PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Matt Piletich (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Sakuraba Gracie (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Piletich's ring entrance music is that housewives' favourite, Manowar-King of Kings. Gracie is bobbing his head along to his entrance song: Gimme Shelter. Well, the cameraman is lingering on a pretty young lady for a bit too long there. Keep your eyes on the fighters buddy or you'll miss the fighter intros!

Piletich
vs
Gracie

185 cm
24
190 lbs
8 - 1 - 0

180 cm
24
192 lbs
6 - 4 - 0

BJJ Purple Belt
Brawler
Very strong

BJJ Brown Belt
Basic striking
Solid chin

TKO Vegas
Syndicate Drugs

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 5 rounds, for the middleweight championship of the world!
Introducing the champion to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 8 - 1 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Matt Piletich!
And introducing the challenger to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 6 - 4 - 0, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Sakuraba Gracie!
The judges for this bout are Mauricio Rocha, Leandro Rodrigues and Seu Braga.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Piletich lets the fists fly and connects with a left straight followed by a right hook.
Piletich closes the distance and takes a jab right on the nose as he does so.
Piletich is pinned up against the cage taking some big shots here. The referee is looking closely deciding whether he should stop the fight.
Piletich stumbles momentarily as he takes a strong leg kick from Gracie.
Piletich rushes forward with a series of wild hooks but Gracie moves out of range and avoids them all easily.
Gracie shoots in and drives through. Piletich sprawls well.
Piletich throws a right hand that Gracie ducks under and follows up with a left that Gracie also avoids with ease.
A slapping body kick lands there for Gracie.
Gracie takes a solid shot to the body. That one hurt him but he's trying not to show it.
The crowd cheering loudly, showing their appreciation for the quality fight we're seeing here.
Piletich moves out of range as Gracie strikes.
Gracie misses with a kick to the body.
Piletich scores with a jab to the jaw of his opponent.
A solid leg kick lands there for Gracie.
Piletich lunges in with swinging rights and lefts but Gracie circles away quickly and effectively.
Gracie slips a jab and a cross from Piletich.
Piletich avoids a kick to the body.

Gracie shoots in and bounces Piletich off the cage to secure the takedown into guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Gracie stops Piletich from standing up.
Gracie landing some decent shots from guard.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Gracie works a leg free and moves into half guard.
Gracie working Piletich over with strikes.
Piletich avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Gracie.
Piletich is trying to get back to full guard.
Piletich is working for an escape here. He's hooked one of Gracie's legs and he's managed to sneak out and take Gracie's back!
Piletich doesn't have the hooks in and Gracie manages to turn into his guard.
Gracie postures up in Piletich's guard and throws a big left but Piletich blocks it.
Gracie looks gassed!
Piletich manages to sweep nicely, so he's now on top. Gracie manages to get himself to full guard.

Gracie escapes his hips to the side and looks to be working for an armbar. Piletich gives him a little smile and shakes his head. No chance.

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

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Gracie takes a step towards his opponent and connects with a left hand, before circling away.
Piletich throws a right and a left that Gracie avoids nicely.
Nice defenses there by Piletich.
Piletich pushing out the jab but it's not landing.
Jab by Piletich.
A punch combination from Piletich misses.
Piletich misses with a jab and misses with a cross straight after too.
Gracie shoots in for a takedown. "Ole!" shouts Piletich as he jumps to the side.
Piletich shoots in for a takedown - he's clinched up with Gracie but Gracie pushes him off and we're back to square one.
Piletich throws a series of punches but Gracie moves out of range.
Piletich throws a right hand that Gracie ducks under and follows up with a left that Gracie also avoids with ease.
Like a baseball bat into the meat of his leg there - nice leg kick by Gracie.
The crowd are loving this. Great action here.
Nice body punch from Piletich.
Piletich connects with a crisp jab.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Gracie scores with a jab to the jaw.
Piletich misses with a few strikes there.
Gracie throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Piletich fails to land with a series of punches.

