PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Aleksander Baris (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Tristan Rowan (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). The crowd seem to be enjoying Rowan's choice of entrance music: "Heavyweight" by Rick Ross. 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 Tristan Rowan was going to win. Let's see if he was right.

Baris
vs
Rowan

180 cm
21
198 lbs
3 - 3 - 0

184 cm
20
190 lbs
1 - 0 - 0

Good wrestling
Basic striking
Hates pizza

BJJ Blue Belt
Excellent boxer
Good gas tank

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 3 - 3 - 0, fighting out of New York, Aleksander Baris!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 1 - 0 - 0, fighting out of Las Vegas, Tristan Rowan!
The judges for this bout are Robert Twigg, Chris Downing and Daniel Franklin.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Rowan throws a looping overhand right but Baris ducks down to avoid it.
Rowan ducks down and throws a hook to the body.
Rowan throws a shot from downtown. Baris moves away and avoids it.
Baris ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
We've been hearing reports that Baris has been drilling takedowns in recent sessions so let's see if that has an impact on the result of this fight.
Rowan lands a jab.

Excellent takedown into side control there by Baris.
Baris misses with an attempted head punch from side control.
Rowan regains half guard, as Baris was trying to land strikes.
Rowan taking some punishment here, with Baris in his half guard.
Baris throwing shots but they're hitting the canvas more than the man.
Baris content to control rather than advance.
Baris is scoring with some nice ground and pound from the dominant position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Baris throwing shots but Rowan is blocking nicely.
Baris content to control rather than advance.
Rowan is looking to escape.
Baris trying to control the pace.
Baris throwing punches and elbows but they're not doing any damage.
Rowan is trying to maintain the position but Baris is very close to passing his half guard.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
The crowd are hurling abuse towards the fighters... You can hardly blame them though because there isn't a lot going on in the fight.
Baris lands with an elbow from half guard - that looked like it hurt.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Baris slips a nice elbow through Rowan's hands, connecting with Rowan's forehead.
Baris perhaps working for something from half guard, or maybe not. It looks like he's just sitting there.
Baris is looking to take a break and control but Rowan is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Rowan is looking to escape.
Baris throwing shots but Rowan is blocking nicely.
Baris working over Rowan with some ground and pound. Rowan looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
Baris is taking a breather. Rowan says something to him but it's hard to make out. Perhaps he's telling him to get on with it and actually do something.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Rowan is trying to get back to full guard.
Rowan really doesn't want to stay on the ground with Baris. 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 three minutes gone in the round.
Baris thumps the canvas. Not on purpose obviously - he just missed Rowan's head.
Rowan tries to get to full guard but Baris has control of the leg.
Baris missing with some ground and pound from the half guard.
Baris is looking to take a break and control but Rowan is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Baris trying to control the pace.
The referee is pacing around the two fighters - he looks like he's thinking about a standup.
Rowan avoiding damage under a succession of punches from Baris.
Baris lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
A few boos can be heard. I'm sure they will multiply if the fighters don't pick up the pace.
Baris thows a huge punch but Rowan dodges it nicely.
Baris thows a huge punch but Rowan dodges it nicely.
Rowan is trying to stand up here but Baris is controlling him well.
Baris wants to take a breather but Rowan is having none of it.
Baris thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
Baris seems to be taking a bit of a break to think of his next move. He lands a short punch in the meantime.
Baris with a momentary lay and pray from half guard.
Baris working the head and body with strikes.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Rowan is not content to let Baris control the position.
Baris missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

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

Baris closes the distance, clinches up and gets a nice trip takedown into side control. Very smooth.
Rowan manages to work his way to half guard, despite Baris's best efforts.
Still in half guard, Baris seems content to control.
Rowan keeping his head moving to avoid the ground and pound.
Baris perhaps working for something from half guard, or maybe not. It looks like he's just sitting there.
Baris working Rowan over with strikes.
Baris wants to free his trapped foot but Rowan is holding on for dear life with his legs.
Rowan felt the need to train up his defensive grappling in the buildup to the fight. Presumably he was expecting to be in a difficult position like this, so let's see if he can get out of it.
Baris lands a big shot. The thud that echoes around the arena is like music to the fans' ears.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Baris wants to lay and pray for a moment but Rowan keeps working.
Baris trying to mount his opponent but Rowan defends it.
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. Baris connects with a nice short shot to Rowan's temple.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Baris looks towards his corner to check for any instructions. The corner give him nothing to work with, so he cracks Rowan with a short hammerfist. I guess that's as good as any advice he could get in this position.
Baris missing with the ground and pound from half guard.
Baris not doing much here.
Baris has controlled the position for a good 20 seconds, which will no doubt be starting to frustrate his opponent.
Aleksander Baris overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
Baris lands strikes from half guard.

