitely looks more muscular than last time we saw him fight.

Patterson breaks the clinch and we return to the middle of the mat.
Shepherd has been working on his striking defense in training and it's paying off as Patterson is landing a low percentage of strikes.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.

Shepherd moves into range and clinches up with Patterson.
Some stalling of biblical proportions here from Shepherd .
Shepherd wants to stall.
Shepherd lands with a short shot to the head.
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 Derek Patterson will probably get the nod.
That's time! Back to the action!

Patterson shoots in for a takedown but Shepherd shows good takedown defense there and keeps this one on the feet.
Patterson fails miserably with a takedown attempt.

Shepherd clinches.

Patterson gets the body lock takedown. After a quick scramble, Shepherd regains guard.

Shepherd is scooting his butt against the cage and has managed to get back to his feet. Patterson presses him back against the cage, presumably looking to take the fight back to the mat.

Patterson gets a trip takedown into half guard.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Patterson prevents Shepherd from standing back up.
The two fighters exchange a few words. I couldn't hear what they were saying but maybe it's more fun if you make it up yourself. Patterson connects with a nice short shot to Shepherd 's temple.
Patterson prevents Shepherd from standing back up.
Shepherd avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Patterson.
Patterson thows a huge punch but Shepherd dodges it nicely.
Patterson missing with the ground and pound from half guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Patterson throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Shepherd trying to hold on to Patterson's head to control him but Patterson postures up.
Shepherd keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Patterson not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Patterson missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
Patterson seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Shepherd does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.
Shepherd is trying to stand up here but Patterson is controlling him well.
Shepherd tries to roll over but Patterson keeps him under control.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.

The fight moves into the clinch position.

Patterson escapes the clinch and we're back to striking.

That's two minutes gone in the round.

Shepherd rushes Patterson and presses him up against the cage.
Patterson is looking for a takedown.
That's three failed takedown attempts in the round for Derek Patterson. That's going to take a lot out of him.
Patterson tries to land a knee to the head but Shepherd blocks with his arms.

Patterson's corner calls for him to break the clinch, which he does.

Patterson shoots in and bounces Shepherd off the cage to secure the takedown into guard.
Both fighters are absolutely exhausted here.
Shepherd is avoiding any damage by keeping wrist control.
Derek Patterson overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Shepherd is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
Patterson with a nice head shot there.
Patterson is looking to work some ground and pound but Shepherd has wrist control.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Shepherd is looking to stand up but Patterson isn't so interested in that idea.
Patterson trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Patterson lands a couple of decent looking shots.
Patterson trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.
Patterson wants to control from the top but Shepherd keeps moving.
Patterson working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Patterson preventing the sweep.
Patterson wants to pass the guard but Shepherd is keeping the position.
It looks like the ref is thinking about a standup.
Patterson throwing elbows and punches but not connecting, as Shepherd works some decent striking defense from the bottom.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are getting on the fighters' backs, as the pace has dropped off in the last minute or so.
Patterson fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Shepherd shoots in for a takedown but Patterson shows good takedown defense there and keeps this one on the feet.
Patterson throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Shepherd tries to score a power double leg takedown but Patterson sees that one coming and sprawls well. That will dishearten Shepherd somewhat.
No luck for Shepherd with that takedown attempt.
Patterson shoots in and drives through. Shepherd sprawls well.

Shepherd gets caught flat footed, as Patterson shoots in with a quick takedown into guard.
Patterson is working the ground and pound from guard. He might want to try advancing position though to get more of an impact.
Patterson advances to half guard.
Shepherd tries to get to full guard but Patterson has control of the leg.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Derek Patterson dominated that second round.
The fighters' corners scream their final instructions, as the referee calls time. Here we go, back to the action! Let's get this one finished - here comes the final round!

Shepherd misses with a wild combination.
Sloppy strikes from Patterson. Those never looked like landing.
Shepherd shoots in for a takedown. "I don't think so" says Patterson as he avoids it easily.
Shepherd throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Patterson's waist but Patterson gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Shepherd off to one side.
Patterson changes levels looking for a counter takedown but doesn't commit.

The fight moves into the clinch position.

Patterson manages to break the clinch.
Patterson fails with a takedown attempt.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Shepherd leaves Patterson with his face pressed against the mat as he sprawls beautifully, defending against a solid takedown attempt.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Shepherd throws a right and a left that Patterson avoids nicely.

Patterson shoots in for a takedown and gets it.
Patterson trying to control from half guard but Shepherd is working away.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Patterson throwing shots but Shepherd is blocking nicely.
Shepherd is pressing down on Patterson's left leg trying to get back to full guard. He's managed it.
Patterson throws an elbow that misses. Shepherd uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Patterson's guard. Nice move by Shepherd !

Patterson is working an open guard here, looking to improve his position. No doubt that will leave him open to counters but at least he's being more offensive.
Shepherd is fighting to break Patterson's control of his arms but Patterson is doing a good job of controlling the position at the moment.
Shepherd trying to land body shots but he keeps hitting the mat.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Patterson utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Shepherd must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.
Shepherd trying to control the position from guard on top but Patterson is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Shepherd throwing shots from guard but he's hitting more mat than opponent.
Shepherd connects with a couple of short punches.
Shepherd postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Shepherd postures up to throw the ground and pound strikes but they don't connect.
Shepherd tries to stand but Patterson is controlling from the bottom.
Patterson preventing the ground and pound from doing any damage.

The ref stands the fighters back up due to a lack of activity.

Patterson fakes an overhand right and shoots for a takedown. Shepherd sprawls well initially but Patterson persists and gets the takedown into half guard.
Patterson missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Shepherd avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Patterson.
Patterson working Shepherd over with strikes.
Patterson thows a huge punch but Shepherd dodges it nicely.
Patterson thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Shepherd 's head.
Patterson throwing shots but Shepherd is blocking nicely.
Patterson sitting in half guard, looking to land shots. Shepherd defending well though.
Shepherd is looking to escape.
Shepherd avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Patterson.
Shepherd keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Jason Shepherd has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Patterson not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.
Patterson not throwing his punches with enough precision this time.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Shepherd wants to improve his position but Patterson is controlling well.
Derek Patterson is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.
Patterson throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Shepherd ducks under a wild hook from Patterson.
Good standup being displayed there by Shepherd as he connects with a hook.
Shepherd shoots for a takedown but Patterson saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Derek Patterson has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Jason Shepherd .
Patterson stuffs the takedown.

Patterson closes the distance and gets a double leg, slamming Shepherd to the mat! Shepherd manages to get full guard.
Patterson lands a couple of digs.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Shepherd wants to sweep but no luck.
Patterson distracts Shepherd with his right hand and drops a big elbow with his other arm.
Patterson trying to control the position from guard on top but Shepherd is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.

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 Derek Patterson.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Patterson, 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 Edson Gomes scores the fight 30:27
Judge Paulo Santos scores the fight 30:27
Judge Felipe Paraventi scores the fight 30:27

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Derek Patterson!
In defeat, Jason Shepherd stepped up to the mic, saying 'I'm disappointed in myself, the opponent outclassed me. There's no one to blame but me, only thing to do is head back to the gym and get ready for the next fight.'.