Piletich darts in and lands a nice takedown into half guard.
Piletich tries to pass to full mount but Gracie defends it.
Piletich prevents Gracie from improving his position.

Piletich is looking for a kimura here.
Well, if Piletich is going to just lie there, perhaps we should talk about what we're having for dinner tonight… I'm having a ham and pineapple pizza… Yum. Can't wait.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Gracie moves his hips nicely and gets into full guard.
Gracie 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.
Piletich tries to free his leg and advance position but Gracie is retaining full guard.
Piletich wants to control from the top but Gracie keeps moving.
Gracie throws a couple of weedy looking strikes off his back.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Gracie keeping full guard, as Piletich tries to pass.
Piletich stopping the sweep attempt from Gracie.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Matt Piletich dominated that round.
The fighters get back to their feet, the hooter sounds and we're back to the action!

Piletich throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Gracie.
Gracie moves forwards but Piletich connects with a nice, crisp jab.
Piletich throws a series of punches but Gracie avoids them all with ease.
Gracie is looking to slow Piletich down with leg kicks.
Piletich throws a jab, cross combination which is slipped
and Gracie counters with a leg kick.
Gracie connects with a nice looking jab.
Piletich displays some good footwork, moving neatly out of range as Gracie throws out the jab.
A lazy left from Gracie finds it's target.
Gracie tries to shoot in for a takedown. He's got hold of a leg but Piletich swivels and escapes.

Piletich gets a takedown into half guard.
Gracie is breathing heavily.
Piletich tries to pass the half guard into mount. Gracie knows what he's doing though and prevents the attempt.

Gracie actively working from the bottom here.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Piletich is pressing down on Gracie's thigh, looking to free his foot. Gracie is holding on for now.
Piletich wants to take a breather but Gracie is having none of it.
Well, if Piletich is going to just lie there, perhaps we should talk about what we're having for dinner tonight… I'm having a ham and pineapple pizza… Yum. Can't wait.
Gracie wants to improve his position but Piletich is controlling well.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Piletich with a hook.
Gracie cracks the inside of Piletich's front leg.
Matt Piletich is winning the standup battle so far.
Gracie tries for a takedown but Piletich circles away easily
and Piletich counters with a good right hand that lands right on the jaw.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Piletich misses with a few strikes there.
Gracie takes a punch right to his stomach. That took the wind out of him momentarily.
Gracie walks into a jab.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Piletich fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Gracie shoots for a takedown but Piletich saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
Matt Piletich has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Sakuraba Gracie.
Piletich throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Piletich throws a combination but comes up with nothing but fresh air.
Piletich throws a one two combo.
Piletich misses with a wild combination.
Piletich throws a nice looking combination but Gracie bobs and weaves to avoid any damage.
Gracie avoids a punch combination nicely.
Gracie throws a half hearted mid kick.
Gracie moving in and out of range nicely, whilst landing the scoring shot.
Piletich lands three nice shots there - that looked like it hurt!

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Gracie scores with a slapping inside leg kick.
Piletich misses with a few strikes there.
Gracie slips a jab and a cross from Piletich.
Piletich has a nice red mark on his side after a thudding body kick by Gracie.
Piletich misses with a looping right.
Gracie lands a lovely overhand right.
Gracie shoots in with a takedown attempt and he has Piletich pinned against the cage. Piletich gets the underhooks and manages to circle away.
Piletich throws a combination but it was largely blocked by Gracie.
Piletich swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Gracie explodes with a nice body kick and back out of range. Nice work.
Piletich tries to bum rush Gracie with a series of wild strikes but Gracie uses good footwork to avoid the assault.
Piletich takes a jab on the nose. He smiles like he loves it and keeps coming.
Sakuraba Gracie seems to be the more aggressive standup fighter in this bout.
Piletich throws a wild combination but nothing lands.
Gracie connects with a solid leg kick.

Excellent takedown into side control there by Gracie.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Gracie connects with a decent looking elbow from side control that caused Piletich some visible discomfort.