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.
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. Baris connects with a nice short shot to Rowan's temple.
Rowan is trying to control but can't.
Rowan wants to get back to full guard.
Baris thows a wild elbow that connects with the canvas.
Baris working over Rowan with some ground and pound. Rowan looks like he wants out of this position, which is understandable.
Baris keeping composed on the top, looking to control the action.
Baris 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.
Baris is looking to take a break and control but Rowan is keeping him honest, looking to work from the bottom.
Baris with a momentary lay and pray from half guard.
Baris is really dominating this fight. Is there anything that Rowan can do to turn this around?

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Baris wants to pass the guard but Rowan is defending well.
The referee calls for the fighters to work.

The referee has motioned to the fighters to stand back up. He just wasn't happy with the level of activity.
Rowan swings wildly with a right hand that was never going to find it's target.
Baris shoots in and drives through. Rowan sprawls well.
No luck for Baris with that takedown attempt.

Baris bobs and weaves into range and then changes levels and scores with a nice takedown into side control.
Baris tries to score with some ground and pound. Rowan controls his posture well this time though and the shots don't do any damage.
Baris scoring with punches from side control.
Baris is pausing for a moment. What's he doing? It looks like he's clearing his nose. Oh dude! He's shot a load of snot all down Rowan's shoulder. That is not cool.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Rowan is not content to let Baris control the position.
Rowan pushes Baris away and creates a bit of space to escape. He's almost out here... but no, Baris gets a good hold of his legs and remains firmly in side control.
Baris lands a decent elbow from side control.
Baris landing a few strikes.
Baris creates a bit of distance and throws down some hard shots.
Baris cracks Rowan with an elbow. That is naaassty.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Baris scores with a couple of nice shots to the head there. The referee takes a look at Rowan to see if he's OK.
The crowd thankful this round is nearly over.
Rowan prevents Baris from moving into mount.
Baris lands a knee to the body and follows it up with some ground and pound to the head. That will wear Rowan down.
Baris tries to score with some ground and pound. Rowan controls his posture well this time though and the shots don't do any damage.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

Aleksander Baris dominated that second 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. Let's hear some noise people - this is the final round!

Baris scores with a nice takedown into half guard. Let's see what he's got on the ground.
Rowan looks like he's trying to stand up.
Baris is pressing down on Rowan's thigh, looking to free his foot. Rowan is holding on for now.
Baris is working hard here to advance position.
Baris scores with a couple of good hammerfists.
Baris trying to control the action but Rowan is working from the bottom.
We've had a slow start to the round here - hopefully the action picks up.
Baris prevents Rowan from standing back up.
Baris content to control rather than advance.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Rowan tries to roll over but Baris keeps him under control.
Rowan has hold of Baris's hands but Baris slips his arm to the side and lands an elbow.
Well, if Baris 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.
Baris landing with strikes to the body and head, softening up his opponent.
Tristan Rowan has stepped it up - he knows he needs a finish here!
Aleksander Baris is fighting for a decision here - he's started to take the cautious approach.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
A lull in the action here being met with boos from the crowd.
Baris is taking a breather. Rowan says something to him but it's hard to make out. Perhaps he's telling him to get on with it and actually do something.
The referee looks like he's ready to step in and stand the fighters back up.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up.
Rowan throws an uppercut from half a mile away. Baris sees it coming and avoids it easily.

Baris shoots in and bounces Rowan off the cage to secure the takedown into guard.
We get told so often about how wrestlers don't like to be on their backs. Let's see if Rowan can do anything to dispel that myth.
Baris is intent on slowing down the pace of the fight, simply looking to control.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Rowan 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.
Baris stays in close to Rowan's body and controls the position.
The referee must be thinking about standing these guys back up.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Neither fighter has done anything of merit for a good minute or two here and the crowd are not happy about it.
Baris prevents Rowan from getting back to his feet.

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

Baris is looking for a takedown here. He's shot in and has managed to get it, finishing up in Rowan's half guard.
Baris is controlling the pace.
Rowan is in trouble now - Baris has advanced to mount!
Boooooooooooooooooooo!!! God, this has been a terrible round. Come on you two, sort yourselves out!
Baris controlling from the full mount.

And that's the end of the fight!
Aleksander Baris showed his dominance in that final round.
Well I reckon that's a shut out for Baris, 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 Robert Twigg scores the fight 30:27
Judge Chris Downing scores the fight 30:27
Judge Daniel Franklin scores the fight 30:27

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