Gracie is trying to get an arm triangle but Piletich is defending well.
Piletich manages to work his way to half guard, despite Gracie's best efforts.
Piletich avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Gracie.
Piletich has no desire to be mounted, so is trying to control. Gracie is working away from the top position though.
Piletich avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Gracie.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Piletich trying to control from the bottom.
Piletich gets full guard.
Piletich trying to control the position here.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Matt Piletich dominated that second round.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Gracie misses with a jab to the body
and Piletich counters with a crisp hook to the side of the head.
Piletich throws a series of punches but Gracie moves out of range.
Piletich is hobbling a little on that front leg after taking quite a few leg kicks so far in this fight.
A big right from Piletich misses.
Piletich uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Gracie.
Piletich fails to land with the punch combination there - jab, cross, hook, miss, miss, miss.
Piletich takes one to the chin there.
Gracie throws a looping left and ducks down for a takedown. He's got his arms around Piletich's waist but Piletich gets an underhook and avoids the takedown by throwing Gracie off to one side.
Gracie throws a head kick but Piletich moves out of range.
Gracie takes one on the chin but seems OK.
Gracie misses with a low kick.
Piletich misses with a series of wild punches.
Piletich looks to land a combination but Gracie avoids it well.
Gracie defending well as Piletich loads up on a big left hand.
Piletich misses with a two punch combination.
Both fighters are breathing heavily.
Piletich slips under a jab from Gracie.
Piletich ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Gracie moves away.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Gracie scores with a slapping inside leg kick.
Gracie tries to score with an inside leg kick but telegraphs it and Piletich is able to avoid easily.
Piletich throws a right hand that Gracie ducks under and follows up with a left that Gracie also avoids with ease.
Gracie shoots in but no luck this time.
Gracie gets his takedown attempt stuffed easily
and Piletich counters with a nice uppercut.
Matt Piletich has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Sakuraba Gracie.
Piletich fakes high and swings low for a body shot but Gracie manages to avoid it.
Piletich misses with a wild combination.
Gracie shoots in but doesn't get the takedown

and Piletich counters with a nice double leg into guard.
Piletich stopping the sweep attempt from Gracie.
Piletich is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.
Gracie throws a couple of shots from the bottom but they don't land.
Matt Piletich overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Piletich wants to control from the top but Gracie keeps moving.
Piletich landing some decent shots from guard.
Gracie keeping moving, preventing Piletich from controlling successfully.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.

Gracie looking for a guillotine here but Piletich defends easily.
Gracie can't keep his opponent in guard - Piletich advances to half guard, no doubt looking to mount.
Neither fighter is being very active at the moment, with Piletich in particular looking to stall.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Gracie misses with some strikes from the bottom.
Gracie punching from the bottom.
Piletich is looking to take a break and control but Gracie is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Piletich not doing much here.
Gracie misses with some strikes from the bottom.
Gracie tries to get to full guard but Piletich has control of the leg.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
Piletich 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.
Gracie misses with some strikes from the bottom.
Piletich prevents Gracie from improving his position.
Gracie has the superior BJJ but he's also working some ground strikes into his gameplan.

Gracie with the active half guard here but Piletich passes nicely into side control.
Piletich scores with a couple of nice shots to the head there. The referee takes a look at Gracie to see if he's OK.
A bit of a lull in the action. I'm sure it will pick up again soon... even if the ref has to physically pick them up and put them back on their feet.
Piletich seems to have a rather negative gameplan on the ground. He seems keen to just score the takedown and hold down Gracie for as long as he can get away with.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Matt Piletich clearly takes that round.
The corners get their ten second warning. Both fighters stand from their stools and stare eachother down, ready to get back to the action.

Gracie showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Piletich.
Piletich fails to land with a series of punches.
Piletich ducks under a wild hook from Gracie.
Gracie slips a jab and a cross from Piletich.
Piletich misses with a wild combination.
Gracie lands a with a good body shot.
Piletich gets cracked with a nice right hand there by Gracie.
Gracie thuds a left hand into Piletich's body.
Gracie looks for the body kick but Piletich saw that one coming.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Piletich takes a body kick right on the floating rib. Ouchie.
A decent looking body kick lands there for Gracie.
Gracie looking to land some kicks to the body here.
Gracie throws a push kick but Piletich slaps the foot to one side.
Piletich ducks down and throws a hook to the body but Gracie moves away.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Piletich lets the fists fly and connects with a left straight followed by a right hook.
It's got to the stage where if one of these guys blows hard enough, the other might fall over.
Gracie misses the shot to the body.
Gracie misses with a takedown
and Piletich counters with a left and a right that stings Gracie.
Piletich misses with the combination.

Gracie bobs and weaves into range and then changes levels and scores with a nice takedown into side control.
Gracie cracks Piletich with an elbow. That is naaassty.
Piletich manages to land a sweep and he's now on top! Lovely Jiu Jitsu!
Piletich seems very keen to just sit and control from half guard but Gracie does not like that idea so much and is remaining active off his back.

Gracie looking to work for a kimura from the bottom.
Piletich trying to control the action but Gracie is working from the bottom.
Gracie is on the bottom, trying to hold on to half guard. He's throwing a few small shots here, to keep his opponent honest.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Piletich wants to take a breather but Gracie is having none of it.
Piletich tries to pass to full mount but Gracie defends it.
Gracie wants to improve his position but Piletich is controlling well.

Neither fighter is doing enough for the referee's liking and he's decided to stand them back up.
Gracie with a poor takedown
and Piletich counters with a series of strikes. Gracie will be more careful next time no doubt.
Gracie looks shocked there as he takes a right hand to the temple.

Gracie shoots in from a long way out. He's driving through with the takedown attempt and he eventually gets it, landing in Piletich's guard.
Piletich has momentary wrist control but Gracie slips an elbow through the middle.
Piletich is working from a closed guard but he's struggling to control his opponent.
Hammerfist, elbow! yells Gracie's corner. There ya go! There ya go!

Piletich looking for submissions off his back, moving his hips, looking for an opening.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Gracie preventing the sweep.
Gracie with a couple of shots to the head there. Not particularly brutal.
Piletich wants to sweep here but Gracie controlling him for the moment.

It looks like we're going to have a standup here. Neither fighter is doing enough on the ground.
Gracie has his takedown stuffed
enabling Piletich to counter with a crisp jab.
Matt Piletich has stuffed three takedown attempts in the round now. That's going to take a lot out of Sakuraba Gracie.
Gracie throws a big shot that misses.
Piletich throws a left and a right that both miss

and Gracie decides to take the opportunity to score a takedown. He's landed in Piletich's guard.
Piletich avoiding any damage from the ground and pound.
Gracie wants to pass the guard but Piletich is keeping the position.
Piletich utilising some decent striking defenses from the guard, preventing the ground and pound.
Piletich bucks up whilst keeping hold of a body lock, managing to reverse the position. Now he's in top in Gracie's guard.
Gracie looking to sweep here. No luck so far.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Gracie trying to strike from the bottom but really, it's not the best position to be doing that from!

Gracie has his foot on Piletich's thigh. He's trying to push off and get in position for a triangle, I think. Piletich works his way back into a safe position though.
Piletich throwing strikes but missing.
Piletich tries to free his leg and advance position but Gracie is retaining full guard.
Gracie keeping moving, preventing Piletich from controlling successfully.

Gracie has thrown up a leg looking for a triangle. Piletich doesn't defend quickly enough and Gracie has managed to lock this one up! Can Piletich escape?! NO! He's tapping out! Damn, that was a quick submission - congrats to Gracie on a fantastic submission victory.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 4:49 of round 4, we have a winner by way of Submission (Triangle). Sakuraba Gracie!
Sakuraba Gracie is the new middleweight champion!